The movement of deals past their expected close dates without a corresponding change in stage position, qualification or buyer commitment — one of the most reliable indicators that a pipeline has been built on optimism.
Also known as:
deal slippage, close date slippage, forecast slippage, deal pushback
Individual deal slippage is expected in complex sales. Systematic pipeline slippage is a diagnostic signal: it means the close dates in the CRM were never grounded in buyer evidence to begin with. When deals consistently slip, the issue is not timing. It is the quality of the original qualification and stage evidence.
Pipeline slippage is low when close dates are set from buyer-committed milestones: an agreed evaluation timeline, a board sign-off date, a contract deadline, rather than from rep targets or quarter-end pressure. When a date slips, it is treated as an evidence question: what changed, and what does the buyer need to do next?
Rolling close dates are the norm: deals that slip one quarter, then another, without anyone challenging why. The deal stays in the pipeline because removing it would reduce coverage. The real problem is that the close date was never valid, and nobody has asked the buyer to confirm it.
Pipeline slippage is an inspection trigger in the Closing OS Run phase. A deal with a slipped close date is inspected for stage evidence and buyer commitment before it is rolled forward. If the evidence is not there, the stage is revisited, not just the date.
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