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Granular Pipeline Stages

Definition

A CRM pipeline architecture with 10–15 discrete stages from top of funnel to closed, replacing the typical 4–5 stages most PE firms use. Dan Herr argues that greater stage granularity enables managers to cross-sectionalize their pipeline — identifying exactly where top prospects stall for each team member — and to set targeted metrics at each progression point.

Origin

Introduced by Dan Herr in Ep. 6: How to Generate Predictable, Repeatable, and Scalable Deal Flow.

Typical vs. Granular Stages

Typical (4–5 stages): New → Engaged → Active Deal → IC/Submitted → Closed

Dan's model (10–15 stages):

  1. New
  2. First outreach completed
  3. Reply received
  4. First quality interaction
  5. Face-to-face meeting
  6. Investment team member looped in
  7. NDA signed / financials received
  8. IC presentation
  9. IOI submitted
  10. Management meeting
  11. LOI submitted
  12. LOI signed
  13. Closed won / closed lost / closed passed

Dan also recommends tracking closed-deal subcategories: deals the firm won, deals lost to another buyer, and deals the firm passed on — "Have I gone back through our junk heap and sorted out the ones that we passed on? Do I even know that? Do I have that tagged anywhere?" (Ep. 6)

Application

The granular model enables three capabilities (Ep. 6):

  1. Cross-sectionalization by prospect tier: Managers can filter by top prospects only and ask, "How many of my A-tier prospects are stuck between reply and first meeting?"
  2. Per-team-member diagnostics: Some team members struggle with first outreach conversion; others stall between meetings and investment team engagement. Granular stages surface these patterns.
  3. Funnel conversion analysis: With stages defined, managers can measure stage-to-stage conversion rates and identify systemic bottlenecks.

Dan emphasizes that automation is non-negotiable — "nobody's going to go manually update 10 or 15 pipeline stages every time I send an email, every time I get a reply." The stages must be updated automatically through CRM integrations. (Ep. 6)