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Blog · Forecast and pipeline

Pipeline coverage by industry: what the pipeline is when there are no deals

Pipeline coverage is open pipeline over remaining target, and on many desks there is no CRM pipeline at all: the pipeline is renewals due, tenders in flight, RFQs open, applications pending, or the season's filings. This hub gives, for twelve industries, what stands in for the pipeline, where it lives, how it is weighted, and the multiple the desk actually needs, with the guide for each.

The short answerPipeline coverage is what is in flight over what is still needed, and what is in flight differs by desk: opportunities in a CRM, renewals due in the register, tenders and proposals out, RFQs open, applications in process, engagements not yet started. Each has a stage or a state with a historical conversion, and the needed multiple is one over that conversion at this point in the period, from the desk's own history. The formula holds everywhere; the object and the history are the desk's own.

Pipeline coverage is one formula and a different object on every desk. This hub gives, for twelve industries, what stands in for the pipeline, where it lives, how it is weighted, and what the guide for that desk covers.

The formula, once

Coverage = weighted in-flight value closing in the period ÷ remaining target Needed multiple, per state = 1 ÷ historical conversion of that state at this point

Twelve desks

Industry What is in flight Where it lives Weighted by Guide
General B2B sales Opportunities by stage CRM snapshots Historical conversion by stage Pipeline coverage ratio
SaaS Renewals due plus expansion opportunities Contract register, CRM Renewal rate by utilisation band; stage conversion Seat utilisation before renewal
Insurance broking Renewals due, by claims band Placement ledger, outcomes Non-renewal rate by band Claims experience and retention
B2B telecoms Contracts ending, by notice window Contract register Renewal rate; untouched in notice Renewal calendar
Professional services Proposals out, by source and fee band Proposal log Win rate by cell Proposal win rate
Investment banking Pitches made, by sector and product Pitch log Mandate rate by cell Pitch-to-mandate conversion
Industrial manufacturing Quotes issued, by family and turnaround Quote log Conversion by cell Quote-to-order conversion
Hotel groups Rooms on the books for future months Reservation snapshots Historical pickup from this point Pace per property
Trading desks Inquiries open and clients tiered RFQ log Size-weighted hit ratio Client tiering by flow
Accounting firms Engagements due in the season Engagement list, calendar Started or not by usual date Season watch
Sports Partner renewals due, by timing Contract register Late or on time against own history Renewal timing
Education Renewals due, by utilisation Licence register, usage Renewal rate by utilisation band Licence utilisation

What is the same everywhere

  • A stated period, and only items closing inside it count.
  • A state per item with a historical conversion from the desk's own outcomes.
  • A weighted total against the remaining target, per person.
  • The identity: items sum to the register or the snapshot they came from.

What is different

The object, and where the history comes from. A desk with a CRM has snapshots; a desk with a contract register has renewal outcomes; a desk with a proposal log has win rates. Each is the desk's own record of what in-flight things became.

Where it goes wrong, everywhere

Renewals counted as certain. Coverage overstated by the non-renewal rate.

One multiple. Three, because someone said so.

No history kept. The conversion cannot be computed; the multiple is a guess.

Items outside the period counted. Next quarter's renewals covering this quarter's gap.

One formula, every desk

Covirage computes weighted coverage on each desk's in-flight object from its own history, with the needed multiple stated. The forecasting methods guide covers where weighted coverage sits among the ways to forecast, and each desk's guide covers its object.

Questions people ask

What if the desk has no pipeline object at all?

Every desk has something in flight that becomes revenue at a rate: renewals, proposals, inquiries, filings, bookings. It has states and a history. The hub names the object per desk, and the coverage is computed on it.

Where does the needed multiple come from?

From the desk's own history of what in-flight items at this stage and this point in the period actually converted. One over that rate. Never three by default.

Are renewals a pipeline?

For a subscription, contract or annual desk, renewals are most of the pipeline: revenue due to be re-won at a historical rate. Treating them as certain overstates coverage; treating them as new business understates it. The renewal calendar with historical renewal rates by band is the desk's weighted pipeline.