Deal slippage is when deals expected to close in one period push into the next, repeatedly. It distorts forecasts and often signals a qualification problem rather than a timing problem: the deal was never as close as the pipeline claimed.

A deal that slips twice is usually not a deal, it is a conversation you are unwilling to disqualify. Slippage wrecks forecasting because it fills the pipeline with hope, and hope makes you plan hiring and cash against revenue that will not arrive. The cure is honest exit criteria at each stage, applied even when the deal feels good.

Example:

A deal marked closing this month for the third consecutive quarter is not slipping. It never met the criteria to be there in the first place.

What does repeated deal slippage indicate?

Usually a qualification failure. The deal was advanced through stages without meeting real criteria, so the forecast was inflated from the start.

How do you reduce slippage?

Enforce explicit exit criteria at each pipeline stage, and disqualify honestly rather than letting hopeful deals occupy the forecast.