Go/No Go

If your Metrics are strong and the Pain and its implications are big enough, your Champion will be more willing to bring you in front of the Economic Buyer (EB), the ultimate decision maker.

There might be a lot of initial objections or even pushback from the EB, as EBs are usually very busy and don’t want to waste any time.

There are plenty of objections you might come across, such as:

• “The EB does not meet with vendors.”
• “The EB is not interested in details and will be involved at a later stage.”

This is when you can test whether you have a real Champion. They will understand that buy-in from the EB is essential for a successful project. If you picked the right Champion, they will be able to arrange this meeting.

The Go/No Go meeting

The goal of the Go/No Go meeting with the EB is to present your preliminary business case, which includes the pain points, metrics on the consequences if nothing is done, and a potential ROI. Ask for sponsorship, and finally define what the next steps could be.

Questions to ask the EB

• Do you sponsor the project?
• What does success look like for you?
• What are the next steps if we fulfill the success criteria?

If you get answers to these questions and the “Go” from the EB, then you are possibly 66% of the way through the process.

Next steps

By discussing ROI and business outcomes, you might have built a potential segue to executive management. The EB should provide clear steps on what needs to happen to reach a decision and who needs to be involved.

Now you can outline your next steps, such as a Proof of Value, a process audit or any other validation event that will allow the customer to make a decision.

Qualifiers and milestones in this stage

In the Go/No Go stage, you will find the following qualifiers and milestones by default:

• Dp – Decision Process
• EB – Economic Buyer