forecast
anthropics/knowledge-work-plugins
Generate weighted sales forecasts with best/likely/worst scenarios, commit vs. upside breakdown, and gap analysis.
What is forecast?
Creates a risk-adjusted sales forecast from your pipeline data, breaking down deals into commit (high confidence) and upside (lower confidence) categories. Use when preparing quarterly forecasts, assessing gap-to-quota, deciding which deals to commit, or checking pipeline coverage against your number.
- Generates weighted forecast scenarios (best, likely, worst case) with stage-based probabilities
- Breaks pipeline into commit vs. upside deals with confidence ratings
- Performs gap analysis showing what's needed to hit quota
- Flags at-risk deals (stale activity, missed close dates, stage mismatches)
- Calculates coverage ratio and pipeline health metrics
- Provides stage-by-stage pipeline breakdown with weighted values
How to install forecast
npx skills add https://github.com/anthropics/knowledge-work-plugins --skill forecastHow to use forecast
- 1.Gather your pipeline data: export a CSV from your CRM (Salesforce, HubSpot, etc.) with deal name, amount, stage, and close date, or paste/describe your deals manually
- 2.Provide your quota target and the period end date (e.g., '$500K for Q1 ending March 31')
- 3.Specify any already-closed deals this period
- 4.Run the forecast command with the period (e.g., '/forecast Q1')
- 5.Review the output: check commit vs. upside split, gap analysis, and risk flags
- 6.Act on recommendations: accelerate key deals, revive stalled opportunities, or generate new pipeline as needed
Use cases
- Preparing for a quarterly forecast call with leadership
- Assessing whether you'll hit quota and identifying the gap
- Deciding which deals to commit vs. call upside in a forecast submission
- Checking if your pipeline coverage is healthy (3x is ideal)
- Identifying which stalled deals to revive or push to next quarter
- Sales representatives and account executives
- Sales managers forecasting team or territory performance
- Sales operations professionals analyzing pipeline health
- Anyone preparing quarterly business reviews or forecast submissions
forecast FAQ
At minimum: deal name, amount, stage, and close date. Optionally include owner, last activity date, created date, and account name for richer analysis. You can upload a CSV, paste deals manually, or describe your territory in text.
The skill uses default probabilities: Negotiation/Contract 80%, Proposal/Quote 60%, Evaluation/Demo 40%, Discovery/Qualification 20%, Prospecting 10%. Tell it if your stages or win rates are different.
Commit deals are high-confidence opportunities you'd stake your forecast on (typically 80%+ probability). Upside deals could close but have risk. The forecast shows both scenarios so you know what you can reliably count on.
The skill pulls pipeline automatically, uses your actual historical win rates by stage/segment, factors in activity recency for risk scoring, and can track forecast changes over time.
3x coverage is healthy (pipeline value = 3x quota). Below 2x is risky and means you need to generate more pipeline to safely hit your number.
Full instructions (SKILL.md)
Source of truth, from anthropics/knowledge-work-plugins.
name: forecast description: Generate a weighted sales forecast with best/likely/worst scenarios, commit vs. upside breakdown, and gap analysis. Use when preparing a quarterly forecast call, assessing gap-to-quota from a pipeline CSV, deciding which deals to commit vs. call upside, or checking pipeline coverage against your number. argument-hint: "<period>"
/forecast
If you see unfamiliar placeholders or need to check which tools are connected, see CONNECTORS.md.
Generate a weighted sales forecast with risk analysis and commit recommendations.
Usage
/forecast [period]
Generate a forecast for: $ARGUMENTS
If a file is referenced: @$1
How It Works
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ FORECAST │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ STANDALONE (always works) │
│ ✓ Upload CSV export from your CRM │
│ ✓ Or paste/describe your pipeline deals │
│ ✓ Set your quota and timeline │
│ ✓ Get weighted forecast with stage probabilities │
│ ✓ Risk-adjusted projections (best/likely/worst case) │
│ ✓ Commit vs. upside breakdown │
│ ✓ Gap analysis and recommendations │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ SUPERCHARGED (when you connect your tools) │
│ + CRM: Pull pipeline automatically, real-time data │
│ + Historical win rates by stage, segment, deal size │
│ + Activity signals for risk scoring │
│ + Automatic refresh and tracking over time │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
What I Need From You
Step 1: Your Pipeline Data
Option A: Upload a CSV Export your pipeline from your CRM (e.g. Salesforce, HubSpot). I need at minimum:
- Deal/Opportunity name
- Amount
- Stage
- Close date
Helpful if you have:
- Owner (if team forecast)
- Last activity date
- Created date
- Account name
Option B: Paste your deals
Acme Corp - $50K - Negotiation - closes Jan 31
TechStart - $25K - Demo scheduled - closes Feb 15
BigCo - $100K - Discovery - closes Mar 30
Option C: Describe your territory "I have 8 deals in pipeline totaling $400K. Two are in negotiation ($120K), three in evaluation ($180K), three in discovery ($100K)."
Step 2: Your Targets
- Quota: What's your number? (e.g., "$500K this quarter")
- Timeline: When does the period end? (e.g., "Q1 ends March 31")
- Already closed: How much have you already booked this period?
Output
# Sales Forecast: [Period]
**Generated:** [Date]
**Data Source:** [CSV upload / Manual input / CRM]
---
## Summary
| Metric | Value |
|--------|-------|
| **Quota** | $[X] |
| **Closed to Date** | $[X] ([X]% of quota) |
| **Open Pipeline** | $[X] |
| **Weighted Forecast** | $[X] |
| **Gap to Quota** | $[X] |
| **Coverage Ratio** | [X]x |
---
## Forecast Scenarios
| Scenario | Amount | % of Quota | Assumptions |
|----------|--------|------------|-------------|
| **Best Case** | $[X] | [X]% | All deals close as expected |
| **Likely Case** | $[X] | [X]% | Stage-weighted probabilities |
| **Worst Case** | $[X] | [X]% | Only commit deals close |
---
## Pipeline by Stage
| Stage | # Deals | Total Value | Probability | Weighted Value |
|-------|---------|-------------|-------------|----------------|
| Negotiation | [X] | $[X] | 80% | $[X] |
| Proposal | [X] | $[X] | 60% | $[X] |
| Evaluation | [X] | $[X] | 40% | $[X] |
| Discovery | [X] | $[X] | 20% | $[X] |
| **Total** | [X] | $[X] | — | $[X] |
---
## Commit vs. Upside
### Commit (High Confidence)
Deals you'd stake your forecast on:
| Deal | Amount | Stage | Close Date | Why Commit |
|------|--------|-------|------------|------------|
| [Deal] | $[X] | [Stage] | [Date] | [Reason] |
**Total Commit:** $[X]
### Upside (Lower Confidence)
Deals that could close but have risk:
| Deal | Amount | Stage | Close Date | Risk Factor |
|------|--------|-------|------------|-------------|
| [Deal] | $[X] | [Stage] | [Date] | [Risk] |
**Total Upside:** $[X]
---
## Risk Flags
| Deal | Amount | Risk | Recommendation |
|------|--------|------|----------------|
| [Deal] | $[X] | Close date passed | Update close date or move to lost |
| [Deal] | $[X] | No activity in 14+ days | Re-engage or downgrade stage |
| [Deal] | $[X] | Close date this week, still in discovery | Unlikely to close — push out |
---
## Gap Analysis
**To hit quota, you need:** $[X] more
**Options to close the gap:**
1. **Accelerate [Deal]** — Currently [stage], worth $[X]. If you can close by [date], you're at [X]% of quota.
2. **Revive [Stalled Deal]** — Last active [date]. Worth $[X]. Reach out to [contact].
3. **New pipeline needed** — You need $[X] in new opportunities at [X]x coverage to be safe.
---
## Recommendations
1. [ ] [Specific action for highest-impact deal]
2. [ ] [Action for at-risk deal]
3. [ ] [Pipeline generation recommendation if gap exists]
Stage Probabilities (Default)
If you don't provide custom probabilities, I'll use:
| Stage | Default Probability |
|---|---|
| Closed Won | 100% |
| Negotiation / Contract | 80% |
| Proposal / Quote | 60% |
| Evaluation / Demo | 40% |
| Discovery / Qualification | 20% |
| Prospecting / Lead | 10% |
Tell me if your stages or probabilities are different.
If CRM Connected
- I'll pull your pipeline automatically
- Use your actual historical win rates
- Factor in activity recency for risk scoring
- Track forecast changes over time
- Compare to previous forecasts
Tips
- Be honest about commit — Only commit deals you'd bet on. Upside is for everything else.
- Update close dates — Stale close dates kill forecast accuracy. Push out deals that won't close in time.
- Coverage matters — 3x pipeline coverage is healthy. Below 2x is risky.
- Activity = signal — Deals with no recent activity are at higher risk than stage suggests.
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