The security review is not a side quest

Many deals that look healthy on the surface stall in the same place: after the buyer says yes, someone mentions a security questionnaire, a data processing agreement, or a vendor onboarding checklist. Nothing was hidden. It simply was not on anyone's plan.

These steps are part of the deal

For most mid-size and large buyers, security review, legal review and procurement are not formalities after the decision. They are the decision process. They involve people the seller may never have met, and they run on their own calendar.

Put them on the plan early

Ask the champion in the first few conversations which approvals the purchase needs, and add each as a step with an owner and a target date. A typical shape looks like this:

• Technical and security validation: questionnaire, architecture review, demo for the technical team.
• Contracting and legal: contract provided, redlines received, redlines provided, data processing agreement, approval.
• Procurement and finance: vendor onboarding, budget approval, purchase order process.

Invite the people who own those steps

The champion often cannot move these steps alone. If the buyer's IT lead, legal counsel or procurement contact can see the plan and update their own steps, the champion stops being the messenger between two organizations.

Plan the order, not just the list

Some reviews can run in parallel. A security questionnaire does not need to wait for contract redlines, for instance. Showing the dependencies on one shared plan helps both sides see where the real critical path is, and which date is likely to slip first.

When these steps appear in week one, the close date reflects reality. When they appear in week six, the close date is a guess.