# Discovery Call Self-Grading Rubric

> A rubric reps score themselves against immediately after hanging up: while the call is still fresh: to catch what worked, what to fix next time, and whether this deal is actually as qualified as it felt in the room.

Free scorecard/rubric for sales reps. Topic: [Discovery & Qualification](https://www.peerlab.ai/library/topic/discovery-qualification/). Published by PeerLab in the [Sales Enablement Resource Library](https://www.peerlab.ai/library/). Source: https://www.peerlab.ai/library/discovery-call-self-grading-rubric/

## How to use it

Fill this out within 15 minutes of ending any discovery call, score honestly against the behavioral anchors, and check the red-flag section before trusting your total score.

## What's inside

- 8 scored categories, 1-5 scale each
- Behavioral anchors for score 1, 3, and 5 in every category
- Total score interpretation bands
- Red-flag override section
- Self-coaching prompt for the lowest-scoring category

Fill this out within 15 minutes of ending the call, before you talk yourself into a better story than what actually happened.

## 1. Pre-Call Preparation
- **1:** Opened cold, no research, generic questions
- **3:** Reviewed company/contact basics, had a rough agenda
- **5:** Had specific hypotheses about their pain going in, tailored questions to their industry/role, knew who else was likely in the buying process

## 2. Opening & Agenda-Setting
- **1:** Jumped straight into pitching or asked "so tell me about your business"
- **3:** Set a basic agenda, got light buy-in
- **5:** Set a clear mutual agenda, confirmed time available, got explicit agreement on what a good outcome from this call looks like for them

## 3. Situation Questions
- **1:** Asked surface-level questions already answerable from their website
- **3:** Asked reasonable situation questions but mostly closed-ended
- **5:** Asked open situation questions that surfaced context I didn't already know, without feeling like an interrogation

## 4. Pain & Impact Questions
- **1:** Accepted the first pain mentioned at face value, didn't quantify
- **3:** Dug one layer deeper, got a rough sense of impact
- **5:** Quantified the pain in their own numbers/language, connected it to a business consequence they hadn't stated first

## 5. Qualification (Budget / Authority / Timeline / Process)
- **1:** Didn't ask, or asked so bluntly it created friction
- **3:** Got partial answers, some "I'll have to check"
- **5:** Got clear, specific answers on process and timeline, and a credible read on budget/authority without it feeling transactional

## 6. Listening & Talk Ratio
- **1:** I did most of the talking, pitched features unprompted
- **3:** Roughly balanced, some over-explaining
- **5:** They talked more than me, I used silence after questions, I referenced something they said earlier in a later question

## 7. Multi-Threading
- **1:** Didn't ask who else is involved
- **3:** Asked, got a vague answer, didn't push
- **5:** Got specific names/roles of at least 2 other stakeholders and a plan to reach them

## 8. Next Steps & Commitment
- **1:** Ended with "I'll follow up": no date, no mutual commitment
- **3:** Got a next call booked but no specific mutual actions
- **5:** Got a dated next step with named owners on both sides, and confirmed what needs to be true for this to keep moving

---

**Total Score: ___ / 40**

## Interpretation Bands
- **34-40:** Strong discovery call: this deal's qualification data is trustworthy
- **24-33:** Solid but incomplete: identify the lowest 1-2 categories and address specifically before the next call
- **14-23:** Discovery gaps significant enough that "qualified" is optimistic: plan a deliberate recovery call
- **Below 14:** Treat this as an information-gathering call only: do not advance the stage in CRM yet

## Red-Flag Override (regardless of total score)
Circle any that apply: a single red flag caps your interpretation at "solid but incomplete" even with a high total:
- [ ] I never got a name/role for anyone besides the person on the call
- [ ] I could not restate their business pain in a single sentence without notes
- [ ] There is no dated next step in the calendar
- [ ] I talked more than they did

## Self-Coaching Prompt
For your single lowest-scoring category, write one sentence:

> "Next call, I will specifically ___."

Reread it before your next discovery call of the day.