# CRM field dictionary and hygiene review

Copy this template once for your CRM. Replace every bracketed field. Keep it where Sales, Customer Success and RevOps can read it, and let only the data steward edit it.

## Governance

- System of record: [CRM name and instance]
- Data steward: [RevOps person who owns this dictionary and the review]
- Sales sign-off: [Sales leader who agrees stage definitions and ownership rules]
- Review cadence: [monthly, or the agreed cadence]
- Last reviewed / reviewed by: [date; name]

## Critical fields

List only the fields that a report, forecast, routing rule or handoff depends on. If nobody will own a field, leave it off the list.

| Field | Object | Definition | Allowed values or format | Owner | Who may edit | Validation rule | Used by which report | Review cadence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| [Industry] | [Account] | [Primary industry of the buying entity] | [Picklist: values] | [Account owner] | [Account owner, RevOps] | [Required on create; picklist restricted] | [Pipeline by segment] | [Monthly] |
| [Close date] | [Opportunity] | [Date the owner expects a signed order] | [Date; not in the past while open] | [Opportunity owner] | [Opportunity owner, Sales manager] | [Open deals cannot have a past date] | [Forecast] | [Monthly] |
| [Field] | [Object] | [Definition] | [Values] | [Owner] | [Roles] | [Rule or none] | [Report] | [Cadence] |

## Stage definitions and required fields

| Stage | Entry criteria | Required fields at this stage | Who may move a deal into it |
|---|---|---|---|
| [Discovery] | [Meeting held; problem confirmed] | [Next step, next step date] | [Opportunity owner] |
| [Proposal] | [Proposal sent to a named buyer] | [Amount, close date, next step] | [Opportunity owner] |
| [Stage] | [Criteria] | [Fields] | [Role] |

## Duplicate rules

- Matching key: [for example account domain, or email for contacts]
- Known exceptions: [subsidiaries, shared domains, partner accounts]
- Surviving record: [rule, for example the older record with the most activity]
- Who confirms a merge: [record owner of each record]
- Who performs the merge: [data steward]

## Write sources

| Source | Fields it writes | Owner | Checks before write |
|---|---|---|---|
| [Web form] | [Fields] | [Person] | [Picklist mapping, duplicate check] |
| [List import] | [Fields] | [Person] | [Domain match, approved template] |
| [Integration] | [Fields] | [Person] | [Field mapping reviewed on change] |

## Monthly hygiene review

### Before the review

- [ ] Export open records with the critical fields, record owner and last write source.
- [ ] Note what the extract leaves out (closed records, objects, date range).
- [ ] Confirm the dictionary still matches the reports leadership reads.

### Checks

- [ ] Likely duplicates on the matching key.
- [ ] Open opportunities with a close date in the past.
- [ ] Missing next step, or a next step date later than the close date.
- [ ] Required fields at stage left blank.
- [ ] Values outside the picklist, or free text in a governed field.
- [ ] Records with no owner, or an owner who has left.

### Findings log

| Finding | Records | Rule broken | Likely source | Owner | Agreed fix | Due | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| [Description] | [IDs] | [Rule] | [Import, form, integration, manual] | [Record owner] | [Fix] | [Date] | [Open / done] |

### Process change (one per review)

- Pattern: [what keeps creating the error]
- Change: [rule, permission, template or habit that changes]
- Owner: [person]
- Check at next review: [what you will look for]

### Before closing the review

- [ ] Each record owner has agreed the fixes to their records.
- [ ] Every merge was confirmed by the owners and recorded with the surviving ID.
- [ ] Close dates and amounts were changed only by, or with the agreement of, the owner.
- [ ] New validation rules were tested and their exceptions written down.
- [ ] The dictionary records any field, rule or permission that changed.

Approving fixes covers the records listed. Deleting records, changing access or switching on a new rule each need separate approval.