Build a Lead Qualification Agent: Signals, Scoring, and Human Review
A practical design guide for a lead qualification agent that gathers context, applies clear rules, and routes judgment to a person.
— Craig Major
A lead qualification agent can collect context, compare it with agreed criteria, prepare a short brief, and route the next action. It should help a salesperson make a better decision. It should not quietly decide who deserves attention when the rules are unclear.
Define the input
Start with the information the team already uses:
- company and role;
- source and consent;
- stated problem;
- company size or operating context;
- relevant technology or process;
- timing;
- prior conversation;
- signals that require a closer look.
Do not add a data source simply because it is available. Each field should have a purpose and an owner.
Write the scoring rules
For each criterion, define:
- the signal;
- the acceptable values;
- the score;
- the evidence required;
- what happens if the value is unknown;
- the person who can override the result.
Unknown should not automatically mean unqualified. It should normally create a request for more information or a review.
Prepare context, not a verdict
A useful output may include:
- a short account summary;
- evidence for each score;
- missing information;
- likely workflow or business problem;
- recommended next question;
- proposed routing;
- a confidence or review reason.
The salesperson should be able to see why the system produced the brief and correct it.
Keep human review explicit
Route a lead to a person when:
- the evidence conflicts;
- the score is close to a threshold;
- the lead has a sensitive or unusual situation;
- the data is incomplete;
- the recommendation would change outreach or eligibility;
- the system cannot explain the result.
The agent can do the preparation. The relationship and decision remain human.
Test the agent
Create test cases for:
- a clear fit;
- a clear non-fit;
- an incomplete record;
- conflicting evidence;
- a duplicate;
- a lead asking for something outside the offer;
- a lead that should be escalated.
Record the expected routing before running the test. Review false positives and false negatives with the people who own the pipeline.
Connect the next action
A qualification result should lead somewhere useful:
- request missing information;
- create a review task;
- route to a salesperson;
- add a follow-up date;
- invite the lead to a relevant guide or tool;
- mark the record for later review.
The Lead Qualification System Planner provides the worksheet for rules, enrichment, human review, routing, tests, and metrics.