From Spreadsheets to Strategy: Introducing the CDE Pipeline Builder

Most Community Development Entities (CDEs) are still managing pipeline strategy across spreadsheets, emails, static reports, and disconnected systems. As allocation rounds become increasingly competitive, that fragmented approach makes it difficult to understand pipeline strength, prioritize deals, and confidently plan around allocation targets.

That’s why Impact Marketplace built the CDE Pipeline Builder — a centralized platform designed specifically for how NMTC deals are sourced, organized, and strategically managed.

Built directly from feedback and conversations with CDEs across the country, Pipeline Builder gives teams a clearer way to organize their full pipeline, track allocation planning in real time, and better understand how deals align with their broader strategy.

Backed by a collective 50+ years of NMTC industry experience, Impact Marketplace continues to build solutions specifically designed for the workflows and challenges unique to the NMTC ecosystem.

Through ongoing conversations with CDEs, one challenge surfaced repeatedly: pipeline management remains highly fragmented and manual. Teams are often forced to manage deals across spreadsheets, internal documents, emails, and disconnected systems that make collaboration and allocation planning difficult.

Pipeline Builder was created to solve that problem.

Instead of reacting to constantly changing spreadsheets, CDEs can now proactively manage their pipeline strategy within a centralized system designed specifically for NMTC allocation planning.

Pipeline Builder allows CDEs to manage:

• Deals sourced through Impact Marketplace
• Internally sourced opportunities
• Partner referrals
• Future pipeline rounds

All in one place.

This creates a much more complete and strategic view of pipeline activity across the entire organization.

Centralized Pipeline Management

View and manage all prospective and active projects within a structured, sortable pipeline view that includes:

• Allocation amounts
• Stage and timeline
• Geography
• Sector
• Jobs created
• Distress metrics
• Target close dates

Teams can organize and prioritize deals based on the metrics that matter most to their strategy.

Real-Time Allocation Visibility

Understand how every deal impacts allocation planning as your pipeline evolves.

• Track proposed vs. committed allocation
• Adjust allocations dynamically
• Understand pipeline coverage in real time
• Identify gaps before they become problems

Allocation Target Alignment

Pipeline Builder helps CDEs understand how their pipeline aligns with proposed allocation targets and strategic priorities.

Track progress across categories such as:

• Rural
• Deep Distress
• Non-Metro
• Manufacturing / Industrial
• Underserved States

Visual indicators update automatically as projects and allocation assumptions change.

Prioritization & Pipeline Strategy

As deals evolve throughout the allocation cycle, teams can:

• Rank projects by strategic importance
• Prioritize high-impact opportunities
• Rebalance allocation assumptions
• Create a clearer narrative around pipeline deployment

This gives CDEs a much more strategic way to manage allocation planning throughout the round.

Real-Time Pipeline Insights

Pipeline Builder continuously updates key pipeline metrics, including:

• Total pipeline allocation
• Remaining allocation capacity
• Pipeline coverage ratios
• Distribution across strategic categories
• Project-level contribution to pipeline goals

Flexible Workflow Integration

Pipeline Builder is designed around how CDEs actually work.

Teams can:

• Add projects directly from Impact Marketplace
• Upload and manage external opportunities
• Move projects through pipeline stages
• Collaborate across internal teams
• Export pipeline reports and customized views

Pipeline Builder is more than a project management tool — it is a strategic planning layer for CDEs.

By replacing fragmented workflows with a centralized allocation planning system, CDEs gain greater visibility into pipeline strength, deployment strategy, and future allocation opportunities.

The result is a clearer, more organized, and more strategic way to manage pipeline throughout the NMTC allocation cycle.

Impact Marketplace is currently onboarding CDEs into the beta version of Pipeline Builder and gathering feedback from teams actively preparing for upcoming allocation rounds.

To schedule a demo or learn more about the platform, contact the Impact Marketplace team today.