---
title: Dual-Track Process - Definition & Examples | RGM® Glossary
url: https://realgrowthmatters.com/glossary/dual-track-process/
updated: 2026-06-10
source_html: https://realgrowthmatters.com/glossary/dual-track-process/
---

Growth Glossary — Definition

SHT DUAL-TRACK-PRO

# Dual-Track Process

Pursuing IPO and sale simultaneously. A working definition from the RGM marketing glossary.

Pursuing IPO and sale simultaneously.

Term
:   Dual-Track Process

Field
:   Private Equity

Category
:   Capital & Investing

## A working definition

Keep this in mind.Dual-Track Process is a capital concept. Fix what it covers before the team debates tactics, and the rest of the conversation gets easier.

Pursuing IPO and sale simultaneously.

Dual-Track Process belongs to Capital & Investing and refers to a capital concept. A shared definition keeps the team aligned.

## How it works

Look at it this way.Dual-Track Process is no fixed dial. How it behaves depends on your audience, your channel mix, and the strategy around it.

Dual-Track Process behaves unlike a fixed rule. An early-stage brand and a mature one will apply Dual-Track Process on different terms. The mechanics follow the inputs around it. Treat Dual-Track Process as a buzzword and the reporting misleads; agree on it and the numbers hold.

The working rule is plain. Agree what Dual-Track Process covers first, then act on it. Skip that order and Dual-Track Process loses its shared meaning, and two teams end up measuring two different things. Look at it this way.

## When teams use it

Keep this in mind.Bring Dual-Track Process in when a live call depends on it. With no decision on the table, it stays background.

Dual-Track Process matters at the point of a decision. In capital & investing, three moments come up again and again. Outside them, Dual-Track Process is reference material.

1. **Setting budget.** Dual-Track Process guides the team toward the better-paying line.
2. **Choosing a metric.** Dual-Track Process separates a causal read from a coincidence.
3. **Comparing options.** Dual-Track Process keeps a head-to-head from fooling the reader.

## A worked example

Here is the short version.Below, Dual-Track Process is put inside a a Bessemer-tracked SaaS firm setting -- real trade-offs, a clear baseline, and a figure to test it.

Consider a Bessemer-tracked SaaS firm. Running a rule-of-40 screen, the team put Dual-Track Process at the center of the call. With a clean baseline and one fixed definition of Dual-Track Process, they read what moved: durable growth separated from cash-burn growth. The discipline is the lesson.

Worked example for Dual-Track Process -- illustrative figures, RGM analysis

| Stage | Action | What it bought |
| Baseline | Logged where Dual-Track Process stood before the test. | Something concrete to compare to. |
| Define | Fixed one meaning of Dual-Track Process for the test. | A shared definition up front. |
| Act | A rule-of-40 screen — one variable. | One change, a clean read. |
| Result | Durable growth separated from cash-burn growth | An outcome you can trust. |

Figures for Dual-Track Process here are illustrative and marked RGM analysis. Copy the method, not the exact numbers.

## Failure modes to watch

One idea, plainly put.Most mistakes with Dual-Track Process share a root: the term gets reported as if it were exact when it is not.

- **No segments.** Treating Dual-Track Process as one number for all. Break it out before you trust it.
- **No anchor.** Quoting Dual-Track Process without a starting point. Always pair it with a baseline.
- **Wrong target.** Treating Dual-Track Process as the goal. The goal is the outcome it predicts.
- **Apples to oranges.** Comparing Dual-Track Process across firms raw. Adjust for pricing and cycle before you read it.

## Frequently asked questions

What does Dual-Track Process mean?

Pursuing IPO and sale simultaneously. Settle what Dual-Track Process covers first; the strategy follows from there.

Why does Dual-Track Process matter for marketers?

Dual-Track Process matters because vague vocabulary breaks strategy. A precise, shared definition keeps a team aligned.

How do teams use Dual-Track Process?

Dual-Track Process supports a real choice: where money goes, what gets measured, which option wins. The a Bessemer-tracked SaaS firm case traces it.

What goes wrong with Dual-Track Process most often?

Chasing Dual-Track Process as a goal and benchmarking it raw. Both bury the real trade-off underneath.

What does Dual-Track Process mean?
:   Pursuing IPO and sale simultaneously. Settle what Dual-Track Process covers first; the strategy follows from there.

Why does Dual-Track Process matter for marketers?
:   Dual-Track Process matters because vague vocabulary breaks strategy. A precise, shared definition keeps a team aligned.

How do teams use Dual-Track Process?
:   Dual-Track Process supports a real choice: where money goes, what gets measured, which option wins. The a Bessemer-tracked SaaS firm case traces it.

### Go deeper

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