diff --git a/apps/dashboard/pkg/apis/dashboard/cuevalidator/validator.go b/apps/dashboard/pkg/apis/dashboard/cuevalidator/validator.go
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..38792ade026
--- /dev/null
+++ b/apps/dashboard/pkg/apis/dashboard/cuevalidator/validator.go
@@ -0,0 +1,29 @@
+package cuevalidator
+
+import (
+	"sync"
+
+	"cuelang.org/go/cue"
+	cuejson "cuelang.org/go/encoding/json"
+)
+
+// Validator provides thread-safe CUE schema validation.
+//
+// CUE is not safe for concurrent use: https://github.com/cue-lang/cue/discussions/1205#discussioncomment-1189238
+// This validator uses a mutex to protect concurrent access to the underlying CUE validation.
+type Validator struct {
+	schema cue.Value
+	mu     sync.Mutex
+}
+
+func NewValidator(schema cue.Value) *Validator {
+	return &Validator{
+		schema: schema,
+	}
+}
+
+func (v *Validator) Validate(data []byte) error {
+	v.mu.Lock()
+	defer v.mu.Unlock()
+	return cuejson.Validate(data, v.schema)
+}
diff --git a/apps/dashboard/pkg/apis/dashboard/v0alpha1/validation.go b/apps/dashboard/pkg/apis/dashboard/v0alpha1/validation.go
index 6fdf1dd4515..7c5573f600a 100644
--- a/apps/dashboard/pkg/apis/dashboard/v0alpha1/validation.go
+++ b/apps/dashboard/pkg/apis/dashboard/v0alpha1/validation.go
@@ -7,13 +7,13 @@ import (
 	"strings"
 	"sync"
 
+	"github.com/grafana/grafana/apps/dashboard/pkg/apis/dashboard/cuevalidator"
 	"github.com/grafana/grafana/apps/dashboard/pkg/migration/schemaversion"
 	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/util/validation/field"
 
 	"cuelang.org/go/cue"
 	"cuelang.org/go/cue/cuecontext"
 	"cuelang.org/go/cue/errors"
-	cuejson "cuelang.org/go/encoding/json"
 )
 
 func ValidateDashboardSpec(obj *Dashboard, forceValidation bool) (field.ErrorList, field.ErrorList) {
@@ -33,7 +33,7 @@ func ValidateDashboardSpec(obj *Dashboard, forceValidation bool) (field.ErrorLis
 		}, schemaVersionError
 	}
 
-	if err := cuejson.Validate(data, getCueSchema()); err != nil {
+	if err := getValidator().Validate(data); err != nil {
 		errs := field.ErrorList{}
 
 		for _, e := range errors.Errors(err) {
@@ -71,20 +71,21 @@ func formatErrorPath(path []string) string {
 }
 
 var (
-	compiledSchema cue.Value
-	getSchemaOnce  sync.Once
+	validator     *cuevalidator.Validator
+	getSchemaOnce sync.Once
 )
 
 //go:embed dashboard_kind.cue
 var schemaSource string
 
-func getCueSchema() cue.Value {
+func getValidator() *cuevalidator.Validator {
 	getSchemaOnce.Do(func() {
 		cueCtx := cuecontext.New()
-		compiledSchema = cueCtx.CompileString(schemaSource).LookupPath(
+		compiledSchema := cueCtx.CompileString(schemaSource).LookupPath(
 			cue.ParsePath("lineage.schemas[0].schema.spec"),
 		)
+		validator = cuevalidator.NewValidator(compiledSchema)
 	})
 
-	return compiledSchema
+	return validator
 }
diff --git a/apps/dashboard/pkg/apis/dashboard/v1beta1/validation.go b/apps/dashboard/pkg/apis/dashboard/v1beta1/validation.go
index 7020aa46b90..b48e38ffd7b 100644
--- a/apps/dashboard/pkg/apis/dashboard/v1beta1/validation.go
+++ b/apps/dashboard/pkg/apis/dashboard/v1beta1/validation.go
@@ -12,8 +12,8 @@ import (
 	"cuelang.org/go/cue"
 	"cuelang.org/go/cue/cuecontext"
 	"cuelang.org/go/cue/errors"
-	cuejson "cuelang.org/go/encoding/json"
 
+	"github.com/grafana/grafana/apps/dashboard/pkg/apis/dashboard/cuevalidator"
 	"github.com/grafana/grafana/apps/dashboard/pkg/migration/schemaversion"
 )
 
@@ -34,7 +34,7 @@ func ValidateDashboardSpec(obj *Dashboard, forceValidation bool) (field.ErrorLis
 		}, schemaVersionError
 	}
 
-	if err := cuejson.Validate(data, getCueSchema()); err != nil {
+	if err := getValidator().Validate(data); err != nil {
 		errs := field.ErrorList{}
 
 		for _, e := range errors.Errors(err) {
@@ -72,20 +72,21 @@ func formatErrorPath(path []string) string {
 }
 
 var (
-	compiledSchema cue.Value
-	getSchemaOnce  sync.Once
+	validator     *cuevalidator.Validator
+	getSchemaOnce sync.Once
 )
 
 //go:embed dashboard_kind.cue
 var schemaSource string
 
-func getCueSchema() cue.Value {
+func getValidator() *cuevalidator.Validator {
 	getSchemaOnce.Do(func() {
 		cueCtx := cuecontext.New()
-		compiledSchema = cueCtx.CompileString(schemaSource).LookupPath(
+		compiledSchema := cueCtx.CompileString(schemaSource).LookupPath(
 			cue.ParsePath("lineage.schemas[0].schema.spec"),
 		)
+		validator = cuevalidator.NewValidator(compiledSchema)
 	})
 
-	return compiledSchema
+	return validator
 }
diff --git a/apps/dashboard/pkg/apis/dashboard/v2alpha1/validation.go b/apps/dashboard/pkg/apis/dashboard/v2alpha1/validation.go
index 7c61faa8924..ca9dcd3e514 100644
--- a/apps/dashboard/pkg/apis/dashboard/v2alpha1/validation.go
+++ b/apps/dashboard/pkg/apis/dashboard/v2alpha1/validation.go
@@ -12,7 +12,8 @@ import (
 	"cuelang.org/go/cue"
 	"cuelang.org/go/cue/cuecontext"
 	"cuelang.org/go/cue/errors"
-	cuejson "cuelang.org/go/encoding/json"
+
+	"github.com/grafana/grafana/apps/dashboard/pkg/apis/dashboard/cuevalidator"
 )
 
 func ValidateDashboardSpec(obj *Dashboard) field.ErrorList {
@@ -26,7 +27,7 @@ func ValidateDashboardSpec(obj *Dashboard) field.ErrorList {
 	// Custom validation for action query params and headers
 	validateAndTrimActionArrays(obj)
 
-	if err := cuejson.Validate(data, getCueSchema()); err != nil {
+	if err := getValidator().Validate(data); err != nil {
 		errs := field.ErrorList{}
 
 		for _, e := range errors.Errors(err) {
@@ -123,20 +124,21 @@ func formatErrorPath(path []string) string {
 }
 
 var (
-	compiledSchema cue.Value
-	getSchemaOnce  sync.Once
+	validator     *cuevalidator.Validator
+	getSchemaOnce sync.Once
 )
 
 //go:embed dashboard_spec.cue
 var schemaSource string
 
-func getCueSchema() cue.Value {
+func getValidator() *cuevalidator.Validator {
 	getSchemaOnce.Do(func() {
 		cueCtx := cuecontext.New()
-		compiledSchema = cueCtx.CompileString(schemaSource).LookupPath(
+		compiledSchema := cueCtx.CompileString(schemaSource).LookupPath(
 			cue.ParsePath("DashboardSpec"),
 		)
+		validator = cuevalidator.NewValidator(compiledSchema)
 	})
 
-	return compiledSchema
+	return validator
 }
diff --git a/apps/dashboard/pkg/apis/dashboard/v2beta1/validation.go b/apps/dashboard/pkg/apis/dashboard/v2beta1/validation.go
index 7c859626b98..518c133bcd7 100644
--- a/apps/dashboard/pkg/apis/dashboard/v2beta1/validation.go
+++ b/apps/dashboard/pkg/apis/dashboard/v2beta1/validation.go
@@ -12,7 +12,8 @@ import (
 	"cuelang.org/go/cue"
 	"cuelang.org/go/cue/cuecontext"
 	"cuelang.org/go/cue/errors"
-	cuejson "cuelang.org/go/encoding/json"
+
+	"github.com/grafana/grafana/apps/dashboard/pkg/apis/dashboard/cuevalidator"
 )
 
 func ValidateDashboardSpec(obj *Dashboard) field.ErrorList {
@@ -26,7 +27,7 @@ func ValidateDashboardSpec(obj *Dashboard) field.ErrorList {
 	// Custom validation for action query params and headers
 	validateAndTrimActionArrays(obj)
 
-	if err := cuejson.Validate(data, getCueSchema()); err != nil {
+	if err := getValidator().Validate(data); err != nil {
 		errs := field.ErrorList{}
 
 		for _, e := range errors.Errors(err) {
@@ -123,20 +124,21 @@ func formatErrorPath(path []string) string {
 }
 
 var (
-	compiledSchema cue.Value
-	getSchemaOnce  sync.Once
+	validator     *cuevalidator.Validator
+	getSchemaOnce sync.Once
 )
 
 //go:embed dashboard_spec.cue
 var schemaSource string
 
-func getCueSchema() cue.Value {
+func getValidator() *cuevalidator.Validator {
 	getSchemaOnce.Do(func() {
 		cueCtx := cuecontext.New()
-		compiledSchema = cueCtx.CompileString(schemaSource).LookupPath(
+		compiledSchema := cueCtx.CompileString(schemaSource).LookupPath(
 			cue.ParsePath("DashboardSpec"),
 		)
+		validator = cuevalidator.NewValidator(compiledSchema)
 	})
 
-	return compiledSchema
+	return validator
 }
diff --git a/pkg/operators/provisioning/repo_operator.go b/pkg/operators/provisioning/repo_operator.go
index f96653a1d87..1651a126ffe 100644
--- a/pkg/operators/provisioning/repo_operator.go
+++ b/pkg/operators/provisioning/repo_operator.go
@@ -90,6 +90,7 @@ func RunRepoController(deps server.OperatorDependencies) error {
 		statusPatcher,
 		deps.Registerer,
 		tracer,
+		controllerCfg.parallelOperations,
 	)
 	if err != nil {
 		return fmt.Errorf("failed to create repository controller: %w", err)
@@ -107,6 +108,7 @@ func RunRepoController(deps server.OperatorDependencies) error {
 type repoControllerConfig struct {
 	provisioningControllerConfig
 	workerCount         int
+	parallelOperations  int
 	allowedTargets      []string
 	allowImageRendering bool
 	minSyncInterval     time.Duration
@@ -128,6 +130,7 @@ func getRepoControllerConfig(cfg *setting.Cfg, registry prometheus.Registerer) (
 		provisioningControllerConfig: *controllerCfg,
 		allowedTargets:               allowedTargets,
 		workerCount:                  cfg.SectionWithEnvOverrides("operator").Key("worker_count").MustInt(1),
+		parallelOperations:           cfg.SectionWithEnvOverrides("operator").Key("parallel_operations").MustInt(10),
 		allowImageRendering:          cfg.SectionWithEnvOverrides("provisioning").Key("allow_image_rendering").MustBool(false),
 		minSyncInterval:              cfg.SectionWithEnvOverrides("provisioning").Key("min_sync_interval").MustDuration(1 * time.Minute),
 	}, nil
diff --git a/pkg/registry/apis/provisioning/controller/finalizers.go b/pkg/registry/apis/provisioning/controller/finalizers.go
index d9c41ee4c15..5bd468fe660 100644
--- a/pkg/registry/apis/provisioning/controller/finalizers.go
+++ b/pkg/registry/apis/provisioning/controller/finalizers.go
@@ -7,8 +7,11 @@ import (
 	"slices"
 	"sort"
 	"strings"
+	"sync/atomic"
 	"time"
 
+	"github.com/grafana/dskit/concurrency"
+	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/api/errors"
 	v1 "k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/apis/meta/v1"
 	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/runtime/schema"
 	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/types"
@@ -27,6 +30,7 @@ type finalizer struct {
 	lister        resources.ResourceLister
 	clientFactory resources.ClientFactory
 	metrics       *finalizerMetrics
+	maxWorkers    int
 }
 
 func (f *finalizer) process(ctx context.Context,
@@ -113,27 +117,73 @@ func (f *finalizer) processExistingItems(
 
 	// Safe deletion order
 	sortResourceListForDeletion(items)
-	count := 0
 
+	var dashboards, folderItems []*provisioning.ResourceListItem
 	for _, item := range items.Items {
-		res, _, err := clients.ForResource(ctx, schema.GroupVersionResource{
+		if item.Group == folders.GroupVersion.Group {
+			folderItems = append(folderItems, &item)
+		} else {
+			dashboards = append(dashboards, &item)
+		}
+	}
+
+	processItem := func(jobCtx context.Context, item *provisioning.ResourceListItem) error {
+		res, _, err := clients.ForResource(jobCtx, schema.GroupVersionResource{
 			Group:    item.Group,
 			Resource: item.Resource,
 		})
 		if err != nil {
 			logger.Error("error getting client for resource", "resource", item.Resource, "error", err)
-			return count, err
+			return err
 		}
 
-		err = cb(res, &item)
+		err = cb(res, item)
 		if err != nil {
+			if errors.IsNotFound(err) {
+				logger.Info("resource not found, skipping", "name", item.Name, "group", item.Group, "resource", item.Resource)
+				return nil
+			}
 			logger.Error("error processing item", "name", item.Name, "error", err)
-			return count, fmt.Errorf("processing item: %w", err)
-		} else {
+			return fmt.Errorf("processing item: %w", err)
+		}
+		return nil
+	}
+
+	processGroup := func(group []*provisioning.ResourceListItem) (int, error) {
+		var processed int64
+		err := concurrency.ForEachJob(ctx, len(group), f.maxWorkers, func(ctx context.Context, idx int) error {
+			jobCtx, cancel := context.WithTimeout(ctx, 15*time.Second)
+			defer cancel()
+			item := group[idx]
+			if err := processItem(jobCtx, item); err != nil {
+				return err
+			}
+			atomic.AddInt64(&processed, 1)
+			return nil
+		})
+		return int(processed), err
+	}
+
+	count := 0
+
+	if len(dashboards) > 0 {
+		processed, err := processGroup(dashboards)
+		if err != nil {
+			return processed, err
+		}
+		count += processed
+	}
+
+	if len(folderItems) > 0 {
+		for _, item := range folderItems {
+			if err := processItem(ctx, item); err != nil {
+				return count, err
+			}
 			count++
 		}
 	}
-	logger.Info("processed orphan items", "items", count)
+
+	logger.Info("processed items", "items", count)
 	return count, nil
 }
 
diff --git a/pkg/registry/apis/provisioning/controller/finalizers_test.go b/pkg/registry/apis/provisioning/controller/finalizers_test.go
index 140363a0507..4df89107bbe 100644
--- a/pkg/registry/apis/provisioning/controller/finalizers_test.go
+++ b/pkg/registry/apis/provisioning/controller/finalizers_test.go
@@ -2,10 +2,15 @@ package controller
 
 import (
 	"context"
+	"fmt"
+	"sync"
+	"sync/atomic"
 	"testing"
+	"time"
 
 	"github.com/prometheus/client_golang/prometheus"
 	"github.com/stretchr/testify/assert"
+	mock "github.com/stretchr/testify/mock"
 	metav1 "k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/apis/meta/v1"
 	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/apis/meta/v1/unstructured"
 	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/runtime/schema"
@@ -14,6 +19,8 @@ import (
 	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/watch"
 	"k8s.io/client-go/dynamic"
 
+	"github.com/grafana/grafana-app-sdk/logging"
+	folders "github.com/grafana/grafana/apps/folder/pkg/apis/folder/v1beta1"
 	provisioning "github.com/grafana/grafana/apps/provisioning/pkg/apis/provisioning/v0alpha1"
 	"github.com/grafana/grafana/apps/provisioning/pkg/repository"
 	"github.com/grafana/grafana/pkg/registry/apis/provisioning/resources"
@@ -140,7 +147,7 @@ func TestFinalizer_process(t *testing.T) {
 				resourceLister := resources.NewMockResourceLister(t)
 
 				resourceLister.
-					On("List", context.Background(), "default", "my-repo").
+					On("List", mock.Anything, "default", "my-repo").
 					Once().
 					Return(&provisioning.ResourceList{
 						Items: []provisioning.ResourceListItem{
@@ -164,12 +171,12 @@ func TestFinalizer_process(t *testing.T) {
 				}
 
 				clientFactory.
-					On("Clients", context.Background(), "default").
+					On("Clients", mock.Anything, "default").
 					Once().
 					Return(clients, nil)
 
 				clients.
-					On("ForResource", context.Background(), schema.GroupVersionResource{
+					On("ForResource", mock.Anything, schema.GroupVersionResource{
 						Group:    "dashboard.grafana.app",
 						Resource: "dashboards",
 					}).
@@ -196,7 +203,7 @@ func TestFinalizer_process(t *testing.T) {
 				resourceLister := resources.NewMockResourceLister(t)
 
 				resourceLister.
-					On("List", context.Background(), "default", "my-repo").
+					On("List", mock.Anything, "default", "my-repo").
 					Once().
 					Return(&provisioning.ResourceList{
 						Items: []provisioning.ResourceListItem{
@@ -220,12 +227,12 @@ func TestFinalizer_process(t *testing.T) {
 				}
 
 				clientFactory.
-					On("Clients", context.Background(), "default").
+					On("Clients", mock.Anything, "default").
 					Once().
 					Return(clients, nil)
 
 				clients.
-					On("ForResource", context.Background(), schema.GroupVersionResource{
+					On("ForResource", mock.Anything, schema.GroupVersionResource{
 						Group:    "dashboard.grafana.app",
 						Resource: "dashboards",
 					}).
@@ -253,7 +260,7 @@ func TestFinalizer_process(t *testing.T) {
 				clientFactory := resources.NewMockClientFactory(t)
 
 				clientFactory.
-					On("Clients", context.Background(), "default").
+					On("Clients", mock.Anything, "default").
 					Once().
 					Return(nil, assert.AnError)
 
@@ -275,7 +282,7 @@ func TestFinalizer_process(t *testing.T) {
 				resourceLister := resources.NewMockResourceLister(t)
 
 				resourceLister.
-					On("List", context.Background(), "default", "my-repo").
+					On("List", mock.Anything, "default", "my-repo").
 					Once().
 					Return(nil, assert.AnError)
 
@@ -286,7 +293,7 @@ func TestFinalizer_process(t *testing.T) {
 				clients := resources.NewMockResourceClients(t)
 
 				clientFactory.
-					On("Clients", context.Background(), "default").
+					On("Clients", mock.Anything, "default").
 					Once().
 					Return(clients, nil)
 
@@ -308,7 +315,7 @@ func TestFinalizer_process(t *testing.T) {
 				resourceLister := resources.NewMockResourceLister(t)
 
 				resourceLister.
-					On("List", context.Background(), "default", "my-repo").
+					On("List", mock.Anything, "default", "my-repo").
 					Once().
 					Return(&provisioning.ResourceList{
 						Items: []provisioning.ResourceListItem{
@@ -327,12 +334,12 @@ func TestFinalizer_process(t *testing.T) {
 				clients := resources.NewMockResourceClients(t)
 
 				clientFactory.
-					On("Clients", context.Background(), "default").
+					On("Clients", mock.Anything, "default").
 					Once().
 					Return(clients, nil)
 
 				clients.
-					On("ForResource", context.Background(), schema.GroupVersionResource{
+					On("ForResource", mock.Anything, schema.GroupVersionResource{
 						Group:    "dashboard.grafana.app",
 						Resource: "dashboards",
 					}).
@@ -357,7 +364,7 @@ func TestFinalizer_process(t *testing.T) {
 				resourceLister := resources.NewMockResourceLister(t)
 
 				resourceLister.
-					On("List", context.Background(), "default", "my-repo").
+					On("List", mock.Anything, "default", "my-repo").
 					Once().
 					Return(&provisioning.ResourceList{
 						Items: []provisioning.ResourceListItem{
@@ -381,12 +388,12 @@ func TestFinalizer_process(t *testing.T) {
 				}
 
 				clientFactory.
-					On("Clients", context.Background(), "default").
+					On("Clients", mock.Anything, "default").
 					Once().
 					Return(clients, nil)
 
 				clients.
-					On("ForResource", context.Background(), schema.GroupVersionResource{
+					On("ForResource", mock.Anything, schema.GroupVersionResource{
 						Group:    "dashboard.grafana.app",
 						Resource: "dashboards",
 					}).
@@ -414,7 +421,7 @@ func TestFinalizer_process(t *testing.T) {
 				resourceLister := resources.NewMockResourceLister(t)
 
 				resourceLister.
-					On("List", context.Background(), "default", "my-repo").
+					On("List", mock.Anything, "default", "my-repo").
 					Once().
 					Return(&provisioning.ResourceList{
 						Items: []provisioning.ResourceListItem{
@@ -438,12 +445,12 @@ func TestFinalizer_process(t *testing.T) {
 				}
 
 				clientFactory.
-					On("Clients", context.Background(), "default").
+					On("Clients", mock.Anything, "default").
 					Once().
 					Return(clients, nil)
 
 				clients.
-					On("ForResource", context.Background(), schema.GroupVersionResource{
+					On("ForResource", mock.Anything, schema.GroupVersionResource{
 						Group:    "dashboard.grafana.app",
 						Resource: "dashboards",
 					}).
@@ -560,3 +567,142 @@ func TestSortResourceListForDeletion(t *testing.T) {
 		})
 	}
 }
+
+func TestFinalizer_processExistingItems_Concurrency(t *testing.T) {
+	testCases := []struct {
+		name                string
+		dashboardCount      int
+		folderCount         int
+		maxWorkers          int
+		expectedConcurrency bool
+	}{
+		{
+			name:                "Multiple dashboards processed concurrently",
+			dashboardCount:      10,
+			folderCount:         0,
+			maxWorkers:          5,
+			expectedConcurrency: true,
+		},
+		{
+			name:                "Single worker processes dashboards sequentially",
+			dashboardCount:      5,
+			folderCount:         0,
+			maxWorkers:          1,
+			expectedConcurrency: false,
+		},
+		{
+			name:                "Folders processed sequentially regardless of maxWorkers",
+			dashboardCount:      0,
+			folderCount:         5,
+			maxWorkers:          10,
+			expectedConcurrency: false,
+		},
+		{
+			name:                "Mixed dashboards and folders - dashboards concurrent, folders sequential",
+			dashboardCount:      10,
+			folderCount:         3,
+			maxWorkers:          5,
+			expectedConcurrency: true,
+		},
+	}
+
+	for _, tc := range testCases {
+		t.Run(tc.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			// Will be used to track concurrent executions
+			var (
+				concurrentCount int64
+				maxConcurrent   int64
+				mu              sync.Mutex
+			)
+
+			items := provisioning.ResourceList{Items: []provisioning.ResourceListItem{}}
+
+			for i := 0; i < tc.dashboardCount; i++ {
+				items.Items = append(items.Items, provisioning.ResourceListItem{
+					Group:    "dashboard.grafana.app",
+					Resource: "dashboards",
+					Name:     fmt.Sprintf("dashboard-%d", i),
+				})
+			}
+
+			for i := 0; i < tc.folderCount; i++ {
+				items.Items = append(items.Items, provisioning.ResourceListItem{
+					Group:    folders.GroupVersion.Group,
+					Resource: "folders",
+					Name:     fmt.Sprintf("folder-%d", i),
+				})
+			}
+
+			resourceLister := resources.NewMockResourceLister(t)
+			resourceLister.
+				On("List", mock.Anything, "default", "my-repo").
+				Return(&items, nil)
+
+			clientFactory := resources.NewMockClientFactory(t)
+			clients := resources.NewMockResourceClients(t)
+
+			client := &mockDynamicClient{
+				deleteFunc: func(ctx context.Context, name string, options metav1.DeleteOptions, subresources ...string) error {
+					// Track concurrent executions
+					current := atomic.AddInt64(&concurrentCount, 1)
+					defer atomic.AddInt64(&concurrentCount, -1)
+
+					mu.Lock()
+					if current > maxConcurrent {
+						maxConcurrent = current
+					}
+					mu.Unlock()
+
+					// Simulate slow client to allow concurrency to build up
+					time.Sleep(1 * time.Second)
+
+					return nil
+				},
+			}
+
+			clientFactory.
+				On("Clients", mock.Anything, "default").
+				Return(clients, nil)
+
+			clients.
+				On("ForResource", mock.Anything, mock.Anything).
+				Return(client, schema.GroupVersionKind{}, nil)
+
+			metrics := registerFinalizerMetrics(prometheus.NewRegistry())
+			f := &finalizer{
+				lister:        resourceLister,
+				clientFactory: clientFactory,
+				metrics:       &metrics,
+				maxWorkers:    tc.maxWorkers,
+			}
+
+			repo := &provisioning.Repository{
+				ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
+					Name:      "my-repo",
+					Namespace: "default",
+				},
+			}
+
+			count, err := f.processExistingItems(
+				context.Background(),
+				repo,
+				f.removeResources(context.Background(), logging.DefaultLogger),
+			)
+
+			assert.NoError(t, err)
+			assert.Equal(t, tc.dashboardCount+tc.folderCount, count)
+
+			if tc.expectedConcurrency {
+				// When concurrent, max concurrent should be > 1
+				assert.Greater(t, maxConcurrent, int64(1),
+					"Expected concurrent execution but maxConcurrent was %d", maxConcurrent)
+				// Should not exceed maxWorkers
+				assert.LessOrEqual(t, maxConcurrent, int64(tc.maxWorkers))
+			} else {
+				// When sequential, max concurrent should be 1
+				assert.Equal(t, int64(1), maxConcurrent,
+					"Expected sequential execution but maxConcurrent was %d", maxConcurrent)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
diff --git a/pkg/registry/apis/provisioning/controller/repository.go b/pkg/registry/apis/provisioning/controller/repository.go
index 70e5c3b4a87..681619711e1 100644
--- a/pkg/registry/apis/provisioning/controller/repository.go
+++ b/pkg/registry/apis/provisioning/controller/repository.go
@@ -84,6 +84,7 @@ func NewRepositoryController(
 	statusPatcher StatusPatcher,
 	registry prometheus.Registerer,
 	tracer tracing.Tracer,
+	parallelOperations int,
 ) (*RepositoryController, error) {
 	finalizerMetrics := registerFinalizerMetrics(registry)
 
@@ -104,6 +105,7 @@ func NewRepositoryController(
 			lister:        resourceLister,
 			clientFactory: clients,
 			metrics:       &finalizerMetrics,
+			maxWorkers:    parallelOperations,
 		},
 		jobs:      jobs,
 		logger:    logging.DefaultLogger.With("logger", loggerName),
diff --git a/pkg/registry/apis/provisioning/register.go b/pkg/registry/apis/provisioning/register.go
index 8797d940408..485f6bfe5d5 100644
--- a/pkg/registry/apis/provisioning/register.go
+++ b/pkg/registry/apis/provisioning/register.go
@@ -798,6 +798,7 @@ func (b *APIBuilder) GetPostStartHooks() (map[string]genericapiserver.PostStartH
 				b.statusPatcher,
 				b.registry,
 				b.tracer,
+				10,
 			)
 			if err != nil {
 				return err