Series A Financial Planning & Readiness Checklist

Finance & Accounting Maturity

• ☐ Maintain accrual-based accounting with monthly close processes
• ☐ Establish a standardized Chart of Accounts for scalability
• ☐ Upgrade to GAAP-compliant financial statements (auditable-ready)
• ☐ Perform monthly budget vs. actuals analysis with commentary
• ☐ Prepare for annual financial audits or reviews

Advanced Financial Model & Forecasting

• ☐ Expand your 18–24 month model to include cohort-level revenue and department costs
• ☐ Include conservative, base, and aggressive scenarios
• ☐ Link your model to cash flow and revenue operations strategy

Cash & Runway Management

• ☐ Maintain 12–18 months of runway post-Series A close
• ☐ Track burn multiple (Net Burn / Net New ARR) monthly
• ☐ Establish spending guardrails by department
• ☐ Develop a capital allocation framework
• ☐ Set a reserve threshold and forecast breach dates monthly

Revenue Operations & GTM Scaling

• ☐ Define and document your ICP and segmentation strategy
• ☐ Build a repeatable sales process with playbooks and stages
• ☐ Track CAC, LTV, win rate, sales cycle, conversion rates
• ☐ Implement a CRM and lead attribution system
• ☐ Formalize marketing funnel KPIs and experiment ROI reviews

Headcount & Org Design

• ☐ Create a 12–24 month headcount plan by function and seniority
• ☐ Build scalable onboarding and training processes
• ☐ Benchmark compensation with equity bands for Series A+ startups
• ☐ Forecast fully-loaded costs per role
• ☐ Implement performance reviews and early career pathing

Board Reporting & KPI Dashboard

• ☐ Create a monthly/quarterly board reporting template
• ☐ Maintain a real-time dashboard (MRR/ARR, Burn, CAC, LTV, Churn)
• ☐ Report on Gross Margin, Net Revenue Retention, Burn Multiple
• ☐ Include commentary on plan vs actual performance
• ☐ Review key KPIs with senior leadership bi-weekly or monthly

Investor & Data Room Readiness

• ☐ Build a professional data room with financials, cap table, and legal/IP docs
• ☐ Draft a compelling Series A narrative
• ☐ Maintain investor update rhythm (monthly or quarterly)

Legal & Compliance

• ☐ Conduct a pre-fundraising legal cleanup (IP, contracts, cap table)
• ☐ Ensure employment agreements, NDAs, and IP assignments are in place
• ☐ Comply with Delaware franchise tax, Form D (if applicable)
• ☐ Review and renew D&O insurance, SOC2 prep, privacy compliance

Cap Table & Equity Planning

• ☐ Keep an accurate, updated cap table (Carta or Pulley)
• ☐ Plan for option pool refresh pre-Series A (15–20% post-money)
• ☐ Model dilution scenarios for Series A and future rounds
• ☐ Set a clear equity strategy for hiring and retention

Operating System for Growth

• ☐ Build or upgrade your OKR / goal-setting framework
• ☐ Introduce quarterly planning cadences across teams
• ☐ Establish financial controls and departmental budgets
• ☐ Begin formal forecasting & scenario planning cycles

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Thank you,

Navneet Sandhar

CEO & Founder

Navneet@premiumgrowthadvisor.com

www.premiumgrowthadvisor.com