Fractional CFO Fundraise Readiness: A 45‑Day Data Room Checklist

When a raise is on the horizon, speed and credibility decide the outcome. The fastest way to lose both is to show up with a half-built data room and a financial story that changes with every question. A fractional CFO gives you institutional-grade readiness—without the full-time headcount—by standing up a clean, defensible data room and aligning the numbers to a clear investment thesis in weeks, not quarters.

What "Investor‑Ready" Actually Means

Investor-ready doesn't mean perfect. It means complete, consistent, and explainable. Your financials reconcile. Your KPIs tie to the model. Your contracts match revenue recognition. Your cap table foots. And when a diligence request arrives at 9:00 a.m., the document is already in the room by 9:05.

The 45‑Day Plan (Week‑by‑Week)

• Weeks 1–2: Baseline and Gaps

  • Close and QA the last 24 months: P&L, balance sheet, cash flow (monthly).

  • Build a simple, driver-based model (12–24 months) with 3 scenarios (base/downsides/raise case).

  • Reconcile ARR/MRR to billings, cash, and contracts; tag one-timers vs. recurring.

  • Cap table hygiene: options, SAFEs/notes, pro forma post-raise; verify board approvals.

• Weeks 3–4: Instrument the KPIs Investors Expect

  • Revenue engine: MQL→SQL→Win, CAC payback, cohort LTV, gross margin by segment.

  • Efficiency: burn multiple, net dollar retention, pipeline coverage.

  • Operational levers: hiring plan by function, unit economics, vendor/COGS assumptions.

• Weeks 5–6: Lock the Room and Rehearse

  • Finalize data room structure and permissions.

  • Red-team the model: sensitivity on pricing, churn, ramp, and working capital.

  • Dry-run top-20 diligence questions with CEO/functional leads.

Your Data Room: Structure and Contents

• Corporate & Legal

  • Articles/bylaws, board minutes, major contracts and MSAs, IP assignments, vendor agreements, insurance certificates.

• Finance & Accounting

  • Monthly financials (24 months), model with assumptions, audit/review letters (if any), revenue recognition memos, bank/AR/AP agings.

• Revenue & Customers

  • Top 25 customers, churn/win-loss, pricing/discount policies, pipeline by stage, CSAT/NPS.

• Product & Operations

  • Roadmap, backlog, security posture, uptime/SLA summaries.

• People & Org

  • Org chart, hiring plan, compensation bands, option plan docs, key role profiles.

Industrial SMB Variant: Cash Conversion First

If you're a services or light-industrial operator, prioritize cash conversion. Add a working-capital schedule (AR/AP/inventory days), job costing by project, and vendor terms benchmarking. Show investors where cash gets trapped—and your 90‑day plan to release it.

Avoid These Five Diligence Deal‑Breakers

1. Model ≠ Historicals: Forecast drivers don't reconcile to actuals. Fix: tie the model to booked revenue and known unit economics; flag deltas.

2. MRR Theater: Counting pilots and one-offs as recurring. Fix: tag contract types and disclose explicit renewal assumptions.

3. Cap Table Surprises: Unrecorded SAFEs/notes, missing consents. Fix: centralize cap doc custody; create a pro forma and board‑approved option refresh.

4. KPI Fog: CAC, LTV, payback computed five different ways. Fix: publish a KPI glossary; calculate once and reuse.

5. Data Room Drift: Ad hoc uploads and version sprawl. Fix: index, version, and permission the room; appoint a single DRI.

How a Fractional CFO Accelerates the Raise

• Time-to-credibility: Creates a single source of truth in 2–3 weeks.

• Outcome-first: Anchors the model and hiring plan to the raise thesis and use of proceeds.

• Flex up/down: Deep involvement through term sheet, then right-size to monthly cadence for reporting.

Where to Go Next

• If you need finance leadership in days, you can explore Solace's service page for engaging a fractional CFO on flexible terms.

• For a 90‑day tactical plan, review the guidance in a CFO for hire 90‑day leadership sprint.

• Not sure whether you need a Controller vs. CFO? Compare trade‑offs in the analysis on fractional CFO vs. controller cost/benefit.

• What KPIs do investors scrutinize most in early diligence?

  • Typically CAC payback, gross margin trends, retention (logo and dollar), burn multiple, and unit economics by segment.

• How detailed must our model be?

  • Focus on drivers that actually move outcomes (pricing, conversion, ramp, churn, hiring). Add scenario and sensitivity—avoid false precision.

• We're an industrial services firm—do we still need ARR/MRR?

  • No. Prioritize cash conversion (AR/AP/inventory), job profitability, and backlog quality. Disclose revenue seasonality and contract structures.

• Can a fractional CFO be remote for this work?

  • Yes. Most tasks (close, model, data room) are remote‑friendly. Pair with on‑site workshops for alignment as needed.

• What's a reasonable timeline?

  With focused support, you can progress from baseline to investor‑ready in ~45 days; term sheet to close often adds 30–60 days for confirmatory diligence.