Startup Business Analyst Business Case

What This Command Does

Create a complete business case including:

1. Executive summary
2. Problem and market opportunity
3. Solution and product
4. Competitive analysis and differentiation
5. Financial projections
6. Go-to-market strategy
7. Team and organization
8. Risks and mitigation
9. Funding ask and use of proceeds

Instructions for Claude

When this command is invoked, follow these steps:

Step 1: Gather Context

Ask the user for key information:

Company Basics:

• Company name and elevator pitch
• Stage (pre-seed, seed, Series A)
• Problem being solved
• Target customers

Audience:

• Who will read this? (VCs, angels, strategic partners)
• What's the primary goal? (fundraising, partnership, internal planning)

Available Materials:

• Existing pitch deck or docs?
• Market sizing data?
• Financial model?
• Competitive analysis?

Step 2: Activate Relevant Skills

Reference skills for comprehensive analysis:

• market-sizing-analysis - TAM/SAM/SOM calculations
• startup-financial-modeling - Financial projections
• competitive-landscape - Competitive analysis frameworks
• team-composition-analysis - Organization planning
• startup-metrics-framework - Key metrics and benchmarks

Step 3: Structure the Business Case

Create a comprehensive document with these sections:

Business Case Document Structure

Section 1: Executive Summary (1-2 pages)

Company Overview:

• One-sentence description
• Founded, location, stage
• Team highlights

Problem Statement:

• Core problem being solved (2-3 sentences)
• Market pain quantified

Solution:

• How the product solves it (2-3 sentences)
• Key differentiation

Market Opportunity:

• TAM: $X.XB
• SAM: $X.XM
• SOM (Year 5): $X.XM

Traction:

• Current metrics (MRR, customers, growth rate)
• Key milestones achieved

Financial Snapshot:

| Metric | Current | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 |
|--------|---------|--------|--------|--------|
| ARR | $X | $Y | $Z | $W |
| Customers | X | Y | Z | W |
| Team Size | X | Y | Z | W |

Funding Ask:

• Amount seeking
• Use of proceeds (top 3-4)
• Expected milestones

Section 2: Problem & Market Opportunity (2-3 pages)

The Problem:

• Detailed problem description
• Who experiences this problem
• Current solutions and their limitations
• Cost of the problem (quantified)

Market Landscape:

• Industry overview
• Key trends driving opportunity
• Market growth rate and drivers

Market Sizing:

• TAM calculation and methodology
• SAM with filters applied
• SOM with assumptions
• Validation and data sources
• Comparison to public companies

Target Customer Profile:

• Primary segments
• Customer characteristics
• Decision-makers and buying process

Section 3: Solution & Product (2-3 pages)

Product Overview:

• What it does (features and capabilities)
• How it works (architecture/approach)
• Key differentiators
• Technology advantages

Value Proposition:

• Benefits by customer segment
• ROI or value delivered
• Time to value

Product Roadmap:

• Current state
• Near-term (6 months)
• Medium-term (12-18 months)
• Vision (2-3 years)

Intellectual Property:

• Patents (filed, pending)
• Proprietary technology
• Data advantages
• Defensibility

Section 4: Competitive Analysis (2 pages)

Competitive Landscape:

• Direct competitors
• Indirect competitors (alternatives)
• Adjacent players (potential entrants)

Competitive Matrix:

| Feature/Factor | Us | Comp A | Comp B | Comp C |
|----------------|----|---------| -------|--------|
| Feature 1 | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Feature 2 | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ |
| Pricing | $X | $Y | $Z | $W |

Differentiation:

• 3-5 key differentiators
• Why these matter to customers
• Defensibility of advantages

Competitive Positioning:

• Positioning map (2-3 dimensions)
• Market positioning statement

Barriers to Entry:

• What protects against competition
• Network effects, switching costs, etc.

Section 5: Business Model & Go-to-Market (2 pages)

Business Model:

• Revenue model (subscriptions, transactions, etc.)
• Pricing strategy and tiers
• Customer acquisition approach
• Expansion revenue strategy

Go-to-Market Strategy:

• Customer acquisition channels
• Sales model (self-serve, sales-led, hybrid)
• Customer acquisition cost (CAC)
• Sales cycle and conversion rates

Marketing Strategy:

• Positioning and messaging
• Channel strategy
• Content and demand generation
• Partnerships and integrations

Customer Success:

• Onboarding approach
• Support model
• Retention strategy
• Net dollar retention target

Section 6: Financial Projections (2-3 pages)

Revenue Model:

• Cohort-based projections
• Key assumptions
• Revenue breakdown by segment

3-Year Financial Summary:

| Metric | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 |
|--------|--------|--------|--------|
| Revenue | $X.XM | $Y.YM | $Z.ZM |
| Gross Margin | XX% | XX% | XX% |
| Operating Expenses | $X.XM | $Y.YM | $Z.ZM |
| Net Income | ($X.XM) | ($Y.YM) | $Z.ZM |
| EBITDA Margin | (XX%) | (XX%) | XX% |

Unit Economics:

• CAC: $X,XXX
• LTV: $X,XXX
• LTV:CAC ratio: X.X
• CAC Payback: XX months
• Gross margin: XX%

Key Metrics Trajectory:

| Metric | Current | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 |
|--------|---------|--------|--------|--------|
| MRR/ARR | $X | $Y | $Z | $W |
| Customers | X | Y | Z | W |
| Net Dollar Retention | XX% | XX% | XX% | XX% |
| Burn Multiple | X.X | X.X | X.X | X.X |

Scenario Analysis:

• Conservative, base, optimistic
• Key drivers and sensitivities

Path to Profitability:

• Break-even timeline
• Key milestones
• Unit economics at scale

Section 7: Team & Organization (1-2 pages)

Leadership Team: For each founder/executive:

• Name, title, photo (if available)
• Relevant background (2-3 sentences)
• Key accomplishments
• Why they're uniquely qualified

Current Team:

• Headcount by department
• Key hires and their backgrounds
• Advisory board

Hiring Plan:

• Year 1-3 headcount growth
• Key roles to fill
• Recruiting strategy

Organization Evolution:

Current (5 people) → Year 1 (15) → Year 2 (35) → Year 3 (60)
Engineering: 3 → 7 → 15 → 25
Sales & Marketing: 1 → 4 → 12 → 20
Other: 1 → 4 → 8 → 15

Equity & Compensation:

• Option pool sizing
• Compensation philosophy
• Retention strategy

Section 8: Traction & Milestones (1 page)

Current Traction:

• Revenue or user metrics
• Growth rate
• Key customer wins
• Product development progress

Milestones Achieved:

• Product launches
• Funding rounds
• Team hires
• Customer acquisition
• Partnerships

Upcoming Milestones (12-18 months):

• Product milestones
• Revenue targets
• Customer goals
• Team goals
• Partnership goals

Section 9: Risks & Mitigation (1 page)

Market Risks:

• Market size assumptions
• Competitive intensity
• Substitute adoption
• Mitigation strategies

Execution Risks:

• Product development
• Go-to-market effectiveness
• Hiring and retention
• Mitigation strategies

Financial Risks:

• Burn rate management
• Fundraising market
• Unit economics
• Mitigation strategies

Regulatory/External Risks:

• Compliance requirements
• Data privacy
• Economic conditions
• Mitigation strategies

Section 10: Funding Request & Use of Proceeds (1 page)

Funding Ask:

• Amount seeking: $X.XM
• Structure: Equity, SAFE, convertible note
• Target valuation: $X.XM (if applicable)

Use of Proceeds:

Total Raise: $5.0M
- Product Development: $2.0M (40%)
  • Engineering team expansion
  • Infrastructure and tools
  • Product roadmap execution

- Sales & Marketing: $2.0M (40%)
  • Sales team hiring (5 AEs)
  • Marketing programs
  • Demand generation

- Operations & G&A: $0.5M (10%)
  • Finance/legal/HR
  • Office and facilities

- Working Capital: $0.5M (10%)
  • 6-month buffer

Milestones to Achieve:

• Revenue: $X.XM ARR (X% growth)
• Customer: XXX customers
• Product: Key features launched
• Team: XX employees
• Metric: Key metric targets

Expected Timeline:

• 18-24 month runway
• Achieve milestones in 15-18 months
• 6-month buffer for next raise

Next Round:

• Series A in 18-24 months
• Expected metrics at that time
• Target raise amount

Step 4: Enhance with Visuals

Suggest including:

• Charts for market sizing (TAM funnel)
• Product screenshots or mockups
• Positioning maps
• Financial trend charts (revenue, customers, burn)
• Organization chart
• Timeline/roadmap
• Use of proceeds pie chart

Step 5: Provide Additional Sections (Optional)

If Relevant, Add:

• Regulatory/Compliance section (for regulated industries)
• Technology Architecture (for deep tech)
• Clinical/Scientific Data (for biotech/health tech)
• Unit Economics Deep Dive (for complex business models)
• Strategic Partnerships (if material to strategy)

Step 6: Create Executive Summary Slide

Provide one-page summary for quick review:

• Problem & Solution (3 bullets each)
• Market: TAM/SAM/SOM
• Traction: Key metrics
• Team: Founders
• Ask: Amount and use
• Contact information

Step 7: Save Business Case

Offer to save as markdown:

• Filename: business-case-[company-name]-YYYY-MM-DD.md
• Suggest converting to PDF for sharing
• Provide tips for presentation format

Best Practices

Do:

• Lead with customer problem
• Quantify everything
• Show, don't just tell (use data)
• Be realistic on projections
• Acknowledge risks honestly
• Cite all data sources
• Keep executive summary concise
• Focus on differentiation

Don't:

• Use jargon without explanation
• Make unsupported claims
• Ignore competition
• Be overly optimistic
• Skip the "why now"
• Forget to proofread
• Use generic templates without customization

Integration with Other Commands

This command synthesizes outputs from:

• /market-opportunity - Include TAM/SAM/SOM analysis
• /financial-projections - Include full financial model

Example Usage

User: /business-case

Claude: I'll create a comprehensive business case document. Let me gather the key information first.

Company name and description?
→ "AcmeCorp - AI-powered email marketing for e-commerce"

Who is the audience?
→ "Series A investors"

What materials do you have?
→ "We have market sizing and financial model done"

[Claude creates comprehensive 15-20 page business case with all sections]

Notes

• Business case creation takes 1-2 hours
• Result is investor-grade document
• Can be used for pitch deck development
• Update quarterly or for funding rounds
• Customize sections based on audience
• Keep executive summary to 2 pages max

Limitations

• Use this skill only when the task clearly matches the scope described above.
• Do not treat the output as a substitute for environment-specific validation, testing, or expert review.
• Stop and ask for clarification if required inputs, permissions, safety boundaries, or success criteria are missing.