startup-business-analyst-business-case

SKILL.md

Business Case Generator

Generate a comprehensive, investor-ready business case document covering market opportunity, solution, competitive landscape, financial projections, team, risks, and funding ask for startup fundraising and strategic planning.

Use this skill when

Working on business case generator tasks or workflows

Needing guidance, best practices, or checklists for business case generator

Do not use this skill when

The task is unrelated to business case generator

You need a different domain or tool outside this scope

Instructions

Clarify goals, constraints, and required inputs.

Apply relevant best practices and validate outcomes.

Provide actionable steps and verification.

If detailed examples are required, open resources/implementation-playbook.md.

What This Command Does

Create a complete business case including:

Executive summary

Problem and market opportunity

Solution and product

Competitive analysis and differentiation

Financial projections

Go-to-market strategy

Team and organization

Risks and mitigation

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.