Assess

Assess

Consolidate and validate financial data for "$ARGUMENTS". Gather historical financials, verify data integrity, and establish the baseline from which all planning begins.

Prerequisites

None — this is the first phase.

Process

1. Ask financial data questions:

   • What type of business is this? (SaaS, e-commerce, services, marketplace, hardware)
   • What stage? (pre-revenue, early-stage, growth, mature)
   • What financial data is available? (P&L, balance sheet, cash flow, bank statements)
   • What period does the data cover?
   • What accounting method? (cash vs accrual)
   • What currency and fiscal year?

2. Consolidate data sources:

   • List all revenue streams and categorize them
   • List all cost categories (fixed, variable, one-time)
   • Identify the chart of accounts or cost centers
   • Note any data gaps or inconsistencies

3. Validate and reconcile:

   • Cross-check revenue against bank deposits or invoices
   • Verify expense categories are consistent across periods
   • Flag any anomalies, one-time items, or restatements
   • Calculate basic trends (MoM, YoY growth rates)

4. Establish baseline metrics:

   • Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR) or equivalent
   • Gross margin
   • Burn rate and runway
   • Headcount and revenue per employee

5. Write the artifact to .metapowers/finance/$ARGUMENTS/01-assess.md with sections:

   • Business Profile — type, stage, accounting method, fiscal year
   • Data Sources — what data was provided and its quality
   • Revenue Summary — streams, trends, seasonality
   • Cost Summary — fixed vs variable, major categories
   • Baseline Metrics — key financial indicators
   • Data Gaps — missing information and impact on planning

Output

The assessment written to .metapowers/finance/$ARGUMENTS/01-assess.md. Present a summary highlighting:

• Business profile and stage
• Revenue and cost structure overview
• Key baseline metrics
• Critical data gaps to resolve