A funding playbook for VPs of Data who need a board to approve the next platform - cost of inaction, unit economics, phased ROI, and a legacy sunset plan the CFO can defend.
The first meeting is not a funding ask. It is a setup. The board sees the current cost of running the legacy, the revenue at risk, and the specific use cases the existing stack cannot serve. The ask comes next.
Phased ROI, Legacy Sunset
The second meeting is the proposal. It opens with the four numbers the board needs: total investment, payback period, NPV, and what gets sunset to fund part of it. Phased commitments lower the perceived risk and give the board genuine decision points along the way.
The proposal must tie investment to specific use cases that pay back. Three to five use cases is the sweet spot - enough to diversify the case, few enough that each one is real, sponsored, and signed off by the business owner who benefits.
The first meeting is not a funding ask. It is a setup.
The second meeting is the proposal. It opens with the four numbers the board needs: total investment, payback period, NPV, and what gets sunset to fund part of it.
The proposal must tie investment to specific use cases that pay back. Three to five use cases is the sweet spot.
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