Fundraising shouldn’t hijack your company. Yet most teams disappear into slide hell trying to “craft a story” investors might like. That’s backwards. If you’re running EOS the right way, your V/TO already is the story. If you nail it, everything else becomes obvious.
Stop making decks. Start running the business.
The V/TO is already what investors want
Investors aren’t complicated. They want:
- A clear destination
- Evidence you’re making progress
- A team that owns outcomes
- Proof you can execute repeatedly
That’s literally what the V/TO does. On one page, by answering eight questions:
Core Values, Core Focus™, 10-Year Target™, Marketing Strategy, 3-Year Picture™, 1-Year Plan, Rocks, and Issues.
When your leadership team is genuinely aligned on those eight answers, the investor narrative stops being aspirational and starts being credible. No fluff. No “we’ll figure it out later.” Just clarity and execution.
How we turn a V/TO into a real investor deck
This is the exact mapping we use for growth equity and venture raises:
Title & Thesis
Purpose + 10-Year Target. Where you’re going and why it matters.
Problem / Why Now
Your Core Focus. The pain you exist to solve—clearly and narrowly.
Solution & Product
What do you do? What problem are you solving?
Market
Target Market (“The List”). Who buys, how many there are, and why.
Go-To-Market
Your Proven Process plus your 3 Uniques™. This is how you win consistently.
Traction & KPIs
Scorecard metrics. Trends beat anecdotes.
Business Model & Unit Economics
Margins, payback, cash drivers. Measured, not hoped for.
Team & Structure
Accountability Chart™ and Right People / Right Seats, including Key Hires Needed.
Roadmap & Milestones
3 Year Picture, 1 Year Plan, Next 90 Days
Financials
Forecasts grounded in capacity, Scorecard activity, and reality.
Risks & De-Risking
Real Issues: Opportunities, Problems.
Use of Proceeds
Every dollar tied to a Rock, an owner, and an outcome.
Why Us / Why Now
Your unfair advantages. Focus beats breadth every time.
The Ask
Clear amount, structure, timing, and what “on-track” looks like next quarter.
None of this is invented for fundraising. It already exists if EOS is real in your company.
I can say from experience, when I see an investor deck is clearly tied to a V/TO, it just feels different.
- Coherence: One plan. No stitched-together nonsense.
- Credibility: Weekly numbers and quarterly execution.
- Confidence: Clear ownership and adult leadership behavior.
- Focus: A tight niche and disciplined strategy investors can underwrite.
This is what diligence is actually looking for.
How we do this at Meritage
We’ve been founders, operators, and investors. We’ve raised capital, scaled companies, exited them, and now invest in EOS-run businesses while implementing EOS for venture-backed teams.
That matters.
In a raise-focused engagement, we:
- Complete or refresh the V/TO - properly, with the help of an experienced EOS Implementer.
- Update the forward looking Accountability Chart and People Analyzer, making sure you’ve identified clear gaps that you need to hire for in the future.
- Convert the V/TO into a tight, board-ready investor deck
- Pressure-test unit economics, capacity, and cash like real investors do
No theater. Just execution. Fundraising isn’t separate from running the business. When EOS is run purely, your V/TO is your capital strategy. Clearer story. Tighter plan. Stronger team. That’s what investors back.
