Hub/Templates/deck-outline/Series A deck template: 16-slide outline (2026)
★ deck-outline template·Use when moving from seed to Series A and rebuilding the deck around growth metrics, unit economics, and hiring plan·cross-sector · series-a·14 variables·Updated

Series A deck template: 16-slide outline (2026)

Series A deck template: the 16-slide outline A-round partners actually read in 2026, with cohort, CAC payback, unit economics, and hiring plan slides.

CBy the Causo editorial team
series-a-deck-outline.txt
# Slide 1: Cover {{COMPANY_NAME}}, Series A, {{MONTH_YEAR}} One-line description: {{ONE_LINER}} Raising: ${{ROUND_SIZE}}M at {{PREMONEY}}M pre # Slide 2: Company purpose Single declarative sentence. No adjectives. {{COMPANY_PURPOSE}} # Slide 3: Problem Who has it, how often, what they do today, why today's solution is broken. {{PROBLEM_STATEMENT}} # Slide 4: Why now The 2–3 shifts (regulatory, technical, behavioral) that make this buildable in 2026 and not in 2022. {{WHY_NOW_1}} {{WHY_NOW_2}} {{WHY_NOW_3}} # Slide 5: Why us Unfair advantage. Specific operator, research, or distribution edge per founder. {{FOUNDER_1_EDGE}} {{FOUNDER_2_EDGE}} # Slide 6: Product One screenshot, one workflow diagram. What the user sees on Monday morning. {{PRODUCT_SHOT}} # Slide 7: Traction (the hero slide) ARR or GMV over time, MoM growth rate, logo count. MRR: ${{MRR_NOW}}, growing {{MOM_GROWTH}}% MoM for {{CONSECUTIVE_MONTHS}} months. # Slide 8: Cohort retention NRR and GRR by monthly or quarterly cohort. Month-6 NRR: {{NRR_M6}}%. Month-12 NRR: {{NRR_M12}}%. # Slide 9: Unit economics Gross margin, contribution margin, LTV/CAC. GM: {{GM}}%. LTV/CAC: {{LTV_CAC_RATIO}}x. # Slide 10: CAC payback Months to recover fully-loaded CAC on the blended book and on the largest channel. Blended payback: {{PAYBACK_BLENDED}} months. Best channel: {{PAYBACK_BEST}} months. # Slide 11: Market Bottom-up TAM: units x ACV. Include the SAM you can credibly reach in 36 months. TAM: ${{TAM}}B. SAM by 2029: ${{SAM}}M. # Slide 12: Competition 2x2 or feature matrix. You on one axis, real named competitors on the other. {{COMPETITIVE_WEDGE}} # Slide 13: Go-to-market The one channel that's working and what you do with Series A money to pour on it. Primary channel: {{GTM_CHANNEL}}. Plan post-raise: {{GTM_PLAN}}. # Slide 14: Hiring plan Headcount today, 18 months out, by function. Which 3 hires unblock the next milestone. Today: {{HC_NOW}}. T+18: {{HC_T18}}. First 3 hires: {{FIRST_3_HIRES}}. # Slide 15: Financials 24-month P&L: revenue, gross profit, burn, runway. One chart, one table. Current burn: ${{BURN}}k/mo. Runway post-raise: {{RUNWAY_MONTHS}} months. # Slide 16: The ask Round size, use of funds split, milestones this round gets you to. ${{ROUND_SIZE}}M. {{UOF_PRODUCT}}% product, {{UOF_GTM}}% GTM, {{UOF_GA}}% G&A. Milestone: ${{MILESTONE_ARR}}M ARR. # Appendix (8–12 slides, referenced during Q&A) - Cohort triangles by acquisition channel - Logo list with contract value and start date - Pipeline by stage with weighted ARR - Pricing history and expansion motion - Security/compliance posture - Detailed org chart and hiring sequence - Sensitivity analysis on the model - Customer reference quotes with names and titles

Variables · fill before sending

  • COMPANY_NAMELegal or operating name as it appears on the cover
  • ONE_LINER10 words or fewer, no buzzwords, verb-first
  • ROUND_SIZETarget raise in $M, e.g. 15
  • PREMONEYPre-money valuation in $M, e.g. 60
  • WHY_NOW_1Specific 2024–2026 shift (regulation, cost curve, model capability)
  • MRR_NOWCurrent monthly recurring revenue in $, no rounding
  • MOM_GROWTHTrailing 6-month average MoM growth rate, %
  • NRR_M12Month-12 net revenue retention, % (target 110%+ for SaaS)
  • LTV_CAC_RATIOLTV divided by fully-loaded CAC, show the math in an appendix slide
  • PAYBACK_BLENDEDMonths to recover blended CAC (A-round benchmark: under 18 months)
  • GTM_CHANNELThe single channel with the best CAC payback, not a list of 4
  • FIRST_3_HIRESTitles and why each one unblocks the next milestone
  • RUNWAY_MONTHSPost-raise runway at current burn, target 24+ months
  • MILESTONE_ARRThe ARR number that justifies a Series B at a step-up

How to use it

  • Replace the seed "vision" slide, don't keep it. Your why-now plus traction is the new vision slide. A-round partners screen out decks that lead with market size.
  • Put cohort retention before unit economics. Retention is the signal partners trust; unit economics without retention looks like CAC arbitrage.
  • CAC payback beats LTV/CAC as the hero number. Payback is harder to game and is the 2026 default benchmark at A.
  • Keep the deck to 16. Put everything else in the appendix. Bring 8–12 appendix slides to the partner meeting, First Round Review reports partners reference them heavily during Q&A.
  • Don't show a 5-year projection. Show 24 months. Anything longer reads as a science project, and partners discount it to zero anyway.

What to use this with

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