Guide
Monthly investor update template for small companies
A monthly investor update is a short email that tells your investors how the company did last month, how much cash it has left and what you need from them. Use five sections in the same order every month: headline numbers, what went well, what didn't, cash and runway, and asks. Keep it to one screen, and report bad news as plainly as good.
Updated
What should a monthly investor update include?
Five sections, always in the same order: the headline numbers against last month and plan; what went well; what did not, with what you are doing about it; cash at month end, net burn and runway; and specific asks investors can act on. A reader should get the state of the company from the first screen.
Monthly investor update template plain text
Subject: [Company] investor update - [Month] Hi all, [One sentence: the month in a line, good or bad.] HEADLINE NUMBERS ([Month]; last month in brackets) - Revenue: [$] ([$]), [+/-%]; plan was [$] - Gross margin: [%] ([%]) - Net burn: [$] ([$]) - Cash at month end: [$] ([$]) - Runway: [months] at this month's net burn - [One or two measures specific to the business: customers, bookings, pipeline] WHAT WENT WELL - [Win, with a number] - [Win, with a number] WHAT DIDN'T - [Problem, with a number]. [What we are doing about it.] Owner: [name], by [date]. - [Problem, with a number]. [What we are doing about it.] Owner: [name], by [date]. CASH AND RUNWAY Cash went from [$] to [$]. Net burn was [$], [up / down] from [$] because [reason]. At this month's burn, cash lasts [months]. [Plan: raise / reach break-even / cut costs, and when.] ASKS 1. [An introduction: the role and the kind of company, and why] 2. [A hire: the role and the profile] 3. [A question: what you need to know, and who might know it] Thanks, [Name]
- Headline numbers. The same five to eight every month, each beside last month and the plan: revenue, gross margin, net burn, cash, runway, and one or two measures specific to the business.
- What went well. Two or three wins, each with a number: a contract and its value, a launch and its uptake, a cost that came down.
- What didn't. As specific as the wins: the number, the cause and what you are doing about it, with an owner and a date.
- Cash and runway. Where cash started and ended, why burn moved, how many months the cash lasts, and the plan if that is short.
- Asks. One to three requests an investor can act on in one reply: a named kind of introduction, a hire, a question someone may know the answer to.
What does a good monthly investor update look like?
Here is the template filled in for one month. It reads in about two minutes, puts the slipped hire beside the wins, and ends with asks an investor can answer in one reply.
Example update illustrative figures, not a real company
Subject: Investor update - September Hi all, A good month for sales and a slower one for hiring: revenue grew 5% and net burn fell, but our senior engineer hire has slipped to December. HEADLINE NUMBERS (September; August in brackets) - Revenue: $189,000 ($180,000), +5.0%; plan was $185,000 - Gross margin: 72% (71%) - Net burn: $64,000 ($71,000) - Cash at month end: $1,152,000 ($1,216,000) - Runway: 18.0 months at September's net burn - Paying customers: 212 (203) WHAT WENT WELL - Two annual contracts signed, worth $54,000 a year between them. - Net burn fell $7,000, as August's annual software renewals did not recur. WHAT DIDN'T - Our offer for the senior engineer role was declined. The role is open again and the expected start moves from October to December. Owner: CTO. - One customer paying $2,400 a month cancelled for budget reasons. We are calling the five customers with the same profile this month. Owner: head of customer success. CASH AND RUNWAY Cash went from $1,216,000 to $1,152,000. Net burn was $64,000, down from $71,000. At September's burn, cash lasts 18.0 months. We plan to start raising when runway reaches 12 months, six months from now, unless burn falls further. ASKS 1. Introductions to finance leads at logistics companies with 50 to 500 staff. 2. Candidates for the senior engineer role: remote, within US time zones. 3. Has anyone negotiated an annual cloud-hosting commitment? Twenty minutes of advice would help. Thanks, [Name]
How do you report cash and runway to investors?
Give cash at month end, net burn for the month and runway in months, each beside last month's figure. Runway is cash divided by net burn, where net burn is cash paid out minus cash received. Say which burn you used, one month or an average, and when cash would run out if nothing changed.
net burn = cash paid out - cash received (for the month) runway = cash at month end / net burn (in months)
In the example, $1,152,000 / $64,000 = 18.0 months. When burn swings from month to month, quote a three-month average and say so; if more cash came in than went out, say the company is cash-flow positive instead of quoting a runway. When runway is short, add the plan and its date: raise, cut costs, or reach break-even.
The cash runway calculator gives the months and the month cash runs out, and the cash runway and burn rate pages explain both measures.
How do you share bad news in an investor update?
Put it in the update, near the top if it matters, with the number, the cause and what you are doing about it, with an owner and a date. Do not bury it under good news or wait for a better month: investors who hear early can help, and repeated surprises cost more trust than the news itself.
- Weak: "Hiring is taking longer than expected."
- Strong: "Our offer for the senior engineer role was declined. The role is open again and the expected start moves from October to December. Owner: CTO."
The strong version answers the next questions before anyone asks them: what happened, what it changes, and who is on it.
When should you send a monthly investor update, and who gets it?
Send it on the same day every month, once the month's books are reconciled, so the numbers do not change after investors have read them. A predictable date matters more than an early one. Send it to every investor, and consider adding people you will want in your next round.
Directors still need the fuller papers before each board meeting: the board pack template covers those. Keep every update in one folder, so the history is ready when you next raise.
Where the numbers come from
The headline numbers come from the month's management report: the monthly management report template sets it out, and a sample monthly management report shows one built from a sample company's books. If you quote gross margin or days sales outstanding, the small-company benchmarks show how small public companies compare.
Or have it written for you
Ataski's Financial Analyst writes the monthly management report from your accounting system, with a scorecard and the profit and loss against the prior month and the budget, so the numbers in your update start from figures that already tie to your books.
- Your ledger. QuickBooks Online and Xero; NetSuite, Sage Intacct, Zoho Books and Business Central in beta.
- Every month on the 1st. The report is refreshed on the 1st of every month for the month just ended, as a draft that waits for your approval.
- History from day one. The first connection reads the trailing 24 months, so the first report already compares each month with the same month last year.
- Cash, 13 weeks out. A weekly cash forecast beside the open invoices and bills falling due.
- A second reviewer. A second, independent AI reviewer reads every monthly narrative, and an AI explanation that cites a source outside your books is discarded, not published.
Plans start at $599/mo. The first month is free, and no card is needed to start it.
Questions
How long should a monthly investor update be?
Short enough to read in a few minutes on a phone: the headline numbers, a few lines on what went well and what did not, cash and runway, and one to three asks. Link to the full management report for anyone who wants the detail.
When should a monthly investor update be sent?
On the same day every month, once the month's books are reconciled, so the numbers do not change after investors have read them. A predictable date matters more than an early one.
Should I send an update when the month was bad?
Yes, especially then. Investors who hear about a problem early, with the numbers and a plan, can help; investors who learn of it late, or from someone else, lose trust. A skipped month is itself read as bad news.
Which metrics belong in the headline numbers?
The same five to eight every month: usually revenue and its growth, gross margin, net burn, cash at month end and runway, plus one or two measures specific to the business, such as customers or bookings. Change the list rarely, and say so when you do.
What is the difference between an investor update and a board pack?
An investor update is a short monthly email to every investor. A board pack is the fuller set of papers directors read before a board meeting, usually quarterly, with the financial statements, the risks and the decisions the board is asked to make.