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Free strategy & analytics templates for founders.

Diagnose the problem. Check the model holds. Launch with a plan.

Three templates — a problem diagnosis framework, a unit economics model and a go-to-market activation playbook. Sanitised versions of the frameworks I use in real engagements, so you can apply the same structure to your own business.

Free to download. No email, no sign-up.

Which one do I need? → See all three ↓
— Start Here

Pick the template that matches where you're stuck.

They follow the same order as a real engagement: find the right question, check the numbers, then turn the decision into daily action. Start wherever your problem is.

01

“I have a sense of what's wrong, but every conversation about it goes in a different direction.”

Problem Diagnosis Template →
02

“I know what I want to do. I'm not sure the numbers work if we scale it.”

Unit Economics Model →
03

“The decision is made. Now the team needs to know what to do on day one.”

GTM Activation Playbook →
01 · Strategy Framework

Problem Diagnosis Template

Turn an unclear problem into a precise, actionable question — before anyone starts solving the wrong one.

Word · 2 pages · Template + worked example
Free limited version
Download Free →

Use it when

  • Growth has stalled and the team has five different explanations.
  • You're about to hire, raise or pivot and want to be sure what problem that solves.
  • You need one problem statement your co-founder, team or board can agree on.

What's inside

A two-page template built on SCQA — Situation, Complication, Question, Answer — the structure consultants use to frame problems, plus a worked example showing it filled in.

How to use it

  1. Situation: write what is true today, using your own numbers.
  2. Complication: name what changed, or the gap that makes it a problem now.
  3. Question: the one decision that follows. If it's still vague, go back a step.
  4. Answer: only now, form a hypothesis to test.
02 · Analytics Template

Unit Economics Model

Your price, costs and volume in; contribution margin and break-even out. Know whether the business works before you scale it.

Excel · Worked example included
Free limited version
Download Free →

Use it when

  • You're deciding whether to scale a product, channel, location or centre.
  • You're setting or revisiting pricing.
  • An investor asks “what does it take to break even?” and you want a clear answer. (Read the walkthrough →)

What you get out

Break-even volume
How many units or customers before you stop losing money.
Contribution margin
What each sale actually contributes after its direct costs.
Gap to break-even
How far your current monthly volume is from break-even.

How to use it

  1. Start with the pre-filled worked example, then enter your own price, discounts, variable costs, fixed costs and current volume, using real numbers, not targets.
  2. Read the outputs. If break-even needs volume you've never reached, that's the finding.
  3. Change one input at a time to see which assumption the whole model depends on.
03 · Strategy to Execution

GTM Activation Playbook — Week 1

The first seven days of a launch, day by day: who does what, what should happen, and how each day feeds the next.

Word · Day-by-day
Free limited version
Download Free →

Use it when

  • You're launching a new product, market, location or channel.
  • The strategy is agreed but the execution plan feels disconnected from it.
  • Several people or roles need to move in sync from day one.

What's inside

A day-by-day plan for week one: daily activities by role, the expected outcome of each day, and how that outcome sets up the next day. It's the same structure used to activate 10+ franchise centres at once (see the case study).

How to use it

  1. Replace the example roles with your team.
  2. Set each day's expected outcome from your numbers, ideally from the unit economics model.
  3. Review at the end of each day. A miss on Day 2 changes Day 3, so fix it then, not in week three.
— Used Together

Diagnose, validate, activate. Each template answers the question the next one depends on.

A precise problem statement tells you what to model. The unit economics tell you whether the plan holds and what volume it needs. The playbook turns that volume into daily targets. Skipping a step is usually why launches stall at activation.

— Questions

About the templates.

Are these templates really free?

Yes. All three are free to download and use in your business. No email, no sign-up.

Which template should I start with?

If you can't yet say exactly what's wrong, start with the Problem Diagnosis Template. If you know what you want to do but aren't sure it pays, start with the Unit Economics Model. If the decision is made and you need to launch, start with the GTM Activation Playbook.

What does “free limited version” mean?

These are sanitised versions of frameworks used in real engagements. They give you the full structure; in an engagement, the same frameworks are built out further and filled with your data, market data and benchmarks.

Can I use them in Google Sheets or Google Docs?

They are built for Microsoft Excel and Word. You can upload them to Google Drive and open them in Sheets or Docs; check formulas and formatting after conversion.

Can I use them in an investor deck or board discussion?

Yes. The unit economics outputs and the problem statement are both designed to be shared with a team, board or investors.

— When the Template Isn't Enough

A template gives you the structure. Your data gives you the answer.

If you've filled one in and the answer still isn't clear, that's usually the most useful thing to bring to a first conversation. Thirty minutes, off the record, no pitch.

Start the Conversation → Or read how I think about these problems →