The five layers
- Connection layer. The five operating systems (CRM, accounting, ad platform, ecommerce, subscription) wired into one model. The job is entity resolution: a customer is one customer, a product is one product, a channel is one channel — across every tool.
- Truth layer. A single number per metric, defined once. The CAC the founder sees is the CAC the CFO sees. The margin the COO uses is the margin the controller signs off on.
- Diagnostic layer. The metrics, but decomposed. Gross margin isn't a number; it's a number broken down by product, channel, segment, and time — so the cause of a movement is visible.
- Action layer. A ranked list of moves the diagnostic implies. "Cut Klaviyo flow X (true ROAS 0.7×, $12k spend last 30d, -$3.4k contribution)" beats "Klaviyo ROAS down 18% MoM."
- Cadence layer. The weekly review template that consumes the diagnostic + action layer. Monday morning has the report. Friday afternoon has the decisions.
The ten operating metrics
Every operator should track these ten on a weekly cadence. Definitions match the Fairview glossary.
- Contribution margin by channel and segment
- True ROAS by channel
- Blended CAC with payback period
- LTV:CAC ratio by acquisition cohort
- Forecast accuracy with confidence interval
- Pipeline coverage with weighted forecast
- Burn multiple (SaaS) or cash runway (D2C)
- Rule of 40 (SaaS) or contribution margin trend (D2C)
- Net revenue retention by cohort
- Cash conversion cycle
The weekly cadence
Monday 9am — the report lands. It contains: the 10 metrics with week-over-week movement, the diagnostic layer behind any metric that moved >10%, and the top 3 ranked actions.
Tuesday — review with leadership (45 minutes).
Wednesday–Thursday — actions get assigned. Outputs roll back into the model.
Friday — verify the actions shipped. Pre-stage Monday's report.
Get the framework as a template
The framework ships pre-loaded in Fairview, but you can also download it as a working weekly business review template. Use it standalone or with Fairview.