Doctrine & Authority
West Michigan is the preferred institutional home. The CXO has execution discretion. The NC CFO receives financial authority when the Canapi-facing finance function is ready.
Why a CXO
CXO = CFO Office financing execution command. The CXO operates the process, preserves institutional memory, and keeps the campaign disciplined. The CXO does not replace the CFO, counsel, CEO, or board.
Execution philosophy
The campaign should be run as a controlled operating system, not as a list of names. Every target has a ring, a capital type, a warmth state, a thesis score, a stage gate, a check role, a strategic-fit score, and a graph traversal path. Every meeting has an objective and a post-meeting state. Every pass has a coded reason and a re-entry condition.
Capital philosophy
Bankabil should seek capital that increases evidence, distribution, credibility, regulated-market access, and future financing leverage. Capital quality is not simply check size. A small local check with high trust may be more strategically valuable than a larger cold check with no ecosystem carry.
Patience and re-entry
A pass is often a deferred decision, not a rejection. West Michigan relationships should compound over time. The CXO should maintain a re-entry milestone for every serious relationship unless counsel, the CFO, or the CEO directs otherwise.
Preference without restriction
West Michigan is preferred because it can become the durable institutional home of the company. That preference cannot become a constraint that prevents the CXO from using Lansing, Ann Arbor, Detroit, Midwest, or national nodes when they strengthen the company.
- ×It does not mean only raising in West Michigan.
- ×It does not require the CXO to exhaust Ring 0 before contacting Ring 4, Ring 6, or Ring 7.
- ×It does not prohibit Canapi, Live Oak, TruStage, Drive, Nyca, Commerce, or other national specialist conversations.
- ×It does not subordinate executive judgment to a map.
- ×It does not turn local preference into a financing bottleneck.
- ✓Every non-local conversation should, when possible, increase West Michigan credibility rather than bypass it.
- ✓Grand Rapids and West Michigan relationships should be maintained even when they pass on the current round.
- ✓Local investors and civic institutions should understand the company before national validation dominates the narrative.
- ✓Statewide engagement should be explained as strengthening the Michigan ecosystem, not replacing the West Michigan base.
CXO discretion
- CXO may decideWhether conversations run sequentially, concurrently, or in overlapping waves.
- CXO may prioritizeWarm introductions, direct outreach, events, executive referrals, portfolio-founder routes, or institutional bridge nodes.
- CXO may changeCampaign architecture when facts change, provided material changes are documented.
- CXO may not decideValuation, financing terms, governance rights, legal representations, or binding commitments.
Authority boundaries
| Office | Owns | Does not own |
|---|---|---|
| CEO | Founder narrative, mission, executive sponsorship, strategic priority, final relationship signal. | Diligence traffic control, valuation mechanics alone, legal approvals. |
| CFO | Valuation, dilution, runway, capital strategy, financial recommendations, investor economics. | CRM administration, every follow-up note, legal documents. |
| CXO | Outreach machinery, sequencing, records, meeting operations, diligence routing, follow-up, relationship-state control. | Final financing terms, securities representations, legal documents, governance rights. |
| Counsel | Securities compliance, legal documents, approvals, investor rights, closing mechanics. | Market narrative, fundraising cadence, investor warmth. |
| Board | Reserved approvals, fiduciary oversight, financing authorization. | Day-to-day meeting sequencing or CRM state updates. |
Reserved matters
Valuation, dilution, financing instrument, investment amount acceptance, investor rights, governance changes, board seats, exclusivity, intellectual property transfer, employment offers, contractor compensation, success fees, securities representations, legal documents, side letters, and public claims.
Use restriction
Internal execution manual. Not an offering memorandum, securities document, legal advice, tax advice, employment contract, or authority to negotiate binding investor economics. Public-role data, candidate-role data, check ranges, and investor mandates must be verified before live use.