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Due Diligence Readiness Checker

Due diligence is the investor's deep-dive into your company before they write a check. Being prepared for DD dramatically increases your chances of closing a round quickly and on favorable terms. This tool helps you assess readiness across 10 key categories and track 38 essential documents.

Score each assessment category below and track your document checklist to identify gaps before investors start asking questions.

Assessment Scorecard

Rate each category from 1 (lowest) to 5 (highest)

Scorecard Results

Enter valid scores (1-5) for all 10 categories to see results.

Document Checklist

Mark each document as Have It, Missing, or N/A

Financial

Current annual business plan
5 years of audited financial statements
3 years of federal and state tax returns
6 months of bank account history

Insurance

Liability insurance policy
Workers compensation policy
Life insurance on key personnel
Health coverage documentation
Documentation of recent claims
Other insurance policies

Legal

Articles of incorporation
Amendments to articles
Bylaws
Office leases
Other facilities leases
Equipment leases

IP

Patents
Trademarks
Copyrights
Trade secrets documentation

Strategic

Agreements with suppliers and vendors
Selling agreements
Special customer agreements

Press

Press releases — the company
Press releases — competitors
Press releases — suppliers
Press releases — the industry

Research

Industry publications
Research reports
Web site references
Consultant documentation
Other research

Other

Available competitor information
List of major customers
List of major suppliers and vendors
List of strategic partners and alliances
Personal information for key employee background checks
Signed permission forms for background/credit checks

Document Readiness Results

Completion

0%

Document Readiness

Not ready -- major documentation missing

Documents Reviewed

0 / 38

Missing Documents

38

Not Applicable

0

Category Summary

Financial0/4 reviewed
Insurance0/6 reviewed
Legal0/6 reviewed
IP0/4 reviewed
Strategic0/3 reviewed
Press0/4 reviewed
Research0/5 reviewed
Other0/6 reviewed

Missing Documents

[Financial] Current annual business plan

[Financial] 5 years of audited financial statements

[Financial] 3 years of federal and state tax returns

[Financial] 6 months of bank account history

[Insurance] Liability insurance policy

[Insurance] Workers compensation policy

[Insurance] Life insurance on key personnel

[Insurance] Health coverage documentation

[Insurance] Documentation of recent claims

[Insurance] Other insurance policies

[Legal] Articles of incorporation

[Legal] Amendments to articles

[Legal] Bylaws

[Legal] Office leases

[Legal] Other facilities leases

[Legal] Equipment leases

[IP] Patents

[IP] Trademarks

[IP] Copyrights

[IP] Trade secrets documentation

[Strategic] Agreements with suppliers and vendors

[Strategic] Selling agreements

[Strategic] Special customer agreements

[Press] Press releases — the company

[Press] Press releases — competitors

[Press] Press releases — suppliers

[Press] Press releases — the industry

[Research] Industry publications

[Research] Research reports

[Research] Web site references

[Research] Consultant documentation

[Research] Other research

[Other] Available competitor information

[Other] List of major customers

[Other] List of major suppliers and vendors

[Other] List of strategic partners and alliances

[Other] Personal information for key employee background checks

[Other] Signed permission forms for background/credit checks

Understanding Due Diligence Readiness

Due diligence is the comprehensive investigation that investors conduct before finalizing an investment. It covers financial performance, legal standing, intellectual property, team quality, market position, and operational risks. Being well-prepared for DD can mean the difference between closing a round in weeks versus months -- or losing the deal entirely.

The assessment scorecard evaluates 10 critical dimensions of your business: financial performance, brand value, business condition, future prospects, customers, competitive environment, human capital, asset quality, transaction structure, and other risks. Each category is scored on a 1-5 (or 1-10) scale, giving you a weighted overall readiness percentage.

The document checklist tracks 38 essential documents across 7 categories: financial records, insurance policies, legal documentation, intellectual property filings, strategic agreements, press and research materials, and other supporting documents. Having these documents organized in a virtual data room signals professionalism and preparedness to investors.

Best practices: Start preparing for due diligence well before you begin fundraising. Organize all documents in a secure virtual data room. Address the weakest areas identified by the scorecard first. Remember that investors view DD readiness as a proxy for how well you run your business -- a disorganized DD process suggests a disorganized company.