Guide · Agent skill
How to use the CFO Advisor agent skill: setup and examples
Updated · written with AI from the project's own documentation and checked against our catalogue data
The cfo-advisor skill is an agent skill that makes an AI assistant reason like a startup CFO. It is aimed at founders and finance leads at early-stage or scaling SaaS companies, and at finance students learning startup metrics. After this guide you will know what the skill covers, how to install it, how to phrase requests so it triggers, and what to check before trusting its output.
CFO Advisoralirezarezvani/claude-skills · MIT Download the skill Quick start
- 1Download the ZIP. Get the cfo-advisor ZIP from this page.
- 2Unzip into a skills folder. Unzip into ~/.claude/skills/ for personal use or .claude/skills/ for a single project.
- 3Or upload in the Claude apps. In the Claude apps, go to Settings → Capabilities → Skills and upload the skill.
- 4Gather your figures. Collect cash balance, monthly net burn, ARR or MRR, and customer cohort data from your records.
- 5Ask in plain language. Describe your question using terms like runway, burn multiple, LTV or CAC, and include your numbers.
- 6Run a script if needed. Run the relevant Python 3 script in scripts/ for scenario, cohort or dilution calculations.
- 7Check the output. Verify inputs and assumptions before using the results for any decision.
What is an agent skill and what does cfo-advisor do?
An agent skill is a folder containing a SKILL.md file and optional reference files and scripts. When your request matches the skill's description, the agent loads those instructions and follows them for the task.
The cfo-advisor skill covers financial modelling, unit economics, fundraising strategy, cash management and board financial packages. When you ask about burn rate, cash runway, LTV and CAC, fundraising dilution, term sheets or board financials, the agent applies its finance frameworks and works through the maths step by step, modelling the downside first.
- Runway and burn: gross and net burn, burn multiple, base/bull/bear scenarios, decision triggers
- Unit economics: LTV by cohort, CAC by channel, payback periods
- Fundraising: timing, valuation, dilution, term sheets, data room
- Board financials: P&L summary, cash position, burn, forecast and asks
- Cash management: working capital, AR/AP, runway extension tactics
Install cfo-advisor on Claude or in a project
Download the ZIP for cfo-advisor from this page. You have two options. For a personal install, unzip it into ~/.claude/skills/. For a single project, unzip it into the project's .claude/skills/ folder.
If you use the Claude apps, you can instead upload the skill under Settings → Capabilities → Skills.
- Personal: unzip into ~/.claude/skills/
- Project only: unzip into .claude/skills/ inside the project
- Claude apps: Settings → Capabilities → Skills, then upload
Trigger the skill with natural requests
You do not need a special command. The skill loads when your request matches its description, so ask in plain language and mention the topic directly. The description names terms such as CFO, burn rate, runway, fundraising, unit economics, LTV, CAC and term sheets.
Giving the agent your numbers makes the output far more useful. The skill's own first questions are what is your burn multiple, and what happens if fundraising takes six months instead of three.
- "How many months of runway do we have if net burn is steady and we hire two engineers?"
- "Analyze our unit economics by cohort, not blended. Here is the data: ..."
- "Prepare the financial section of our board pack: P&L summary, cash, burn, forecast and asks."
- "Model dilution for a $3M Series A at a $12M pre-money valuation."
- "Review these term sheet clauses and tell me what matters most."
Run the included Python scripts
The skill ships three scripts in its scripts/ folder. They use only the Python 3 standard library, so no packages need installing. Each script takes the figures you supply and calculates from them. The source does not document the script inputs or flags, so check each script's own help or code for how to supply data.
Use the burn rate script for runway scenarios with a hiring plan, the unit economics script for per-cohort LTV and per-channel CAC, and the fundraising script for dilution, cap table and multi-round projections.
- scripts/burn_rate_calculator.py: runway modelling with hiring plan and scenarios
- scripts/unit_economics_analyzer.py: per-cohort LTV and per-channel CAC
- scripts/fundraising_model.py: dilution, cap table and round scenarios
python scripts/burn_rate_calculator.py
python scripts/unit_economics_analyzer.py
python scripts/fundraising_model.pyKnow the benchmarks and red flags it uses
The skill checks your position against published rules of thumb. The metrics dashboard targets include burn multiple below 1.5x, LTV:CAC above 3x, CAC payback under 18 months, runway above 12 months, Net Dollar Retention above 110% and gross margin above 65%. Treat these as generic guidance, not as standards for your company.
Red flags it raises include a rising burn multiple while growth slows, net dollar retention below 100%, runway under 9 months with no fundraise in progress, and any single customer above 20% of ARR.
- Burn multiple: net burn divided by net new ARR; above 2x is flagged as a problem
- Net Dollar Retention above 100% means revenue grows without new customers
- Check unit economics per cohort, because blended figures can hide deterioration
Safety notes: scripts and data
The skill runs scripts and uses no network access, according to its listing. The scripts only use the numbers you type in or supply, so any unverified input produces unverified output. Check every figure against your bank and accounting records before using the results for a decision.
Review the scripts before running them, as you would with any code in your environment. Keep real financial data out of places you would not share it.
- Verify inputs against bank statements and your ledger before relying on outputs
- The skill is strategic guidance, not licensed accounting, tax or investment advice
- The benchmarks are tuned to SaaS and venture-style growth companies
What people use it for
- A founder with 14 months of runway modelling base, bull and bear cases before a hiring decision.
- A SaaS finance lead comparing LTV:CAC across successive customer cohorts to spot deterioration.
- A finance student learning burn multiple and net dollar retention with worked examples.
- A CEO preparing the financial section of a board pack with a checklist of what boards expect.
- A founder modelling how a new round would dilute existing shareholders on a cap table.
Frequently asked questions
Is the cfo-advisor skill free to use?
The skill is released under the MIT licence, as stated on this page. The MIT licence permits use, though you should read its terms yourself. Any AI assistant you use with it may have its own costs.
What do I need to run cfo-advisor?
You need Python 3 to run the scripts, which use only the standard library, so no extra packages are required. You also need your own company financial figures, typed in or supplied as input.
Does cfo-advisor connect to my bank or accounting software?
No. According to its listing, the skill does not use the network, and its scripts only use the numbers you provide. You must supply and verify the data yourself.
Can I use cfo-advisor for tax or investment advice?
No. The skill is strategic guidance, not a licensed accountant or financial advisor, and its benchmarks are generic rules of thumb. Use a qualified professional for regulated advice.
Why doesn't the skill trigger when I ask a finance question?
Skills load when your request matches their description. Use terms from the description such as CFO, burn rate, runway, fundraising, unit economics, LTV, CAC or term sheets, and confirm the skill is in ~/.claude/skills/, .claude/skills/ or uploaded under Settings → Capabilities → Skills.
How does cfo-advisor compare with a spreadsheet or a human CFO?
It structures the reasoning and runs the calculations you feed it, which is useful for scenario and metric reviews. It cannot replace a human CFO, an accountant or a spreadsheet model built on your real records. Its targets are tuned to SaaS and venture-style growth companies, so they may not fit other businesses.
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Our verdict
Use cfo-advisor if you are a founder or finance lead at an early-stage SaaS or scaling company and want a structured runway, unit economics or fundraising review, or if you are learning startup metrics. Pick something else if you need regulated financial, tax or investment advice, if your business is outside SaaS or venture-style growth, or if you cannot verify the numbers you put in.
Download the skill