The FFI Standard
The open framework that governs the firm’s work.
What the Standard Is
The Founder Financial Infrastructure Standard is an open compliance framework defining the financial infrastructure that every early stage company must maintain to operate credibly, engage institutional investors, and make sound capital allocation decisions. The Standard is organized into seven Books covering the full scope of startup financial infrastructure. Three compliance levels define the requirements at each stage of company development.
The Standard is published at https://ffistandard.org under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International. It is free to use, cite, and adapt without restriction. The Standard includes 178 defined financial terms, each with a permanent URL, enabling precise citation in investor materials, advisory engagements, and legal documents.
How Oakworth’s Work Is Structured Against It
Oakworth structures every engagement against the Standard's compliance criteria. The Blueprint Diagnostic maps the company's current financial infrastructure position to the Standard's requirements for the relevant domain and compliance level. The deliverables from each service layer engagement are defined by the Standard's specifications. The gap identified in the Blueprint result is the gap between the company's current position and the Standard's published requirements, not a gap defined by Oakworth's professional judgment.
This structure means that an investor, a board member, or a legal advisor can verify the Standard that governs the work independently. The Standard is the authority. Oakworth is its implementing firm.
The Seven Books
178 defined financial terms, the company taxonomy, and the compliance framework governing all subsequent Books.
The three statement model, cash management, the chart of accounts, revenue recognition, and management accounts.
Revenue forecast methodology, unit economics, cohort analysis, scenario analysis, and sensitivity modeling.
The fully diluted cap table, SAFE and convertible instrument modeling, option pool governance, waterfall analysis, and use of proceeds.
Valuation methodologies appropriate to each company stage: discounted cash flow, comparable company analysis, and the venture capital method.
The financial data room, the financial narrative, investor preparedness, and due diligence documentation requirements.
The annual operating plan, departmental financial planning, KPI frameworks, variance reporting, and board level financial governance.
Accessing the Standard
The FFI Standard is published at https://ffistandard.org and is free to use, cite, and adapt under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International. No registration is required. Individual term pages carry permanent URLs suitable for citation in investor documents and advisory engagements.
Engagements begin with the Blueprint Diagnostic.
Blueprint Diagnostic →