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During Week 7 of Summer Launchpad (SLP), founders focused on picking the right accounting tools and building financial models that actually work — setting a strong foundation for smooth scaling as their startups grow.
Week 7 Recap:
Workshop: Accounting
Johnnie Walker
On July 23, Johnnie Walker, director at Rooled, led a workshop on managing startup finances. Drawing from his experience with fast-growing tech companies, he stressed the importance of opening a separate business bank account from day one — even if you're starting with personal funds.
Walker reminded founders that they’re responsible for choosing the right tools and meeting tax deadlines. He compared platforms like QuickBooks, Puzzle, and Pilot, warning against closed-ledger systems that can trap your data and make switching providers more difficult.
Looking ahead, he broke down two must-have financial forecasts: one for pitching your story to investors, and one for tracking monthly cash flow. The first fuels fundraising — the second keeps the company alive.
Johnnie Walker on Filing Obligations:
“Even if you're operating at a loss, you're still required to file. Filing obligations aren't dependent on profitability.”
Workshop: Financial Models
Darren Yee (Tandon '16)
Later that day, the NYU Entrepreneurial Institute's Senior Venture Associate Darren Yee (Tandon '16) hosted an workshop on building financial models that don’t just look good — but actually reflect how a business will grow (or fail).
Yee walked the cohort through a straightforward, functional model organized around three tabs: assumptions and financial projections; payroll and hiring plans; and financials and revenue — the main tab. Within the revenue model, he recommended starting with customer numbers as the primary driver, then working backward through the acquisition funnel to estimate conversion rates at each stage. He added that revenue calculations vary by business model, though many early-stage startups use a 20% month-over-month growth rate as a baseline assumption.
On the cost side, Yee pointed out that payroll is almost always the largest expense — ahead of legal, contractors and other lump-sum costs. His golden rule: Never let your closing cash balance hit zero.
Darren Yee on Building Models That Make Sense:
“The financial model is like a clinician. It takes all the assumptions we’ve been making — your acquisition funnel, how much it costs to get a customer, your revenue model, hiring plan, go-to-market — and puts them into numbers so you can see if it actually makes sense.”
Stay tuned for more insights from SLP!
