Finance · Cash flow · Component
The runway
How long the organisation survives at current burn — a number someone should know without calculating it.
The deliverable
What it is
Runway is a simple calculation that is frequently unknown, because it requires deciding what counts as available cash and what counts as burn.
The useful version is conservative: cash that is genuinely accessible, and burn that includes everything committed.
One level in
What it is made of
Each element is a constituent part of the component. Follow one to see the attributes it carries.
The available cash
What can actually be spent, as distinct from what appears on the balance sheet.
3 attributes: Available · Restricted · Facility conditions
LearnThe decision points
The dates at which decisions must be taken, working backwards from the runway.
3 attributes: Decision date · Decision · Lead time
Learn
Knowing the runway is not enough. Work backwards to the decision points, or the decision arrives too late.
The other components in cash flow
The cash forecast
Money in and out by week, thirteen weeks ahead — long enough to see a problem and short enough to be accurate.
LearnThe conversion cycle
How long from paying for inputs to being paid for outputs — the measure that explains why growth consumes cash.
Learn