Founders obsess over revenue, burn rate, and CAC. And sure—those matter.
But they’re lagging indicators. They tell you what already happened.
What you need are leading metrics—the early signals that something’s working, or more often, breaking.
If you want to move faster, make better decisions, and lead with clarity, track these three metrics now. Most founders don’t.
1. First Response Time on Inbound Leads
How fast does someone hear from your team after raising their hand?
Not an auto-response. A real reply. A human touch.
If your answer isn’t “within minutes,” you’ve got work to do.
Why It Matters:
- You’re not the only company they’re talking to.
- The first to respond builds the most trust.
- Fast response = higher close rates, period.
What to Track:
- Average time from form fill or email reply to first personalized contact.
- Breakdown by lead source (demo form, LinkedIn DM, cold email response).
What to Watch For:
- High-quality leads going cold after day one.
- SDRs cherry-picking “easy” replies and ignoring the rest.
- Founder bottlenecks—if you’re the only one replying, you’re the problem.
2. Proposal-to-Close Ratio
Not lead-to-close. Proposal-to-close.
Because if someone asked for a proposal, they’re warm. If you’re still losing them, something’s off.
Why It Matters:
- Shows if your pricing, packaging, and pitch align with buyer needs.
- Helps you spot where deals die: before, during, or after the offer.
- Tells you if your proposals are persuasive—or just PDFs.
What to Track:
- How many proposals you sent vs. how many closed.
- Average time from proposal to signed agreement.
- Objection themes from follow-up conversations.
What to Watch For:
- Close rates under 30%? Your offer isn’t compelling.
- Time-to-close over 14 days? You’re not driving urgency.
- More than two follow-ups needed? You didn’t hit the mark.
3. % of Founder Time in Market-Facing Work
Look at your calendar. How many hours are you:
- On sales or partner calls?
- In strategy planning?
- Driving messaging and GTM?
Now compare that to:
- Internal reviews
- Approvals
- Admin
Why It Matters:
You are your company’s growth engine. If you’re buried in Slack and SOPs, you’re not leading—you’re managing.
What to Track:
- % of weekly hours spent on customer-facing or GTM-driving activity.
- Number of hours in sales or investor conversations.
- How often you’re pulled into ops (and why).
What to Watch For:
- Weeks where you’re mostly reactive = red flag.
- You’re “too busy” to talk to a lead? You’ve drifted.
- If your team can’t run without constant input—you’re the bottleneck.
Final Thought
Founders who win don’t just measure financials.
They measure momentum.
They obsess over the invisible stuff—response time, conversion quality, how they spend their own time.
So take a hard look. Pull the data. Build visibility.
And course-correct while it still matters.
Because these metrics? They don’t show up on your balance sheet—until it’s too late.
