Y Combinator Question 29: What Number Do You Track to Show How Well Your Company Is Doing?
This Y Combinator question gets to the heart of your startup’s performance metrics. Startups must have a clear, primary metric that reflects the overall health and progress of the business.
Part of the series:
Y Combinator: 40 Questions and 40 Answers
This number should encapsulate the core achievements and operational success of your company.
Y Combinator: 40 Questions and 40 Answers
1. Why Y Combinator Asks This Question
Y Combinator is looking to understand which key performance indicator (KPI) you consider most indicative of your company’s success.This metric often provides a snapshot of the company’s health and trajectory, helping investors quickly gauge progress and potential. The chosen KPI should align with your business goals and provide insight into your strategic priorities and operational efficiency.
2. How to Answer the Question
To answer this question, identify the single most critical metric that your startup tracks regularly and explain why this number is particularly significant.This might be monthly recurring revenue (MRR), customer acquisition cost (CAC) paired with lifetime value (LTV), user engagement rate, or any other metric that directly reflects the success of your core business operations. Provide context on how this metric influences business decisions and strategic planning.
For example, if your startup is a SaaS platform, you might focus on MRR as your key metric because it directly reflects the scale of recurring revenue, which is critical for the sustainability and growth of your business model.