Kilnworth Returns Hub Business Case
Internal startup pitch deck for winning budget in house
An internal startup pitch deck has to prove to an executive committee that the idea serves the strategy already approved and that the money can be stopped at any point. The Returns Hub team at Kilnworth Logistics, an invented freight company, asks for 1.2 million dollars released in four quarterly gates after a pilot quarter of 190,000 dollars.
Every slide, in order
The whole deck as it renders, one slide after another. Read it the way the audience would.
The structure
What each slide is doing, so you can reuse the order even with different content.
- Slide 1cover
- Frame the deck as an internal business case to the executive committee, not a startup pitch.
- Slide 2intro
- The opportunity inside the business: idle space and existing clients with a problem the company already half solves.
- Slide 3pillars
- The service in three parts, so the committee sees exactly what would be sold.
- Slide 4metrics
- The pilot quarter in four numbers, the evidence the committee asked for before any budget.
- Slide 5metrics
- Pilot revenue by month, showing the quarter total is a rising run rate rather than a one off.
- Slide 6framework
- How Returns Hub serves the four goals in the company strategy, so the case is judged against the plan the committee already approved.
- Slide 7comparison
- Build inside against partner with a third party returns provider, weighed in five points each, with the team recommendation.
- Slide 8timeline
- The twelve month budget by quarter, with the revenue target beside the spend, so each tranche can be approved separately.
- Slide 9checklist
- Four decision gates, one per quarter, which is what lets a committee say yes without committing the whole year.
- Slide 10closing
- Close on the decision needed today, the first quarter only.
Slide by slide
Slide one frames the deck as a business case to the executive committee. Slide two is the opportunity: returns already arrive, space sits idle and 62 clients handle returns badly. Slide three describes the service in three steps with its price. Slide four is the pilot quarter. Slide five charts pilot revenue by month. Slide six maps the service to the company strategy. Slide seven weighs building inside against partnering, five points each. Slide eight is the twelve month budget by quarter. Slide nine is four decision gates. Slide ten asks for the first quarter only.
How to adapt this deck
An internal venture that needs a new product rather than a new service should add a slide on what the company would have to build or buy, since committees fear technology spend more than headcount. A venture that would compete with an existing division should name that division on slide seven and say how customers would be split. An idea without a pilot should ask only for the pilot: one quarter, a small budget and one gate, using this deck structure with slides four and five left as targets.
What an executive committee asks for
Steve Blank has written for years about how large companies strangle new ventures by running them through the same approval process as the core business, and about getting to yes by funding evidence in stages rather than whole plans. Committees ask three things of an internal startup: does it serve the strategy, what does it take from existing divisions, and when can it be stopped. This deck answers them on slides six, seven and nine, in that order.
What makes this deck work
The pilot comes before the ask
Slide four shows 14 customers and 190,000 dollars in the pilot quarter, run on existing staff and space. Slide five splits it into 52, 63 and 75 thousand by month. A committee that asked for evidence before budget gets it before any number is requested.
Strategy fit uses goals already approved
Slide six maps Returns Hub to the four goals in the 2030 strategy the board approved in March 2027. Arguing from an approved plan is how an internal venture wins against established divisions competing for the same money.
The yes is small
Slides eight and nine split 1.2 million dollars into quarters of 420, 300, 240 and 240 thousand, each released only when a gate is passed. The closing slide asks for the first 420,000 alone, which is an easier decision than a year.
Questions people ask
How is an internal startup pitch different from a startup pitch?
The audience owns the company, controls the budget and compares you with existing divisions. Lead with fit to the approved strategy, ask for money in stages, and show what you use that the company already has, such as space, staff or clients.
Should an internal pitch include a build or partner slide?
Yes, because a committee will ask why the company should do it rather than buy it. Weigh both options on the same points and end with a recommendation and the reason. This deck recommends building because partnering would give a competitor access to existing clients.
How do I structure an internal budget request?
By quarter, with spend and revenue targets in the same table and each quarter released on a gate. Ask only for the first tranche in the meeting. This example asks for 420,000 of the 1.2 million dollars and brings the rest back quarter by quarter.
What are decision gates in an internal venture?
Measurable tests at set dates that decide whether the next tranche of money is released. Here they are customer numbers, gross margin, break even after overhead and a final scale or stop decision. Gates turn a large yes into four small ones.
How do I show strategic fit to an executive committee?
Use the goals in the strategy they approved, in their words, and say what the venture adds to each. A four panel framework slide does this in one view. Avoid inventing new strategic themes for the venture; that reads as asking the committee to change its plan.
Can an internal deck use the company logo and colours?
Yes. Brand settings can place a logo on every slide, and the theme can be changed for the whole deck at once. This example uses a corporate blue theme. If the committee wants the file, the editable PowerPoint export keeps text and tables editable.
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