Managers frequently maintain thirty overlapping files and still cannot answer a diligence request quickly. The list below is the deduplicated set: twenty-one artifacts, each with a single owner and a single source of truth. Anything else should be generated from these, not maintained separately.
Stage 1 - Pre-marketing (5 artifacts)
- 1. Teaser - one page, strategy parameters and headline track record, safe to forward.
- 2. Main deck - 12 to 16 pages following the eleven-slide anatomy.
- 3. Track record workbook - the spreadsheet behind the track record slide, with per-deal attribution and mark sources.
- 4. Construction model - fund size, cheque sizing, reserves, ownership and the returns bridge, with assumptions on a separate tab.
- 5. Manager bios - long form, one page per decision-maker, for allocator internal memos.
Stage 2 - First meetings and follow-ups (5 artifacts)
- 6. Appendix pack - thesis detail, market data, competitive landscape of funds, sourcing channel evidence.
- 7. Case study set - two to three deals end to end, including one loss.
- 8. Pipeline snapshot - current live opportunities, anonymised where necessary, dated.
- 9. Standard FAQ - written answers to the twenty questions you are asked most, so answers do not drift between partners.
- 10. Reference list - founders, co-investors and former colleagues, with permission secured in advance.
Stage 3 - Diligence (7 artifacts)
- 11. DDQ response - the completed standard due diligence questionnaire in the format most of your target LPs use.
- 12. Operational memo - fund administration, audit, custody, valuation policy and who performs each.
- 13. Valuation policy - how unrealised marks are set and reviewed, with reference to a recognised standard.
- 14. Compliance and regulatory pack - registrations, filings, KYC/AML process, conflicts policy.
- 15. Team background pack - CVs, prior employment confirmations, and any disclosures.
- 16. Risk register - key person, concentration, currency, liquidity and regulatory risks, each with mitigation.
- 17. ESG or responsible investment statement, where LPs require one.
Stage 4 - Closing (4 artifacts)
- 18. PPM - the private placement memorandum, drafted by counsel.
- 19. LPA - the limited partnership agreement, including key person, no-fault divorce and successor fund provisions.
- 20. Subscription documents and KYC pack.
- 21. Side letter template - your pre-approved positions on MFN, reporting frequency, co-investment rights and excuse provisions.
Deduplication rules
Every number in every artifact must trace to either the track record workbook or the construction model. If a figure appears in the deck that is not derived from one of those two files, it is unmanaged and will eventually contradict something.
Version the deck by date and first-close status, not by recipient. Recipient-specific versions are the most common source of diligence embarrassment, because an allocator who receives two variants will ask why.
Maintain the FAQ as a living document after every meeting. Within ten meetings it becomes the most useful artifact in the set and materially shortens the DDQ.