What is an IC Memo?
An Investment Committee (IC) memo is the formal written document that a deal team presents to the firm’s investment committee to recommend (or decline) an investment. The IC is a small group of senior partners who make the final go/no-go decision on every deal. The memo synthesizes weeks or months of due diligence, financial analysis, and deal negotiation into a structured argument.
A strong IC memo is balanced, factual, and honest about risks. IC members are experienced investors who will find the weaknesses regardless — presenting both bull and bear cases builds credibility and leads to better decisions. Most PE firms have a standardized memo format to ensure consistency across deals.
Command
Loads the ic-memo skill and drafts a structured IC memo from due diligence findings, financial analysis, and deal terms.
With company name
Without company name
/ic-memo Acme Industrial Services
Claude will ask for the target company and gather inputs from prior session analysis. IC Memo Structure
| Section | Content |
|---|
| I. Executive Summary | Company description, deal rationale, key terms, recommendation, top risks |
| II. Company Overview | Business description, customers, go-to-market, competitive positioning, management |
| III. Industry & Market | Market size and growth, competitive landscape, secular trends, regulatory environment |
| IV. Financial Analysis | Historical performance, quality of earnings, working capital, capex |
| V. Investment Thesis | 3-5 investment pillars, value creation levers, 100-day priorities |
| VI. Deal Terms & Structure | Enterprise value, sources & uses, capital structure, key legal terms |
| VII. Returns Analysis | Base/upside/downside scenarios, IRR and MOIC, key assumptions, sensitivities |
| VIII. Risk Factors | Ranked risks, mitigants, deal-breaker risks |
| IX. Recommendation | Proceed / Pass / Conditional proceed |
- Default: Word document (.docx) with professional formatting
- Alternative: Markdown for quick review
- Financial tables for all key exhibits (not just prose)
IC memos must be balanced — present both bull and bear cases honestly. IC members will find the risks anyway; credibility matters more than selling the deal.
How to Customize
Edit the ic-memo skill to match your firm’s standard IC memo template, add required sections, or adjust the recommendation format.
See the IC Memo skill for the complete memo framework and guidance on gathering inputs.
