LINK MBA Capstone
Investor Pitch
The problem

4.5% of revenue leaks between the tools firms already own.

Revenue retained across quote-to-cashIllustrative flow
€100 earned −4.5% leakage €95.50 captured TIMEPROJECTINVOICEFINANCE
The tools work. The handoffs between them do not.
57%
Growth targets missed

Businesses that missed growth targets because of late payments.

12%+
Revenue received late

European business revenue arriving after its due date.

74 days
Chasing invoices

Working time spent pursuing overdue invoices each year.

~€2B
Revenue at stake

Indicative euro-value equivalent of the 4.5% benchmark.

Sources: Intrum 2023, 2026; SPI Research 2025. ~€2B is an indicative team estimate.

Speaker: Wouter · ⏱ 1:00 · by ~1:00. “Four and a half percent of revenue leaks away between the tools firms already own. Time, projects, invoicing and finance sit in separate systems, so quote-to-cash gaps are reconciled by hand.”

  • Use the website narrative: firms do not lack software; they have multiple tools that do not operate as one.
  • Anchor the cash problem: more than 12% of European business revenue arrives late, firms spend 74+ working days chasing invoices, 57% missed growth targets because of late payments, and the team estimates roughly €2B of revenue is at stake.
  • Make the turn: this is an operational-infrastructure problem, not a tooling problem.
  • Scope: the Netherlands is the proving ground for a structural European problem.
  • Opening: state the 4.5% benchmark directly; the cold open asks the question but does not give the number.
  • Transition: "That structural problem creates a European opportunity with a disciplined Dutch entry."
Solution · Mission · Vision

Connect, don’t replace.

LINK is the finance-aware operating layer that connects the tools growing firms already use, creating operational coherence without forcing platform replacement.

LINK
Workflow first, software secondWe design around how firms operate.
Retain existing investmentsWe connect and extend the tools firms already trust.
Enable digital maturityWe turn operational insights into measurable business outcomes.
Scale with the customerWe grow with our customers as their needs evolve.
Mission

Level the digital
playing field

Give growing firms access to connected, data-driven operations without enterprise-scale transformation.

Vision

The Digital Baseplate
for SMBs

Become the trusted operating layer for finance-aware digital maturity across European SMBs.

Speaker: Sachin · ⏱ 0:50–0:55. “Wouter has shown where the leakage happens. Growing firms don’t need another tool. They need the systems they already own to work together.”

  • That is exactly where LINK comes in. LINK is a finance-aware operating layer that connects the tools these firms already use. Our philosophy is simple: connect, don’t replace.
  • Customers keep their existing systems. LINK creates the coherence that is currently missing between them. We start with quote-to-cash because that is where the pain is most measurable, but it is only the first workflow.
  • Mission moment: level the digital playing field for SMBs using the tools they already trust.
  • Transition: “Next, I’ll show where LINK sits relative to the alternatives these firms already know.”
Competitive position · Business model · Differentiation

A new middle path
for SMB operations.

LINK owns the workflow without forcing a platform swap—then scales by scope, not seats.

The middle path
Finance-aware workflow ownership · Low → High
Replacement / migration burden · Low → High
LINK
High control. Low disruption.
PSA / ERP suites
ScoroProductiveOdoo
Control with migration burden.
Work-management tools
Asanamonday.com
Project visibility.
Automation tools
ZapierMaken8n
Connectivity without workflow ownership.
Connect

Finance-aware ownership

Own finance-critical workflows across the tools firms already use.

Enable

Guided implementation

Launch with expert guidance—not a blank canvas.

Scale

Workflow-based pricing

Price by workflow scope and value—not employee count.

Source: Author analysis based on public competitor materials.

Speaker: Sachin · ⏱ 0:55–1:05. “LINK occupies the open space between those categories. We provide finance-aware workflow ownership without forcing platform replacement.”

  • Work-management tools improve visibility but do not own the finance-aware workflow. Automation platforms connect applications but leave governance with the customer. PSA and ERP suites add control through disruptive migration.
  • Differentiators: finance-aware ownership, guided implementation, and workflow-based pricing.
  • Close: greater control than DIY automation, less disruption than ERP replacement.
  • Transition: “The next question is whether we have the team to execute that position.”
Founding team · Execution capability

Four perspectives. One operating foundation.

The founding team combines product strategy, customer success, Dutch market access, operating experience, and platform architecture.

Sachin Bijadi
Concept & strategy

Sachin Bijadi

  • Digital product leadership across start-up and Fortune 500 environments
  • Operating-model design and transformation across manufacturing, software and life sciences
Simeon Labuschagne
Customer success

Simeon Labuschagne

  • Customer onboarding, stakeholder engagement and retention leadership
  • Experience across sales, training, operations and scalable service delivery
Wouter Stegenga
Market & operations

Wouter Stegenga

  • Founder of a Dutch consulting business focused on operations and procurement
  • Deep understanding of SMB operating realities, customer challenges and local market access
Thiago M. Pinto
Platform architecture

Thiago M. Pinto

  • Platform architecture, integration design and technical feasibility
  • Experience translating service-led workflows into scalable software platforms
Strategy × Customer success × Market access × Operations × Technology

Speaker: Sachin · ⏱ 0:35–0:45. “LINK sits across product, finance, operations, customer adoption, and platform architecture, so the founding team has to be cross-functional by design.”

  • Sachin: digital product and operating-model experience across start-up and enterprise environments.
  • Simeon: customer success, onboarding, stakeholder engagement and commercial discipline.
  • Wouter: Dutch market access and practical experience building an operations-focused consultancy.
  • Thiago: platform architecture, integration expertise and software delivery capability.
  • Handoff: “Thiago will show how this positioning becomes a product and a scalable operating model.”
Product + path to scale

Prove one workflow. Productize the playbook. Repeat across Europe.

Quote-to-cash proves “connect, don't replace”; standardized onboarding and reusable templates turn concierge learning into subscription scale.

LINK Baseplate
Time tracking
Project delivery
Invoicing
Accounting
CRM
Product wedge

Time → invoice → accounting

Surface unbilled work, missing invoices and rate mismatches without replacing source tools.

Year 1 · Validate

Production MVP

Prove quote-to-cash outcomes with selected connectors and design partners.

Year 2 · Repeat

Standardize delivery

Broaden connectors and turn implementation learning into onboarding playbooks.

Year 3+ · Productize

Scale the platform

Add reusable templates, self-service setup and adjacent workflows.

Standardized onboardingReusable workflow templatesRepeat into 6 more countries

Speaker: Thiago · ⏱ 1:00 · by ~5:30. "Quote-to-cash is the proof point. The scalable asset is the reusable onboarding and workflow playbook we can repeat across Europe."

  • Product diagram: LINK reads from time tracking, project delivery, CRM, invoicing and accounting systems, then applies shared finance-aware workflow logic without replacing them.
  • Stage: these are conceptual prototypes and an initial reference architecture; Year 1 funds the production MVP.
  • Year 1: build the production MVP, prove quote-to-cash outcomes and validate selected connectors with design partners.
  • Year 2: broaden connector coverage and turn implementation learning into standardized onboarding playbooks.
  • Year 3+: productize delivery through reusable templates, self-service setup and adjacent workflows.
  • Scale mechanism: standardized onboarding and reusable templates shift LINK from concierge-led delivery toward a predominantly subscription-led model by Year 5.
  • European repeatability: the Netherlands is the validation loop; the same playbook expands into the next six screened countries.
  • Handoff: "That repeatable delivery model is monetized through workflow scope—not seats."
Market potential + target

The Netherlands is the proving ground.

A fit-first funnel narrows from Europe's digitally mature SMBs to the Dutch professional-services beachhead where quote-to-cash pain pays first.

FIT

Screen for structural fit

Digital maturity and e-invoicing pressure make fragmented stacks increasingly costly.

PROVE

Prove through proximity

Dutch founder access shortens the path to design partners, evidence and trust.

FOCUS

Start where the pain pays

Project-based firms feel quote-to-cash friction directly in margin and cash.

Initial customer profile
20-50
Employees

Dutch professional-services and consulting SMBs

BusinessDutch professional-services and consulting firms running project work with billable time.
BuyerOwner, managing partner, or finance and operations leader.
PainMissed billings, delayed invoices, manual reconciliation and weak cash visibility.
NeedControl over quote-to-cash without replacing the stack the firm already trusts.
NL proof→7 European markets
Sources: European Commission 2025 SME Country Fact Sheets and ViDA; Business.gov.nl; CBS 2026.

Speaker: Wouter · ⏱ 1:00 · by ~2:00. "We did not choose the Netherlands because it produced the largest number. We chose it because market conditions, founder proximity and buyer pain create the strongest place to prove the model."

  • Screen for fit: prioritize digitally mature, regulated markets where fragmented software stacks make operational coherence valuable.
  • Prove locally: founder access and Dutch market credibility shorten the feedback loop and improve design-partner recruitment.
  • Start where pain pays: focus on project-based firms where billing leakage and delayed reconciliation affect margin, not just convenience.
  • What they do: sell specialized expertise through project-based delivery, billable time and recurring client engagements.
  • Who buys: the owner, managing partner, or finance and operations decision-maker accountable for margin and cash.
  • Pain points: missed billings, delayed invoices, manual reconciliation, fragmented finance data and weak cash visibility.
  • Why 20-50: the coordination pain is material, but heavyweight transformation remains disproportionate.
  • Handoff: "Sachin will show how LINK solves it while keeping the European ambition intact."
Pricing + go-to-market

Learn through delivery. Scale what repeats.

€5k onboarding funds learning; workflow subscriptions capture recurring value while trust-led distribution scales demand.

Entry

Essential

€250/mo
  • One core workflow
  • Starter connector kit
  • Dashboard and orchestration
Primary tier

Growth

€625/mo
  • Adjacent workflows
  • Broader connector coverage
  • Automation and reporting
Advanced

Scale

€925/mo
  • Cross-functional layer
  • Advanced automation
  • Broad integration footprint
Years 1-2 · Prove

Founder-led direct

Design partners validate value and create reference cases.

Year 2+ · Distribute

Trusted referrals

Accountants and finance advisors convert proof into introductions.

Year 3+ · Scale

Measured demand

SEO, industry events and paid search follow demonstrated performance.

Source: LINK business plan pricing assumptions and financial projections, 2026. Formal tiers launch in Year 3.

Speaker: Thiago · ⏱ 1:30 · by ~7:00. "We rejected per-seat pricing. LINK prices workflow value, then scales demand in the same order it scales the product: prove, distribute and measure."

  • Three tiers: Essential €250, Growth €625 and Scale €925 per month, plus an average €5,000 onboarding engagement.
  • Validation phase: Year-1 design partners use discounted Pilot Essential pricing while the team validates value and implementation assumptions.
  • Expansion logic: Growth is expected to become the dominant tier—55% of new customers by Year 5—as customers add adjacent workflows.
  • Years 1-2: founder-led sales and design partners validate outcomes and create reference cases.
  • Year 2+: accountants and finance-advisor partners distribute proof through trusted introductions.
  • Year 3+: SEO, industry events and paid search scale only after channel performance is demonstrated.
  • Scale across markets: workflow-scope pricing works in Germany or Poland as it does in the Netherlands; only the entry GTM is Dutch-specific.
  • Handoff: "Simeon will show the financial trajectory and the capital behind that ramp."
Financial projections

From €34k validation to a €3.5M recurring-revenue business.

Base case (€)Y1Y2Y3Y4Y5
Revenue33,60095,420518,6051,896,3663,509,900
EBITDA8,600(171,980)(97,535)609,1981,900,458
Net income1,566(188,647)(122,535)527,3591,408,900
Active customers61760193420
Cash-positive across all five years · sustained profitability from Year 4
60 / 62
Y3 customers / subscription BEP

Within two customers of covering operating costs from subscriptions.

Y4
Cumulative net income turns positive

Reaches €1.6M by Year 5.

€258k
Lowest closing cash

Cash remains positive at the Year-3 trough.

Source: LINK business plan financial projections, capital requirements and break-even analysis, 2026.

Speaker: Simeon · ⏱ 1:30. Revenue climbs from €33,600 in Year 1 to €3.5 million by Year 5. Three of five years are profitable, and cash stays positive across all five years under the base case.

  • Trajectory: revenue moves from €33.6k to €95.4k, €518.6k, €1.90M and €3.51M across Years 1-5.
  • Profitability: the model is profitable in Years 1, 4 and 5; the base case remains cash-positive throughout.
  • Operational break-even: Year 3 has 60 active customers versus 62 required for subscription break-even—a two-customer gap.
  • Financial break-even: cumulative profitability recovers to approximately €218k in Year 4.
  • Transition: "That trajectory defines both the capital requirement and the most realistic path to investor liquidity."
The ask and exit

€600k, structured to bridge validation and scale.

How will it be used?

Validate, then ramp.

~€300k Validate (Y1–2): launch the MVP, onboard design partners, prove quote-to-cash value.

~€300k Ramp (Y3–5): fund commercial expansion, onboarding capacity, and selective hires.

Peak cumulative losses: ~€310k at end Y3.

What do you get back?

Proposed convertible loan.

Illustrative: 8% annual return.

Year 5 repayment or equity conversion option, subject to legal and investor agreement.

What's the exit path?

Strategic acquisition.

Most likely by a company already in your portfolio network. Framed as a realistic path by Year 5, not a fixed commitment.

Portfolio network access accelerates expansion beyond the Dutch beachhead into the next six European markets.

Speaker: Simeon · ⏱ 0:45. “That trough is exactly what this raise is sized to cover. We're asking for €600,000, plus access to your portfolio network.”

  • Roughly half funds validation in Years 1 and 2; the other half funds the acquisition ramp from Year 3 onward. Cumulative losses peak around €310,000 at the end of Year 3.
  • The proposed structure is a convertible loan with an illustrative 8% annual return and a Year 5 repayment or equity conversion option, subject to legal and investor agreement.
  • The strongest realistic path is a strategic acquisition, most likely by a company already inside the portfolio network.
  • Transition: "That brings us back to the ambition we opened with: start narrow, scale wide."
References · Close

Selected sources behind the pitch.

Core sources are summarized here; the business plan contains the broader bibliography and supporting analysis.

A

Intrum, 2023 & 2026

European Payment Reports. Revenue received late, growth targets missed, and time spent chasing overdue invoices.

B

SPI Research, 2025

Professional Services Maturity Benchmark. Billable utilization and the 4.5% professional-services revenue-leakage benchmark.

C

European Commission, 2025

SME Country Fact Sheets for seven screened markets and VAT in the Digital Age (ViDA).

D

CBS, 2026

Bedrijven; bedrijfstak (SBI 2025). StatLine table 86280NED supporting the Dutch beachhead estimate.

E

Public competitor materials

Asana, monday.com, Zapier, Make, n8n, Scoro, Productive, and Odoo product and pricing materials.

F

LINK business plan, 2026

Pricing assumptions, financial projections, break-even analysis, capital requirements, and exit strategy.

G

LINK product prototypes, 2026

Conceptual dashboard, quote-to-cash workflow, and initial platform reference architecture.

LINK · Connect, don’t replace.€600k pre-seed

Speaker: Simeon · ⏱ 0:15. “LINK is the finance-aware operating layer for European professional-services SMBs. We start by proving the model in the Netherlands, then repeat it across seven screened markets.”

  • The ask is €600k. The opportunity is 13.88 million SMBs across seven countries.
  • Final line: “The Netherlands is our proving ground—not our ceiling.”
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