Here's how Quality of Earnings (QofE) checklists align strongly and directly with Growth-Drive's CLARITY™ Strategic Capacity & Business Value Analysis in the Growth-Drive methodology, particularly when you view both through the lens of transferable business value and investment-grade confidence.
Here’s a breakdown of how the QofE checklist maps to CL2 Strategic Capacity (CL1 means 'CLARITY Level 1' and refers to Discovery tools, and CL2 refers to your deep analysis powering strategic planning and execution tools) and how this enriches your client engagement toolkit:
| QofE Purpose | Growth-Drive Strategic Capacity Purpose |
| Ensuring earnings are sustainable, normalized, and recurring | Assess business's capacity to deliver sustainable profits, growth, and value |
| Reduce buyer risk and support defensible valuation | Support transferable value and bridge the value gap |
| Identify operational, financial, and market risks | Uncover Strategic Capacity blind spots and address them systematically |
| Inform investment decisions | Guide strategic planning and execution aligned with owner intent |
| QofE Area | Strategic Capacity CL2 Link | How They Align |
| 1. Financial Statement Analysis | Finance Executive Role + Clean Books |
Growth-Drive flags financial transparency and normalized reporting as non-negotiables for maximizing value. |
| 2. Revenue Quality | Predictable Recurring Revenue | Both approaches emphasize revenue predictability, customer concentration, and contractual revenue as drivers of enterprise value. |
| 3. Expense Review | Predictable Profits and Cash Flow (Dimension 1) | Discretionary and non-recurring expense adjustments are critical to normalizing EBITDA and aligning with CL2's drive for sustainable, operationally derived profitability. |
| 4. EBITDA Adjustments | Valuation Simulation & Advisor Guidance | CL2 uses adjusted EBITDA as a foundation for calculating strategic capacity-based valuation multiples |
| 5. Working Capital | Liquidity, Cash Flow Predictability | Working capital stability and quality receivables are included under the finance role's accountability for free cash flow. |
| 6. Cash Flow & Debt | Strategic Capital Requirements | QofE's cash flow reliability echoes Growth-Drive's simulation and forecast modeling for assessing capital needs to fund growth. |
| 7. Tax Considerations | Risk & Compliance Readiness | Tax liabilities and NOLs are part of Cl2's broader evaluation of hidden liabilities that may erode transferable value. |
| 8. Key Business Drivers | KPI-Driven Execution Leadership System | The CL2 methodology explicitly focuses on KPI benchmarking, OKRs, and strategic alignment of operation functions to intent. |
| 9. Risk Factors | Transferable Value Resilience (Dimension 3) | CL2 evaluates concentration risks, leadership dependency, litigation exposure, and strategic resilience as core determinants of M&A price confidence. |
The QofE checklist serves as a micro-level diagnostic, while CL2 Strategic Capacity operates at the macro-business system level. They mutually reinforce each other. QofE focuses on cleaning the books, CL2 focuses on building the machine.
🔧 For advisors: Embedding a QofE checklist inside a CL2 engagement can:
Boost credibility in value discussions with CEOs
Prepare businesses for due diligence before they’re in-market
Quantify how strategic improvements translate into EBITDA bridge adjustments and higher multiples