Analysis: migrating the Askel playbook from Google Docs to skills. Repo-level structural implications.
Everything a fresh Claude Code instance needs before touching any file.
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Repo path | /home/askel/cc-disco |
| Google Workspace account | simo.siilanen@askelventures.com — set GOG_ACCOUNT env var before any gws call (see examples below) |
| Secrets | All via op CLI from the askel-server 1Password vault |
| Git user | Mike Solomon — commit and push after each phase |
Every skill is a directory under /home/askel/cc-disco/.claude/skills/{name}/ containing a SKILL.md file. Frontmatter is required:
--- name: playbook-thesis description: > One or two sentences — used by Claude to decide when to load this skill. Be specific about triggers. --- # Skill title Content here in markdown.
By name, in prose — there is no import mechanism. A cron skill that needs the thesis says:
Score every new listing against the thesis in the `playbook-thesis` skill.
Claude loads the named skill automatically when it encounters the reference. Convention: use backtick-quoted skill names when cross-referencing, and always include a one-line note of what you need from the referenced skill.
Two steps: (1) replace the body of SKILL.md with a redirect note pointing to the replacement; (2) after two weeks with no incidents, delete the directory. Do not silently delete — the redirect note is the paper trail.
--- name: sourcing-tradecraft description: DEPRECATED — use playbook-sourcing instead. --- # Deprecated This skill has been absorbed into `playbook-sourcing`. Use that instead. All content, tradecraft, and references have been migrated there.
To export a Google Doc as plain text for reading or migration, use the gws CLI with the file ID from the inventory table below. Example:
# Export as plain text (for Google Docs)
GOG_ACCOUNT=simo.siilanen@askelventures.com \
gws drive files export \
--params '{"fileId":"1pjyuvlImFjGNSGA8LBkJjd6kVzVMcstv905Tdbkga6o","mimeType":"text/plain"}'
# List files matching a name
GOG_ACCOUNT=simo.siilanen@askelventures.com \
gws drive files list \
--params '{"q":"name contains \"playbook\"","supportsAllDrives":"true","includeItemsFromAllDrives":"true"}'
Playbook v2 EN ↗ Ch. 2 has the canonical criteria table. The repo file sourcing-tradecraft/references/thesis.md has richer operational content: sector ratings, the Melers pattern, adjusted EBITDA methodology, ideal seller profile. Both go into playbook-thesis — v2 provides the structure, the repo file provides the depth. Neither is discarded. Where they conflict (e.g. geography: v2 says Finland + Sweden + Estonia, repo says Finland only), v2 wins.
No separate registry file. No indirection. Just inline links at every point of reference, baked in as the skills are written. The table below is the complete inventory of known documents. URLs are shown in full — copy-paste directly into skill markdown.
| Document | Full URL (copy into skills) | Used by skill(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Playbook v2 EN Canonical | https://docs.google.com/document/d/1pjyuvlImFjGNSGA8LBkJjd6kVzVMcstv905Tdbkga6o/edit | playbook, all sub-skills |
Primary migration source. Link this everywhere. |
| Playbook v1 EN | https://docs.google.com/document/d/1cZfNoRGWtNByNuhQhTxJRFX7ceWZFStCYl4DDJuFSu0/edit | playbook-sales-system |
Needed only for Sales System EPICs + Melers lessons (absent from v2). Legacy once migration done. |
| Playbook .docx Stale | https://docs.google.com/document/d/1XRapOoCtbo9qQjKAmnMYhoXEoIIBKnyF/edit | — | Superseded by v2 EN. The one we almost migrated from. Do not use. |
| Financial Analysis Sheet (Varia) | https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1llwFP6A7K8D7KaMK9hUOZrz_Bh69od0q/edit | playbook-screening, playbook-dd, trello-cli |
Already linked by ID in sourcing-tradecraft and CLAUDE.md — the one document currently done right. |
| Broker List (Välittäjät) | https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1QaasfdJ-7vASWp1R7VSR4KDrE8O7fWK_/edit | playbook-sourcing |
"Data Gathering for Business Brokers in Finland.xlsx" — confirmed accessible to simo.siilanen. |
| LOI — Investor + Advisor Role | https://docs.google.com/document/d/1eShC2EbviEnjc49v3j0CRHSrBGciU_nT5yc1hRhmRwQ/edit | fundraising skills (future) | Investor/advisor LOI — distinct from the acquisition LOI. |
| Staff Interview Form (DD) | https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeRBaUzRB0THKq4lyDHCjD3-Mz15m4O57Sz71eWkKji0k15wQ/viewform | playbook-dd |
Google Form for DD2 staff interviews. |
| Melers Hinnasto (price list) | https://docs.google.com/document/d/1uIxDkNYRHnoXT6-LLGSxH4gnWp8WBCnXwOgpaGQRY4E/edit | knowledge/portfolio/melers/ |
Operational. Link from the Melers portfolio folder, not a playbook skill. |
| Melers Markkinointi sheet | https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1EWnNdbOZN1nrcBfjqaWatBE39wRlswSJ9WPYvzt2RmA/edit | knowledge/portfolio/melers/ |
New customer acquisition tracking. Operational. |
| MARKKINOINTI folder | https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1F3pfLceGvfEmjiJaj-Hk1eqtrvxTIV_r | knowledge/portfolio/melers/brand/ |
Brand kit, logos, fonts, flyers, videos, icons. |
| Resource | Full URL (copy into skills) | Currently linked inline? | Used by |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trello TEMPLATE card (📋 PROSPEKTI) | https://trello.com/c/ZWY6fNrB | Partial In sourcing-tradecraft + CLAUDE.md, but not in cron skills that create cards |
All prospect card creation |
| Trello Case Scouting board | https://trello.com/b/01KUlg8H/case-scouting | Partial Absent from cron-yritysporssi-scrape, cron-weekly-sourcing, cron-yrityskaupat-newsletter, cron-walk-of-shame |
All sourcing crons |
| Exec Summary Canva template | https://www.canva.com/design/DAGpYhfKLSs/kD_LoR1zZKiStdoD_73XHA/edit | No Not in any skill yet | playbook-ic |
| DD Template Trello board | https://trello.com/b/p9gyEgEZ/dd-template-avoiding-idiocy | No Not in any skill yet | playbook-dd |
| Trello DayToDay Ops board | https://trello.com/b/lMuMegjL/askel-ventures-day-to-day-ops | No | General ops reference |
sourcing-tradecraft and CLAUDE.md, but none of the cron skills that actually create cards repeat it. Every cron skill that says "create a card" needs both the Case Scouting board and template card linked inline. Affected: cron-yritysporssi-scrape, cron-weekly-sourcing, cron-yrityskaupat-newsletter, cron-walk-of-shame — all four are in Phase 1's modify list.
| Version | Format | Use for |
|---|---|---|
| Playbook v2 EN ↗ Canonical | Native Google Doc | Migration source. Everything comes from here. |
| Playbook v1 EN ↗ | Native Google Doc | Only needed for Sales System EPICs and Melers lessons (both absent from v2). |
| .docx ↗ Stale | Word upload | Ignore — older draft. The one we almost migrated from. |
Every content gap identified in the previous analysis is now closed.
| Item | Before | After (v2) |
|---|---|---|
| Dataroom requirements | Missing | Done Full checklist: Financial (3yr statements, current P&L, monthly cash flow), Legal (articles, shareholder register, contracts), Operational (staff list, customer register, asset inventory) |
| Assets Inventory Template | Missing | Done Complete table in Appendix C — vehicles, equipment, IT, customer register, brand/domain, contracts, permits |
| Cost Structure Template | Missing | Done 3-year P&L table in Appendix B — Revenue, COGS (labour/materials/fuel), Gross Profit, overheads, EBITDA, margins |
| CPT Sheet / Psychological Matrix | External ref | Resolved The matrix is Chapter 5. Appendix D points back to Ch. 5. No separate doc needed. |
| 30-60-90 Day Plan | External PDF ref | Done Full 3-phase template in Appendix F: Stabilise (D1-30), Systematise (D31-60), Grow (D61-90) |
| Thesis | Heading only in .docx | Done Full criteria table in Ch. 2: Revenue €400K–1.5M, Profit €100K+, Ask ≤€1M, Age 10yr+, 5+ employees. Also Immediate Disqualifiers checklist. |
| Knowledge Transfer | Melers-specific | Generalized Ch. 9 is now a generic charter template with placeholders. |
| Item | Where | Implication |
|---|---|---|
| Valuation Risk Scoring Tool NEW | Appendix G | 34-item scored checklist across 5 categories. Maps score → yield rate → Business Value = Cash Flow ÷ Yield Rate. Goes into standalone playbook-valuation skill so IC and DD can reference it independently. |
| Investment Philosophies NEW | Ch. 1 | 5 clean principles ("Boring is beautiful", etc.). Goes in playbook router preamble. |
| Geography: Sweden + Estonia NEW | Ch. 2 thesis table | The thesis now says Finland + Sweden + Estonia. This directly affects playbook-thesis and the cron-swedish-sweep skill. The existing repo thesis file says "Finland only" — needs updating. Estonia has no sourcing cron yet — see Estonia note in Phase 1 below. |
| DD1 / DD2 / DD3 structure Clarified | Ch. 7 | DD1 = financial/market data from screening. DD2 = full operational & legal due diligence before signing. DD3 = bank/Finnvera alignment + covenant review. Maps neatly to playbook-dd with three subsections. |
Two sections exist in v1 EN that v2 dropped. Both should still be migrated — from v1 EN, not v2.
knowledge/portfolio/melers/learnings/, not a playbook skill.playbook-sales-system.knowledge/portfolio/melers/learnings/.playbook-valuation skill — strong enough (34 items + formula), and IC + DD both need to reference it.playbook is the dispatcher — reads context, surfaces the relevant sub-skill. Cron jobs load playbook-thesis directly. Interactive acquisition work routes through playbook. Progressive disclosure — never load the whole playbook when one chapter is enough.
| Skill | Source (v2 chapter) | Trigger condition | Key content | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
playbook |
Ch. 1 | Any acquisition question without a clear stage ("should we pursue this?", "what next?") | Router. Investment philosophies preamble. Lists all sub-skills and one-line trigger for each. | To create |
playbook-thesis |
Ch. 2 | Scoring a lead, deciding pass/fail, any thesis question | Full criteria table + Immediate Disqualifiers. Geography updated to Finland + Sweden + Estonia. Replaces sourcing-tradecraft/references/thesis.md. |
To create |
playbook-sourcing |
Ch. 3 | Any sourcing sweep, lead discovery, weak-signal scan | Broker platforms, weak-signal sourcing (owner age 55+, declining revenue, stale web, etc.). Absorbs sourcing-tradecraft. |
To create |
playbook-screening |
Ch. 4 + 5 | First pass on a lead that passed thesis; before IC | 4-lens screening checklist. Psychological Driver Matrix (all 5 drivers). Cost Structure + Assets Inventory templates. | To create |
playbook-valuation NEW |
Appendix G | Any valuation question, yield rate, Business Value calculation | 34-item Valuation Risk Scoring Tool. Score → yield rate (20–30%) → Business Value formula. Standalone so IC and DD can reference it. | To create |
playbook-ic |
Ch. 6 | Preparing for IC, running the IC meeting, post-IC | Pre-IC kill questions, IC process (champion → pre-read → vote 3/4), post-IC (LOI signing). Canva exec summary template ↗. | To create |
playbook-dd |
Ch. 7 + 8 | Any due diligence task, dataroom, DD1/DD2/DD3 | DD1/DD2/DD3 structure. DD2 charter template. Full dataroom checklist. 30-60-90 Day Plan (Appendix F). Staff interview form ↗. DD Trello template ↗. | To create |
playbook-knowledge-transfer |
Ch. 9 | Post-acquisition transition, handover, team onboarding | Stub. v2's generalized charter template is a good base. Points to knowledge/portfolio/melers/learnings/ for real-world lessons. Revisit after ~10 acquisitions. |
Stub (intentional) |
playbook-sales-system |
Ch. 10 (v2) + Sales EPICs (v1 EN) | Post-acquisition sales system setup, CRM, B2B/B2C outreach | Askel tech stack (mandatory). Detailed B2B/B2C EPICs with named owners (from v1 EN ↗). Varia=CMO, Niklas=CFO, Mike=CTO. | To create |
sourcing-tradecraft |
— | — | Replaced by playbook-sourcing. |
Deprecate |
Three-axis structure after migration: process (playbook skills, published as website) · market (sourcing sessions, competition intel) · portfolio (per-company operational knowledge).
Files to create:
.claude/skills/playbook-thesis/SKILL.md — merge v2 EN ↗ Ch. 2 structure with depth from .claude/skills/sourcing-tradecraft/references/thesis.md. Geography: Finland + Sweden + Estonia. See thesis merge strategy above. Link source doc inline.Files to modify — remove hardcoded thesis criteria, add playbook-thesis reference, add board + template card links:
.claude/skills/cron-yritysporssi-scrape/SKILL.md — currently says "revenue 400K–1.5M, profit 100K+, asking ≤1M, 10+ yr Oy" inline; replace with "score against the thesis in the playbook-thesis skill". Add: https://trello.com/b/01KUlg8H/case-scouting and https://trello.com/c/ZWY6fNrB inline..claude/skills/cron-weekly-sourcing/SKILL.md — add reference to playbook-thesis for scoring. Add board + template card links inline..claude/skills/cron-swedish-sweep/SKILL.md — add reference to playbook-thesis. Note geography now explicitly includes Sweden (and Estonia — see below). Add board + template card links inline..claude/skills/cron-yrityskaupat-newsletter/SKILL.md — add Case Scouting board ↗ and template card ↗ links inline. Add playbook-thesis reference for scoring..claude/skills/cron-walk-of-shame/SKILL.md — add Case Scouting board ↗ inline (walk-of-shame reads Trello; it doesn't create cards, but the board link must be inline)..claude/skills/sourcing-tradecraft/SKILL.md — replace inline thesis criteria with reference to playbook-thesis. Keep all tradecraft content intact.cron-swedish-sweep. Estonia has no cron. Decision: Estonia is manual-only for now. Add a note to cron-swedish-sweep/SKILL.md saying: "Estonia is in the thesis but has no dedicated sweep — flag Estonian opportunities ad-hoc when encountered; a dedicated cron can be added once we have a reliable Estonian source." Do not create a cron for Estonia in Phase 1.
Convention: every Drive/Trello reference in every file touched is a full URL hyperlink. Every mention, every time.
Files to create (source doc in parentheses):
.claude/skills/playbook/SKILL.md — router + v2 EN ↗ Ch. 1 philosophies preamble. Lists all sub-skills with one-line trigger condition each (use the trigger conditions from the taxonomy table above)..claude/skills/playbook-sourcing/SKILL.md — v2 EN ↗ Ch. 3 + full content of sourcing-tradecraft/SKILL.md. Include https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1QaasfdJ-7vASWp1R7VSR4KDrE8O7fWK_/edit (Broker List) inline. Trello card creation steps: link both Case Scouting board ↗ and template card ↗ inline..claude/skills/playbook-screening/SKILL.md — v2 EN ↗ Ch. 4 + 5. Includes the full Psychological Driver Matrix table verbatim. Link Financial Analysis Sheet ↗ inline..claude/skills/playbook-valuation/SKILL.md — v2 EN ↗ Appendix G. 34-item scoring tool + yield rate table + Business Value formula..claude/skills/playbook-ic/SKILL.md — v2 EN ↗ Ch. 6. Include https://www.canva.com/design/DAGpYhfKLSs/kD_LoR1zZKiStdoD_73XHA/edit inline (exec summary Canva template)..claude/skills/playbook-dd/SKILL.md — v2 EN ↗ Ch. 7 + 8 + Appendix F. Include https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeRBaUzRB0THKq4lyDHCjD3-Mz15m4O57Sz71eWkKji0k15wQ/viewform (staff interview form) and https://trello.com/b/p9gyEgEZ/dd-template-avoiding-idiocy (DD Trello template) inline. Link Financial Analysis Sheet ↗ inline..claude/skills/playbook-knowledge-transfer/SKILL.md — stub. Use v2 EN ↗ Ch. 9 charter template as the skeleton. Include the note: "Not a generalized playbook yet. Operational learnings from Melers are in knowledge/portfolio/melers/learnings/. Revisit after ~10 acquisitions.".claude/skills/playbook-sales-system/SKILL.md — v2 EN ↗ Ch. 10 for tool stack + v1 EN ↗ Sales System EPICs section for B2B/B2C detail + named owners (Varia=CMO, Niklas=CFO, Mike=CTO).Files to modify:
.claude/skills/sourcing-tradecraft/SKILL.md — replace body with deprecation redirect to playbook-sourcing (see deprecation pattern above). Keep the directory; delete 2 weeks after Phase 2 ships.CLAUDE.md — three sections need updating:
sourcing-tradecraft entry with playbook-sourcing; add all new playbook-* skills.#prospecting protocol section: replace the opening paragraph and all three hypothesis bullets with the following verbatim text:
Systematic, cron-powered sourcing based on defined hypotheses. Thesis criteria (revenue, EBITDA, age, geography, disqualifiers) live in `playbook-thesis` — crons score against it rather than hardcoding criteria inline. Targets that pass get a Trello card cloned from the template. **Active hypotheses:** - **H1: Finnish broker listings** — yritysporssi.fi / yrityskaupat.net weekly scrape across thesis sectors (cleaning, maintenance, laundry, waste, funeral, transport, tires, LVI). Scoring via `playbook-thesis`. Cron: `cron-yritysporssi-scrape` (Tue), `cron-weekly-sourcing` (Mon). - **H2: Swedish + Estonian broker listings** — bolagsplatsen.se weekly sweep. Estonia is in the thesis but has no dedicated source — flag Estonian opportunities ad-hoc via `cron-swedish-sweep`. Scoring via `playbook-thesis`. Cron: `cron-swedish-sweep` (Tue). - **H3: Finder.fi weak signals** — on-demand + sweep-integrated scan for non-listed Finnish targets with exit-readiness signals (owner 55+, declining revenue, stale web presence). Scoring via `playbook-thesis`. Embedded in `cron-weekly-sourcing`.
## Your jobs section: mention that sourcing and deal evaluation now follow the playbook skill hierarchy.mkdir -p /home/askel/cc-disco/knowledge/portfolio/melers — create full intermediate path first (git mv will fail without it)git mv /home/askel/cc-disco/knowledge/melers /home/askel/cc-disco/knowledge/portfolio/melers/brand/home/askel/cc-disco/knowledge/portfolio/melers/learnings/README.md — Steve extracts the "I wish I had known" table + killer skills stack verbatim from v1 EN ↗ "Skills for Mike" section and writes it into the file. Varia then supplements with fresh anecdotes not captured in the doc. Steve does not leave a blank scaffold — the doc content goes in./home/askel/cc-disco/knowledge/portfolio/melers/learnings/operational-sheets.md — index of live Melers operational docs: Hinnasto — https://docs.google.com/document/d/1uIxDkNYRHnoXT6-LLGSxH4gnWp8WBCnXwOgpaGQRY4E/edit ↗, Markkinointi — https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1EWnNdbOZN1nrcBfjqaWatBE39wRlswSJ9WPYvzt2RmA/edit ↗CLAUDE.md knowledge base index: replace knowledge/melers/ with knowledge/portfolio/melers/.claude/skills/housekeeping/SKILL.md — reflect new portfolio structureknowledge/melers references in skills and knowledge files; update paths.The playbook site is built with MkDocs + Material theme — free, open-source, Mintlify-tier design. Dark mode, sticky nav, search, and admonition callouts are all built in. Output is a static site/ folder deployed as-is.
Setup (one-time):
pip install mkdocs-material # mkdocs.yml lives at repo root (or /home/askel/playbook-site/ — TBD)
mkdocs.yml skeleton:
site_name: Askel Ventures Playbook
theme:
name: material
palette:
scheme: slate # dark mode
primary: custom
features:
- navigation.sections
- navigation.sticky
- search.highlight
extra_css: [overrides.css] # "Askel Ventures — Confidential" banner + brand tweaks
nav:
- Overview: playbook.md
- Thesis: playbook-thesis.md
- Sourcing: playbook-sourcing.md
- Screening: playbook-screening.md
- Valuation: playbook-valuation.md
- IC: playbook-ic.md
- Due Diligence: playbook-dd.md
- Knowledge Transfer: playbook-knowledge-transfer.md
- Sales System: playbook-sales-system.md
Build step: for each skill in nav order, copy SKILL.md (everything after frontmatter) to the docs source folder. Run mkdocs build → site/ folder. The skill order above maps directly to the nav list.
Deploy: via the askel-pages skill: npx wrangler pages deploy site/ --project-name playbook --branch main, then add a DNS CNAME for playbook.askelventures.com via the CF API (see askel-pages skill for exact DNS call pattern).
CF Zero Trust auth gating is not available (CF API token lacks Zero Trust permissions — confirmed during this planning session). Mechanism: add a prominent "Askel Ventures — Confidential" banner via MkDocs Material's announce block (set in overrides/main.html), and rely on URL obscurity for now. The URL is not linked from anywhere public. If stronger access control is needed later, a Cloudflare Worker with Basic Auth can be added as a wrapper — but that's out of scope for Phase 4.
.claude/skills/sourcing-tradecraft/ — only if ≥14 days have elapsed since Phase 2 shipped. Run git log --oneline .claude/skills/sourcing-tradecraft/SKILL.md and check the timestamp of the deprecation redirect commit before deleting.askel-pages skill unpublish steps for repo-reorg.askelventures.comSteve 🦔 · cc-disco · mikesol/cc-disco