It’s been quite the week at the Lacy household. Our youngest has been sick all week, we are dealing with some buyer issues for our current home, board meeting next week, trip to Germany for the Colts game, AND on top of all of that, we are moving mid-November. A lot is going on, and NONE of this would be possible with the partnership I have with my wife, Rachel.

So, I separated this entry into two parts: 

• Why partnership is so important in lift

• How to prepare for a board meeting + 11 Slide CMO Board Template

So, here’s to life and the occasionally board meeting to stress us all out. BTW: How to prepare for a board meeting and the template will work for other meetings. Check it out.

♥️ kyle

On The Job At Home With No Title

It's incredible to me how often I hear of partners not pulling their weight around the house because of "their job" or another stupid reason. Give me a break. My wife has had the most challenging job this week, AND she has to deal with me as a software marketing leader.

And all while running a successful personal training business. PS: If you want some 1:1 training in downtown Indianapolis, I know someone who can help. dfsdf

Feels like we spend a lot of time talking about the difficult of our jobs, especially on the social feeds. But the harder thing is being a true partner to someone with a demanding career. I keep hearing stories of people not pulling their weight at home because of “their job.” Give me a break. Work gets our structure and our best thinking. Home deserves the same clarity.

And you don’t want that resentment to simmer! I’ve been on both sides of this, and I thought I’d share some tips towards a better partnership at home.

1. Calendar = Our To-Do List: Google Cal FTW. Put the real work on it: rides, meals, school forms, appointments, bedtime, workouts, alone time. If no one’s name is on it, no one owns it. Two questions every time: What’s happening? Who owns it?

2. Balance the Load: Bills, insurance, taxes, forms, travel logistics. Balance the burden on purpose. Rotate monthly or divide by category. If you never touch it at work, learn it at home.

3. Daily Check-ins: Check in daily with one real question. Then listen. Listen well. I still need to improve here, which is exactly why it’s written down.

4. Protect Rest & Solo Time: If one person gets a solo night, the other gets one too. Plan vacations and random road trips. Burnout at work doesn’t buy a free pass at home. Manage your head trash with the same rigor you bring to a pipeline review.

Pretty simple yet so damned effective. We aren’t perfect but we are trying, I believe that’s the most important part.

A Special Shout Out

This is a shout-out to the partners who carry the heavy load. Thank you. And it’s a heads up to the rest of us (especially thoughts of you with the job, high ego, busted calendar) to own our share without being asked.

The goal isn’t a perfect 50/50 every day. The goal is clarity and gratitude. If this hit home, reply and tell me one thing you’re taking off your partner’s plate this week. And if you’re in Indy and want a trainer who will build a plan you’ll actually follow, Rachel’s your person.

On Preparing For A Board Meeting & CMO Board Deck Template

I spent the week deep in board meeting prep and had the chance to present my perspective on board decks to the Pavilion Gold group. Since our own board meeting is up next week, I figured what better time to write down how I prep and what I’ve learned (the hard way) about telling a marketing story that actually lands.

For years, I wanted to show up with a supremely polished deck. Clean slides. Perfect charts. Maybe a splash of personality in the visuals. The problem? The story was weak. I was more focused on the deck than the narrative, and it showed.

And it didn’t work.

Eventually, I learned that board meetings aren’t about pretty slides, they’re about clarity, conviction, and showing what works & doesn’t. Pulling myself out of the gutter and learning was thanks to two lessons from two leaders:

• From Max Yoder (former CEO at Lessonly): Share Before Ready.

• From Andrew Lau (former CEO at Jellyfish): Red Teaming.

Together, those ideas completely changed how I prepare for the board.

Part 1: Share Before Ready & Preparing with Red Teaming 

Let’s start here, because this is where you will perform your best in board meetings.

Most “bad” board meetings aren’t about the data, they’re about how you tell the story. If you’re unclear or unaligned on what story you’re telling, you’ll end up defending instead of leading. The fix? Share early. Get feedback. Iterate fast.

Here’s the tight loop I’ve used to turn a rough outline into a story the board can act on:

1. Outline the story (30–45 min). No slides. Just write down the 6–8 headlines you want the board to repeat back to you when the meeting’s over.

2. Early feedback (CEO/manager). Direction only — are we telling the right story for this quarter?

3. Draft 1 (slide skeleton). Headline + one chart + one paragraph of commentary per slide.

4. Red Team #1 (CEO + Sales + 1 peer). Invite hard questions. Fix logic, not layout.

5. Draft 2 (near-final). Add charts, tighten commentary, cut anything ornamental.

6. Red Team #2 (add CFO/Product). Fresh eyes for financial linkage and customer reality.

7. Repeat until confident. Confidence = you can defend tradeoffs with receipts, not vibes.

Red teaming is when you gather a small group (usually other exec team members) and present your draft deck. Their job is to act like the board: challenge your assumptions, poke holes, ask the hard stuff. It’s humbling, a little painful, but transformational. It’s how you graduate from “sophomore-style” board updates to an executive-level narrative that earns trust.

Part 2: The CMO Board Deck (Slide-by-Slide with Talk Tracks)

Once your story is locked, it’s time to translate it into a deck that supports the narrative.

Yes, I have a template. Yes, you can have it. It’s a mix of decks I’ve used over the years, plus a few tweaks from where I’ve failed miserably.

A couple of notes to remember:

• Use directional language (accelerated, stabilized, surpassed, expanded). Spotlight what’s repeatable. Tie wins to levers—conversion, velocity, alignment. And keep everything time-bounded (“this quarter,” “by year-end”).

• Avoid defensive language. Pair every observation with an action: “We saw X, so we’re doing Y by Z date.”

Alright. Let’s break down each slide?

1. Quarter Review (1 slide)

Title tip: No generic titles. Example: “Enterprise ACV up; MM conversion stabilized; pipeline mix still demand-heavy.” The headline is the story.

Talk track: What worked / What didn’t / What we’re doing — each tied to a specific lever.

2. Scorecard (1–2 slides)

Title: “What happened across brand → demand → conversion.”

Table: Impressions, site sessions, demo starts, MQL→SQL, SQL→Opp, Opp→Win, ACV, CAC payback.

Commentary: Call out the 2–3 metrics that matter most and why. Never read the whole table.

3. Pipeline & Demand Framework (1 slide)

This is where you set the view: We show units (volume/velocity) and dollars (impact/quality) by source and segment, because both matter. Always show both.

Forward-looking: Include creation by source, by segment, and by source × segment, with a 1–2 quarter forecast.

4–6. Pipeline Creation Views (3 slides)

• By Source ($K): Paid search, content syndication, events, partner, direct, outbound.

• By Segment ($K): SMB, Mid-Market, Enterprise.

• By Source × Segment: Where do we lean in? Where do we pull back?

Each slide includes commentary and a forward look (forecast/coverage).

7. Segment Deep Dive (template repeats)

Example: “Mid-Market: volume recovered; quality uneven; CRO+CMO focusing on tighter entry criteria.”

Include two small charts:

• Units (opps)

• Dollars (pipeline/closed-won)

Commentary: Signal → Cause → Action.

Initiatives: Exactly what’s changing this quarter.

8. Q4 Focus (1 slide)

Headline: “Standardizing launches, scaling pipeline quality, embedding AI into GTM, expanding customer proof.”

Four levers (one bullet each):

• Brand & Messaging: Intent, timeline, connection to company narrative and exec visibility.

• Pipeline Acceleration & Expansion: Quality thresholds, conversion targets, cross-functional actions.

• AI in GTM: Workflow integration, content ops, experimentation → operational discipline.

• Customer-Led Growth: Advocacy, case studies, community, and VoC into content.

Build & Prep Timeline (7 Business Days)

Enough of the slides, you get the gist right? Craft your story, build your deck in a week. Just follow this timeline:

• T-7 (Mon): Write 6–8 slide headlines + 3 asks (20 min).

• T-6 (Tue): Skeleton slides + one paragraph commentary each.

• T-5 (Wed): Red Team #1 (CEO, Sales, 1 peer). Capture deltas only.

• T-4 (Thu): Add near-final charts. Cut anything ornamental.

• T-3 (Fri): Red Team #2 (add CFO/Product). Confirm financial linkages.

• T-2 (Mon): Lock narrative. Rehearse out loud once

• T-1 (Tue): Send pre-read with 5-line summary + 3 asks.

• Day-of: One-page crib sheet: slide titles + one-sentence talk track each.

Board meetings are a little bit performance, a little bit story telling, and a whole lot of proof points. You’re not there to impress. You are there to teach. You are there to show you understand the levers, the tradeoffs, and the proof behind your decisions. The polish will not matter if your story isn’t clear and you stumble.

And remember, the only thing the board REALLY cares about is “What are you going to do to generate the right business to meet growth expectations?”