Q1 tooling ledger

spend / month

$4,860$4,860 → $2,915

paid seats

6161 → 38

tools

2323 → 14

same job twice

66 → 0

cost per order

$0.71$0.71 → $0.42

saved / year

$0$0 → $23,340

1. 01storefront-platform$399KEPTStorefront platform — $399 → $399 — KEPT
2. 02helpdesk$1,140HALVEDHelpdesk — $1,140 → $570 — HALVED (seats 12 → 6)
3. 03email-sms$640DOWNEmail + SMS — $640 → $390 — DOWN (list cleaned)
4. 04analytics-suite$299DROPPEDAnalytics suite — $299 → $0 — DROPPED (storefront reports cover it)
5. 05inventory-app$450KEPTInventory app — $450 → $450 — KEPT
6. 06design-seats$432HALVEDDesign seats — $432 → $216 — HALVED
7. 07shipping-labels$320KEPTShipping labels — $320 → $320 — KEPT
8. 08old-crm$560DROPPEDOld CRM — $560 → $0 — DROPPED (Basecamp replaces it)
9. 09forms-tool$120DROPPEDForms tool — $120 → $0 — DROPPED
10. 10project-tracker$150HALVEDProject tracker — $300 → $150 — HALVED

The ledger is not a cost-cutting story; it is a duplicate story. Six tools did a job another tool already did, and nobody was sure which one was the real one. Removing the copies removed the arguments.

The two big kept lines — storefront and inventory — are the business. Everything under them should justify itself every quarter with a number, and the number is cost per order.

1. Export invoices from the card portal on the 1st.
2. Match each to a line here; a new line needs an owner name.
3. Any tool with zero logins in 30 days goes to the "drop" list.
4. Recalculate cost per order (spend ÷ orders shipped).
5. Post the ledger; the owner of any "up" line explains it in one sentence.

ops@ridgelinebasecamp ledger export --month 2026-03 --csv
ops@ridgelinebasecamp ledger diff 2026-01 2026-03      # +0 lines, −9 lines, −$1,945/mo
ops@ridgelinebasecamp ledger per-order                 # $0.42

“Six tools did the same job. Nobody knew which one was real.”