as they say - there are many reasons a company can succeed, but they all fail for the same reason. (they run out of money).

So cash is king - follow the signs of cash flow.

#1 - watch the sales staff. Their comp is a direct reflection of the company's cash flow. They will leave if the source is running dry and they don't need inside information to figure it out.

#2 - hiring freeze. Classic bad sign. This is a little different than reaching hiring targets - if there is no backfill for attrition though, its a flashing red light.

#3 - travel freeze. Often the first lever pulled by the operations team - its a tell there are cash problems.

C level shakeups are not great indicators. Could be a real problem, but it could also just be powerplay fallout.