01 · SERVICES
Three formats. One approach.
Every mandate starts with a question: how deep does the engagement need to go? We've designed three formats, each with a defined shape, duration, and outcome. Most clients enter through one and continue into another.
THE CHECKUP · 3–5 DAYS
Diagnostic
The Checkup is a structured on-site engagement of three to five days. Both partners — or one partner with the relevant practice lead — spend that time inside the operation: walking the shopfloor, interviewing staff at every level, reviewing the systems and the numbers, and stress-testing the assumptions held by leadership.
At the end, you receive a written report with three things: a clear-eyed assessment of where things actually stand, a prioritized list of recommendations with realistic impact estimates, and a roadmap for what comes next. The Checkup is the entry point for clients who suspect something is off but can't yet articulate where to start. It's also the most common path into a longer engagement — though there's no obligation either way.
WHAT YOU GET
- On-site presence by senior partners for the full duration
- Written diagnostic report (15–25 pages, structured for executive consumption)
- Prioritized recommendations with effort and impact ratings
- Roadmap with sequencing logic and dependency mapping
- Final read-out session with leadership team
WHEN IT FITS
- Operations are underperforming and leadership wants an outside view before committing budget.
- A new GM or operations leader is taking over and wants an independent baseline.
- Pre-acquisition or post-acquisition, when the buyer needs a real picture of operational state.
THE PROJECT · 4–16 WEEKS
Delivery
The Project is what most consultancies call "a project" — but with a meaningful difference. We don't run projects from a slide deck. The work is on the ground, in the system, with the team. Our partners stay personally involved from kickoff to handover.
Scope is defined upfront, in writing, with measurable outcomes. A typical Project might be: implementing a Lean transformation across two production cells, building out a US warehouse and 3PL contract from scratch, executing an SAP-related supply chain integration, or designing and rolling out a supplier development program. Duration ranges from four weeks for tightly scoped work to sixteen weeks for full transformations. We don't take open-ended retainers.
WHAT YOU GET
- Written Statement of Work with milestones and acceptance criteria
- Senior partner ownership throughout — no handoff to associates
- Operational presence on-site as the work demands
- Working systems, processes, or integrations — not slide decks
- Documentation and handover for the internal team that takes over
WHEN IT FITS
- A specific operational change needs to happen and the internal team can't deliver it alone.
- A Checkup has surfaced a clear set of priorities and you want to act on them.
- Time-bounded execution: a launch, a migration, a turnaround with a deadline.
THE OPERATOR · 3–12 MONTHS
Fractional Leadership
The Operator format is for companies that need senior operational leadership but don't yet justify — or don't yet want to commit to — a full-time hire. One of our partners steps inside the company in a defined leadership role: COO, CAIO, VP Supply Chain, VP Manufacturing & Quality, or a comparable role. Part-time presence, full responsibility, signing authority where the engagement requires it.
Operator mandates run three to twelve months, with a structured exit. The goal is never to embed permanently. The goal is to stabilize, build, or transform the function — and either hand it to a permanent hire we help recruit, or to an internal successor we develop alongside the work. The Operator format is also how we de-risk fast growth: a European mid-market company opening US operations doesn't need a full-time COO yet, but it does need someone with COO-level judgment in the room.
WHAT YOU GET
- Senior partner in a defined operational role with clear scope
- Part-time presence (typically 2–3 days per week, on-site as needed)
- Full decision-making authority within the agreed remit
- Monthly written progress and risk update to leadership or the board
- Defined exit plan: handover to permanent hire or internal successor
WHEN IT FITS
- A US subsidiary is being built or restructured and needs senior operational leadership now.
- A key role is vacant and the right permanent hire will take six to twelve months to find.
- Founders or owners need to step out of operational firefighting to focus on strategy or sale.
All three formats connect — a Checkup often leads into a Project, and a Project often leads into an Operator mandate. We don't push that path. We let the work tell us what comes next.
Operations, native on both sides.