Fractional COO for professional services organizations where operational foundations and ownership no longer match the complexity the business is carrying.

Is this for your organization?

This is likely to resonate if your organization has grown successfully, but operational foundations and ownership have not kept pace with increasing complexity.

You may recognize several of the following patterns:

  • The same operational issues resurface, even after decisions have been made

  • Capable teams rely on workarounds and a few key individuals to keep things moving

  • Leadership decisions are revisited or re-explained because clarity and ownership do not hold

  • Simple changes require disproportionate coordination and effort

  • The organization continues to perform, but only by leaning heavily on people rather than structure

This is not a fit for organizations seeking purely tactical fixes, system implementation without leadership engagement, or short-term support without clear decision ownership.

Outcomes & Value created

The aim of a fractional COO engagement is not short-term improvement, but durable change that continues to work long after active involvement has reduced.

When our partnership is successful, organizations are left with:

  • Operational foundations that hold under pressure
    Structures, processes, and ways of working that are sound, reliable, and able to absorb day-to-day demands without constant intervention or workaround.

  • Clear ownership and decision-making that sticks
    Decisions are made at the right level, understood across the organisation, and not quietly revisited because accountability or rationale is unclear.

  • Reduced dependency on individuals
    Progress no longer relies on a small number of people carrying disproportionate context, effort, or risk. Capability is embedded in the system, not concentrated in individuals.

  • Ways of working people continue to use
    Changes are adopted because they make sense, fit how the organisation actually operates, and have a visible positive impact for all stakeholders.

  • Leadership capacity returned to where it belongs
    Senior leaders regain time and mental space to focus on direction, priorities, and trade-offs, rather than being pulled into operational noise.

The measure of success is not how much changes during the engagement, but how much continues to work six months later. Quietly, reliably, and without fanfare.

How we work together

My approach is grounded, systemic, and pragmatic.

Sustainable change depends on understanding what the organisation is trying to achieve, and how it actually operates today. I work closely with leadership to clarify short-, medium-, and long-term priorities, while drawing on the insight of the people who experience the system every day.

This shared understanding anchors decisions and keeps operational change aligned as circumstances evolve.

Clarity before action

I focus on understanding how things really work in practice before intervening, including decision-making, ownership, constraints, and informal workarounds.

This insight comes from leaders and teams alike, and allows change to address root causes rather than symptoms.

Change that holds in practice

I balance people, operations, and technology carefully, involving teams as active contributors rather than passive recipients of change.

New ways of working are shaped with those closest to the work, so they are practical, credible, and adopted.

Built for independence

My goal is to leave behind clarity, ownership, and capability that endure.

Structures and ways of working are designed so teams can operate confidently and consistently over time, without ongoing dependency, even as priorities shift.

This creates a line of sight from strategy to execution, and allows organizations to actually absorb change.