How I Help

An operations partner.
Not a capabilities catalogue.

The work begins with your operating problem, not a predetermined package. Three engagement shapes give us a sensible starting point. The exact scope is always agreed before work starts.

You may need this if…

Founder load

  • Everything still routes through you.
  • Decisions wait until you are in the room.
  • You are simultaneously the strategist and the approver of expense claims.

Ownership gaps

  • Nobody is entirely sure who owns the handoff.
  • The same mistake happens in the same place, repeatedly.
  • Cross-team work requires your intervention to move.

Operating chaos

  • Five tools hold five versions of the truth.
  • Important work loses every week to urgent work.
  • Reporting takes too long or cannot be trusted.
  • Growth created workarounds that became permanent.

Automation & AI

  • The team wants to use AI but lacks a useful, safe plan.
  • Automations exist, but nobody understands or maintains them.
  • A repetitive workflow is consuming disproportionate time.

Execution

  • A critical project has been slipping for months.
  • Hiring has added people without reducing strain.
  • The business may need a COO but is not ready for a full-time hire.

Three engagement shapes

The best starting point depends on how much clarity you have about the problem.

01

The Operating Diagnostic

Find the real sources of friction. Establish what to fix first.

Best for

You know things are messy but you don't yet share a clear diagnosis. You want an independent view of what is actually happening and where to start.

Not for

Businesses that have already diagnosed the problem and need execution help — start with the Smooth Sprint.

How it typically unfolds

  • Founder and leadership interviews
  • Workflow and decision mapping
  • Tool and system inventory
  • Operating rhythm review
  • Role and ownership assessment
  • Automation and applied-AI opportunity scan
  • Prioritised action map

Outcome direction

  • A plain-language view of the operating system
  • Key constraints and risks
  • Priority sequence: immediate fixes versus structural work
  • Recommended engagement or internal owner

Scope and boundaries

The diagnostic is a starting engagement, not a strategy document. The output is practical and action-oriented. Duration, scope and format are agreed based on business size and problem complexity.

Tell me what's not workingLearn more about this engagement
02

The Smooth Sprint

Fix or ship one defined operational priority.

Best for

You have a specific operational problem—a broken workflow, a stuck project, an unsupported management rhythm—that needs to be fixed and working.

Not for

Businesses that do not yet agree on what the problem is. Start with the Operating Diagnostic.

How it typically unfolds

  • Define the problem, owner, success measure and handover clearly at the start
  • Redesign the workflow, responsibilities and supporting technology
  • Implement with the team—not alongside them
  • Measure adoption and address resistance
  • Hand over with documentation and a named internal owner

Example applications

  • Redesign a broken lead-to-onboarding flow
  • Establish one source of truth for delivery status
  • Automate a repetitive administrative workflow with clear ownership
  • Design and implement management reporting that arrives in time to act on
  • Introduce a workable weekly operating rhythm
  • Recover and deliver a stuck cross-functional project
  • Prototype and operationalise a safe AI-assisted workflow

Outcome direction

  • A working system with clear ownership
  • The team understands and can maintain the new approach
  • A measurable change in operating behaviour

Scope and boundaries

Sprint scope is defined and agreed before work starts. A sprint is not a free-range engagement. If the scope expands materially, it becomes a new engagement.

Tell me what's not workingLearn more about this engagement
03

Embedded Operator / Fractional COO

Ongoing senior operating capacity without an immediate full-time hire.

Best for

You need ongoing operating leadership—someone to translate priorities into a plan, improve the leadership cadence, connect people and systems, and build the capability to deliver more coherently.

Not for

Businesses in acute legal, financial, HR or security crisis requiring specialist counsel.

How it typically unfolds

  • Translate priorities into an operating plan
  • Run or improve the leadership and team cadence
  • Clarify roles, ownership and decision rights
  • Connect people, process, data and tools
  • Oversee selected operational or transformation initiatives
  • Introduce management information and follow-through
  • Coach internal owners and build operational capability
  • Advise on sequencing, trade-offs and organisational load

Outcome direction

  • A business that runs more coherently
  • A founder who is less the bottleneck
  • Operational capability that remains after the engagement

Scope and boundaries

The exact remit, authority, availability and term are agreed per engagement. I do not become a legal officer, employment decision-maker or regulated adviser by default.

Tell me what's not workingLearn more about this engagement

Capability themes

These run across all engagements. They are not separate services—they are the lenses I use when I look at a business.

Operations
Workflow, handoffs, capacity, cadence, decision-making and accountability
Systems
A coherent operating model and sensible sources of truth
Automation
Reliable removal of repetitive work with ownership and fallbacks
Applied AI
Specific, safe uses tied to a real workflow and measurable value
Software
Technical judgement, prototypes, integration and build-vs-buy decisions
Execution
Sequencing, project recovery, delivery rhythm and closing the loop
Founder leverage
Reducing unnecessary dependency on the founder while protecting judgement

What I need from you

  • Access to the people doing the daily work, not only the leadership team.
  • Honesty about what is working and what is not, even when it is uncomfortable.
  • Authority or a direct line to the person who has it.
  • Willingness for the change to be real—not a report on the shelf.
  • A named internal owner who will carry the work after the engagement.

What I will not promise

  • Guaranteed revenue growth or cost savings—outcomes depend on your team's adoption and decisions.
  • A report without an implementation path.
  • A fixed price, duration or deliverable until we have agreed on scope.
  • Expertise in regulated domains: legal, HR law, insolvency, cybersecurity specialist work.
  • A role as a legal officer or employment decision-maker.

Common questions

What is a fractional COO?
A fractional COO is a senior operations leader who works with your business part-time rather than as a full-time employee. The "fractional" part refers to the time commitment—typically one to three days per week—not to the quality of the work or the depth of the involvement. For businesses that need senior operational leadership but are not ready for a full-time COO salary and overhead, it is often the right fit.
Do we need a full-time COO instead?
Possibly. If the operating problems require daily, sustained senior leadership across a large team with high complexity, a full-time hire is probably right. If the business needs operating capacity, a fresh diagnosis, or help with a specific priority—and could not yet fully occupy a full-time COO—fractional is likely the better starting point. We can work this out during the initial conversation.
Can you work with our existing operations leader?
Yes. Several engagements involve working alongside an existing head of ops, chief of staff or operations manager to add capacity, provide a diagnostic perspective, or lead a specific initiative. The engagement is structured to leave capability with your team, not to create dependency on me.
Do you build software and automations yourself?
Yes. My software engineering background means I can design, prototype and build as well as advise. I do not take on large-scale software development engagements, but I regularly build automations, integrations, lightweight tools and prototypes as part of operational work. When larger builds are needed, I can guide the specification and oversee execution.
Will AI reduce our headcount?
Not as a default goal. The aim of automation and AI work is to reduce the time spent on repetitive, low-judgement tasks—freeing your team for work that requires more thought, relationship and care. Whether headcount changes is a decision for your business based on where that freed capacity goes. I will not recommend eliminating roles merely because automation is technically possible.
Do you only work with safari or travel companies?
No. The Smooth Operator's offer is intentionally useful across industries. I have a particular understanding of safari and travel businesses, but the operating problems I work on—founder dependency, workflow ownership, reporting, automation, project delivery—appear in agencies, professional services firms, product businesses and digitally enabled service companies across sectors.
Can you work remotely or on-site?
Both. I work with businesses across Africa and internationally. Remote-first is the default. On-site work is appropriate for some diagnostics, workshops and implementation phases and is agreed as part of engagement scope.
What access do you need?
Enough to see the real work: relevant leadership conversations, workflow observation, key tools and systems, and the people who do the daily work. The diagnostic is only as useful as the access it has. Engagements that restrict access to "cleaned-up" presentations tend to find cleaned-up problems.

Start with the problem,
not a predetermined package.

Tell me what is not working. We can work out the right starting point together. Fit, scope and working arrangement are always confirmed before work starts.

Tell me what's not working