Agents clean financials, CRM and payroll data, and survey managers. I interview leaders, test the numbers and select three moves.
15 days: baseline, value map, EBITDA bridge, KPI dashboard, three owned moves and a 90-day plan.
Big firms: six figures, 8–12 weeks. Limited monthly capacity. Read-only access throughout.
| Move | $ Impact (annual EBITDA) | Owner | Lead KPI | Value-to-fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing & mix reset | +$1.1M | CRO | Gross margin % | 73x |
| Delivery capacity & utilization | +$0.9M | COO | Billable utilization | 60x |
| AI-assisted back office | +$0.6M | CFO | Cost per transaction | 40x |
Illustrative sample. Not a client result.
From the 15-Day Operating Read: three moves sized against the baseline P&L.
| Bar | Value | Starting EBITDA | Ending EBITDA |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baseline EBITDA | $3.6M | 0 | 3.6 |
| Pricing & mix reset | +$1.1M | 3.6 | 4.7 |
| Delivery capacity & utilization | +$0.9M | 4.7 | 5.6 |
| AI-assisted back office | +$0.6M | 5.6 | 6.2 |
| Target run-rate | $6.2M | 0 | 6.2 |
NDA first; read-only access, revoked by Day 15; raw data deleted within 30 days, with written confirmation; your data is never used to train AI; every number is checked and signed off by me and your CFO.
Sign-off comes from your CFO, or your controller or outside CPA if you don't have one. The 15 days start when I have your trial balance, AR/AP agings and customer revenue file, and we book your CFO's Day 12 review at kickoff. Access is read-only, your data never trains a model, and it's deleted within 30 days.
Annual revenue
Runs entirely in your browser. No backend, no AI API calls, nothing stored or sent, except what you choose to pass to Calendly.
15 daysFrom kickoff to readout
The Read is the same 15 days and $15,000. What it hunts for depends on where the company is.
What usually breaks
The investment plan meets the old operating cadence. The board needs numbers you don't track weekly.
What the Read delivers in 15 days
A board-ready baseline, three EBITDA and cash moves with owners and KPIs, and a 90-day plan.
Why me
I've raised capital from venture and PE investors and sat on both sides of the board table.
Scaled companies of every size · raised capital from venture and PE · M&A on both sides · IPO experience.
$15,000Fixed fee
The single entry offer for CEOs and sponsors
$15,000 fixed · 15 days
CEOs and founders of $10M–$100M companies, and PE-owned portfolio companies with $20M–$250M in revenue ($3M–$25M EBITDA). Same scope and same price for founder-led and sponsor-owned companies.
50% at kickoff, 50% due on readout day (Day 15). The second payment is not contingent on whether or when you implement the findings.
The fee is credited in full toward the first month of a retainer that starts within 30 days. Limited to 2 per month.
Guarantee: At least $100k, or 1% of annual revenue up to $1M, whichever is greater. Annual revenue means your most recent completed fiscal year. EBITDA items count at annualized run-rate; cash items count as one-time cash released within 12 months; no item counts twice. Your CFO signs off on the opportunity and the math, not a forecast or a commitment to act.
CFO sign-off means your CFO agrees the opportunities exist and the math holds. It does not depend on execution.
If your CFO declines, they give written reasons within 5 business days of the readout, item by item, showing that an item doesn't exist or its math doesn't hold. A decision not to act on an item isn't a reason. Items not disputed this way count toward the guarantee. With no written reasons in that window, sign-off is deemed given and the second half is due.
Comparable diagnostics typically run six figures and 8–12 weeks. This is 15 days and $15k, credited to a retainer, a senior operator does the work, and you leave with a running operating system, not a report.
What happens after: a retainer is optional. The 90-day plan, scorecard and weekly leadership meeting are built to run without us; if you want help running them, the fee is credited in full toward the first month of a retainer that starts within 30 days.
Shawn helped us see where the business could go next. He mapped which new markets were worth entering, where digital content could become real revenue, and which acquisitions actually fit. Then he turned that into a plan our team could run. I'd put him in the room on any decision that matters.
Every operator says they've done it before. Shawn had actually carried the P&L, actually done the deal, and it showed in how fast he got to the real question. He's the call I make before I sign anything.
Day 0: read-only access. Days 1–3, controller-led: 36 months of financials; customer, job and product economics; pricing approvals; CRM and operations exports; org chart, headcount, meeting calendar, KPIs and board materials. Missing data is a finding, not homework.
45–60 minutes each. 8–10 for The 15-Day Operating Read: CEO, CFO, sales, operations, product or service lines, controller, HR, and 1–2 front-line managers.
| Who | Day 0 | Days 1–6 | Days 7–12 | Day 15 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CEO | 0.5 | 2.0 | 1.0 | 3.5 | ~7 hrs |
| Each other leader | — | 1.0 | 0.5–1.0 | 1.5–2.0 | 3–4 hrs |
| Controller / analyst | 1.0–1.5 | 2.0–3.0 | 1.0 | 0–0.5 | 4–6 hrs |
Figures assume The 15-Day Operating Read over 15 days.
Your time: about 6–8 hours of leadership time across the 15 days, plus data access.
Each move plotted by EBITDA impact and effort.
HATCHED = ONE-TIME CASH · GRAY = DEFER
| Move | Impact | Quadrant | Confidence size |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing reset | +$1.1M | Do now | Large |
| Utilization | +$0.9M | Do now | Large |
| AI back office | +$0.6M | Do now | Medium |
| Working capital | $1.9M CASH | Do now | Medium |
| Sales comp redesign | +$0.4M | Plan | Medium |
| Vendor consolidation | +$0.2M | Quick wins | Small |
| ERP replacement | DEFER | Defer | Small |
Illustrative sample. Not a client.
400+ employees · 9 countries
15-Day Operating Read
Readout delivered · results shared on a fit call
Day-to-day operations
15-Day Operating Read
Readout delivered · results shared on a fit call
Law firm · AI-enabled operations
15-Day Operating Read
Readout delivered · results shared on a fit call
Names shared with permission. The AI security company is confidential.
At least $100k, or 1% of annual revenue up to $1M, whichever is greater. Annual revenue means your most recent completed fiscal year. EBITDA items count at annualized run-rate; cash items count as one-time cash released within 12 months; no item counts twice. Your CFO signs off on the opportunity and the math, not a forecast or a commitment to act.
CFO sign-off means your CFO agrees the opportunities exist and the math holds. It does not depend on execution. If your CFO declines, they give written reasons within 5 business days of the readout, item by item, showing that an item doesn't exist or its math doesn't hold. A decision not to act on an item isn't a reason. Items not disputed this way count toward the guarantee. With no written reasons in that window, sign-off is deemed given and the second half is due.
50% at kickoff, 50% due on readout day (Day 15). The second payment is not contingent on whether or when you implement the findings.
No. Same 15 days, same $15,000, same guarantee. For sponsor-owned companies the readout and 90-day plan go to the CEO and the sponsor together.
CEO about 7 hours over 15 days, other leaders 3–4 hours each, and the controller 4–6 hours on the data pull.
No. A retainer is optional; the fee is credited if one starts within 30 days.
You can stop there and keep the plan. Or continue with a monthly engagement, and the fee is credited.
Yes. Your data, interviews and readout stay between Shawn and your leadership team.
Shawn takes 2 Reads a month. Meet Shawn first; if there is a fit you get the next open start date.
An introduction: your business, the numbers and the leadership team. Together we decide whether there's a fit. No diagnosis or prep.
Book a fit callContinue with Operating Advisor, Operating Partner, Fractional COO or Interim Executive. The fee is credited toward your first month if you continue within 30 days.
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