Execution Support - Fractional Chief Operations Officer (FCOO)
Profitpoint Business Solutions
Experienced Operational Leadership Support When Your Business Needs More than Advice
When costs are rising, margins are tightening, cash flow feels harder than it should, or too many decisions still end up back with you, working harder usually isn't the answer.
Ian provides hands-on commercial and operational support to established regional businesses that need a fresh set of experienced eyes across the numbers, sales, operations, people and processes.
We start by working out what is actually holding the business back, then build a practical 30, 60 and 90-day plan around the priorities that will make the biggest difference — and, where needed, work alongside you and your team to get it done.
The immediate goal is better performance and greater operational control. The longer-term result is a stronger business that relies less on you and gives you more options for the future.
Discuss Your Business with Ian (click the button)
Why this work, why now?
Good businesses can still become harder to run than they should be
Most established businesses don't suddenly develop one big problem. Pressure tends to build gradually.
Costs increase. Margins get squeezed. Sales become less predictable. Jobs take longer to move through the business. Staff become busy but the owner still seems to be the person everyone comes back to when something needs deciding or fixing.
The usual response is to work harder and become more involved. That can keep things moving for a while, but it also makes it much harder to step back and see where the real problems are.
Sometimes the issue is pricing. Sometimes it's job mix, purchasing, sales conversion, workflow, accountability or cash tied up in the wrong places. Often it's several relatively small issues combining to create one much bigger feeling that the business simply isn't performing the way it should.
That's where Fractional COO support can help.
The role is not to come in and take over your business. It's to provide an experienced, independent set of eyes across the whole operation, identify what needs attention first, and work with you and your team to bring the business back under control.
The aim is simple: better performance now, a stronger team and operation, and less dependence on the owner over time.
The 3 Stages of Fractional COO Execution
How we approach the work
Strategic advisory is useless without implementation. Here is the 3-phase execution engine used to activate your business:
1. Optimise (Profit Improvement & Cash Flow): Eliminate margin leakage, analyze commercial operations, and tighten delivery workflows to strengthen your P&L immediately.
2. Systemise (Operational Streamlining & Team Capability): Build repeatable workflows, establish clear KPIs, and direct management teams so your business executes reliably without daily intervention.
3. Step Back (Independence Transition & Future Choices): Extract you from daily firefighting, turning the business into a self-sustaining asset ready for retained growth, succession, or sale.
About Ian Woodhouse
More than 30 years of commercial and operational experience
I’ve spent more than three decades working inside SMEs and mid-market businesses, dealing with the same issues business owners face every day - improving performance, managing people, solving operational problems, growing sales, protecting margins and keeping things moving when they don’t go to plan.
That experience is important because Fractional COO work isn’t really about giving advice from the outside. It’s about being able to step into a business, understand how the different pieces fit together, identify where performance is being lost and then work with the owner and their team to fix it.
My approach is practical rather than theoretical. We look at the numbers, but we also look behind them - at pricing, sales, workflow, people, accountability, systems and the decisions that keep finding their way back to the owner.
Today, that operational experience sits alongside my work as a certified Business Transition Advisor through the Institute of Advisors. It means the immediate focus can be on improving performance and getting the business back under control, while making sure the changes we make also build a stronger, more independent and more valuable business over time.
Proven Performance Results
"Increased profits, improved delivery times, and took my first 3-week holiday with no calls."
"Ian helped us identify inefficiencies we didn’t even know existed. By plugging profit leaks, automating key processes, and help getting the right people in the right roles, we’ve not only increased profits but also improved our delivery times and overall customer experience."
Sean Harper, Manufacturing Manager
"Gave me the tools, templates, and knowledge to ACTUALLY execute."
"Ian’s deep expertise allowed me to set ambitious goals for my business while ensuring that I had the exact operational tools, templates, and structure to actually execute."
Alexandria Jade, Takaynar
Why Clients Choose Profitpoint Execution Support
ProfitPoint combines more than 30 years of hands-on commercial and operational experience with a structured approach to improving business performance and reducing owner dependence.
You don't get a generic program or a report handed back for you to implement yourself. We start by understanding how your business actually works, identify the few priorities that will make the biggest difference, and then provide as much hands-on support as you need to get them implemented.
For an established business, that means access to experienced operational leadership without the cost or commitment of employing another full-time executive.
Fresh eyes. Clear priorities. Practical execution.
The 90-Day Accelerator
Deep Dive → Blueprint → Implementation
If your business is profitable but feels harder to run than it should, the 90‑Day Accelerator gives you clarity, breathing room, and momentum - fast. It’s a complete operational reset designed for established regional business owners who want things to run smoother, stronger, and with far less owner pressure.
This is not consulting. This is not a report. This is not a list of 100 extra things to do.
It’s a structured, practical, hands‑on program focused on the few priorities that will make the biggest difference.
⭐ 1. The Deep Dive Diagnostic
We begin with a structured diagnostic to identify the real pressure points and the quickest wins. This includes:
-
Margin health & pricing discipline (find the hidden profits)
-
Job/project profitability clarity
-
Workflow friction (enquiry → invoice)
-
Owner dependence & bottlenecks (where to save you hours per day)
-
Team capability & role clarity (equip the team)
-
Systems strength & reporting visibility
-
Cash flow predictability
-
Hidden profit & time leaks
Most businesses uncover $50k–$250k in hidden profit before any major changes are made.
⭐ 2. The Operational Blueprint
Next, we build a practical, customised & detailed plan for the next 90 days. Your Blueprint includes:
-
3‑year, 1‑year, and 90‑day direction
-
Market & Competition Review
-
Margin improvement strategy
-
Workflow and process fixes
-
Team structure & capability lift
-
Systems roadmap
-
Reporting & visibility improvements
-
Owner independence pathway
-
Quick wins + low‑hanging fruit
-
ROI forecast
This is the plan we implement together — not a document you’re left to figure out.
⭐ 3. Fractional COO Implementation
Hands‑on support to make the changes happen. Typically 1 day per week (option for 2 days if faster implementation is wanted or needed).
Implementation includes:
-
Operational improvements
-
Profit Margin performance
-
Workflow redesign
-
Quoting & conversion improvements
-
Reporting clarity
-
Team capability lift
-
Owner time reduction
-
Weekly cadence
-
Monthly review
-
90‑day outcomes
You get senior operational leadership without the cost or commitment of employing another full‑time executive.
⭐ Investment & Guarantee
Investment: $25,000 for 90 days (1 day/week implementation. Additional day available if needed.)
Guarantee: If we don’t deliver at least 3× ROI in 90 days, we continue working at no additional cost until we do (has not happened yet).
Most businesses see ROI inside the first 30–45 days.
⭐ What Happens After 90 Days?
Most owners choose to continue with:
-
another 90‑day execution plan
-
ongoing Fractional COO support to drive continued performance improvement
-
or a lighter operational cadence
Because once pressure drops and clarity increases, the next set of improvements become the obvious next steps to continue building a smoother business.
Ready to Get Your Business Back Under Control?
If your business is profitable but feels harder to run than it should, a fresh set of experienced eyes can often uncover problems and opportunities that are difficult to see from inside the business.
We’ll look at where the pressure is coming from, where profit and time are leaking, and whether Fractional COO support could help you get things moving in the right direction.
Book a 30-Minute Business Conversation
(No cost. No pressure. Just clarity.)
