The Strategic Operating Plan
Stop Running Your Business By Feel. Start Running It By Math.
A complete picture of where your business is, where it’s heading, and how to get there — built in three weeks, used for the next thirty years.
“We don’t coach from the bleachers. We’re on the field with you — every call, every quarter, every decision that matters.”
Why This Exists
Most CEOs Find Out Too Late.
The cash crunch you didn’t see coming. The revenue stream that’s been quietly losing money for a year. The hire you needed three months ago.
Each one costs you real money — the kind that compounds into a quarter or a year of stalled growth. And the painful part is that none of them had to happen. Each was visible months in advance, if you’d known where to look.
Most owners don’t, because they’re running on what their P&L told them last month and what their bank balance shows today. That’s running by feel. The Strategic Operating Plan replaces feel with math — without making you a spreadsheet person.
Three Connected Deliverables
One System. Built for the Way You Actually Run Your Business.
Each piece serves a different purpose. Together, they form the operating spine of your business for the next 24 months and beyond.
Deliverable 01
Financial Operating Model
The math.
A single Excel workbook with 10 connected tabs forecasting every revenue stream, every expense, your cash position, and your team’s capacity 24 months out. Change one assumption — a price increase, a new hire, a client churning — and the whole picture updates in real time.
- 24-month revenue forecast across every stream
- Cash flow model with debt service and owner draws sequenced
- Capacity tracker with a built-in hire trigger
- P&L projection by month
- Dashboard view of every KPI in one place
- Scenario modeling — yes/no answers in 30 seconds
Deliverable 02
QuickBooks Cleanup Brief
The plumbing.
A line-by-line execution document for your bookkeeper that restructures your chart of accounts, sets up recurring transactions, fixes commingling, and builds a monthly close process. So your books actually feed the model and stay accurate over time.
- Chart of accounts restructure
- Customer, vendor, and job setup
- Recurring transaction templates
- AR/AP cleanup protocol
- Monthly close checklist
- Ongoing reporting cadence
Deliverable 03
Strategic Operating Plan Deck
The story.
A 16-slide PowerPoint presentation telling the story of your business — where you are, where you’re going, and how you’ll get there — with the numbers from the model behind every claim. The version of your business you can confidently hand to a banker, partner, or potential acquirer.
- Business thesis and competitive positioning
- 24-month financial trajectory with milestones
- Strategic risks and mitigations
- Capacity and operating model
- 30/60/90-day execution plan
- Three-year vision
The Shift
Stop Being Surprised. Start Being Ready.
The Fit
Built for Operators, Not Theorists.
This is right for you if:
- You run a business between $3M and $50M+ in revenue
- You have multiple revenue streams or service lines
- You make decisions that get more expensive every quarter you grow
- You’ve felt the limits of what your P&L can tell you
- You’re considering a refinance, partnership, acquisition, or exit in the next 36 months
- You want clarity on where the business is actually heading
This is not right for you if:
- You’re earlier than $3M and still finding product-market fit
- You don’t have at least basic books in QuickBooks or comparable
- You want a one-time strategy document you’ll never update
- You’re looking for someone to tell you what you want to hear
How It Works
Three Weeks. Mostly My Work, Not Yours.
Week 1
Discovery & Data
You send QuickBooks exports, CRM exports, and answer a one-page operations questionnaire. We have a 30-minute strategic conversation about goals, debt, draws, and what keeps you up at night.
Your time investment: ~2 hours
Week 2
Build
I build all three deliverables — model, brief, and deck — and check in once with clarifying questions. You go run your business.
Your time investment: ~15 minutes
Week 3
Review & Iterate
You review the first pass. We have a 60-minute working session to refine assumptions and validate. I incorporate feedback, finalize everything, and hand it over with a recorded walkthrough.
Your time investment: ~90 minutes
No Finance Team? No Problem.
Don’t Have the People to Execute? We Do.
The Strategic Operating Plan is built so your existing finance team can run it. But most founders we work with don’t have a complete finance team — and that’s the point of being in business with us. If you need the people, we have them.
Certified QuickBooks Expert
A QuickBooks ProAdvisor on our team executes the cleanup brief end-to-end — chart of accounts restructure, recurring transactions, customer setup, monthly close protocol. Flat-fee engagement, typically completed in 1–2 weeks.
Best for: Founders without a bookkeeper, or whose current bookkeeper is too busy or too junior to execute the restructure.
Fractional CFOs at Every Level
Our network includes fractional finance professionals from staff accountant through seasoned CFO. Match the seniority — and the cost — to what your business actually needs. Hourly, project-based, or monthly retainer.
Best for: Founders who need ongoing financial leadership without a full-time hire. Many clients use the model as the operating spine; the CFO drives it month over month.
Hybrid Pods
For larger engagements, we can stand up a complete finance pod — bookkeeper, controller, and fractional CFO — operating on your model. Onshore, offshore, or hybrid delivery to optimize cost.
Best for: $10M+ businesses replacing or augmenting an existing finance function.
Why It’s Different
Built by an Operator. Not a Theorist.
Most management consultants have never run a company. They learned strategy in school, then sold it to people who actually had to live the consequences.
I scaled a previous business to seven Inc. 5000 honors without taking outside capital. I know what it feels like to make payroll in a down month, hire your first ten people, fire someone who didn’t deserve it, and decide whether to take a draw or reinvest. I built this operating system for myself first — and I run it on my own business today.
Every recommendation in your Strategic Operating Plan comes from someone who has lived the consequences.
Common Questions
Engagements start at [INSERT PRICE — Jason to confirm] for a single Strategic Operating Plan build, with optional quarterly refresh retainers for ongoing iteration. Pricing is scoped on the discovery call.
Most of the time they are, and many founders don’t yet have a finance team in place. That’s not a blocker — it’s part of what we solve. The QuickBooks Cleanup Brief is built so any competent bookkeeper can execute it. If you don’t have one, we’ll provide one. Our network includes a certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor who can execute the cleanup on a flat-fee basis, plus fractional CFOs at every level — from staff accountant through experienced CFO — available on hourly, project, or retainer terms. You get the operating model. We make sure you have the people to run it.
Yes. Methodology is identical; the cleanup brief is adapted to your platform.
A fractional CFO is an ongoing $5K–$10K/month relationship that runs your finances. The Strategic Operating Plan is a fixed-scope engagement that builds the infrastructure once. Many clients use it before or alongside a CFO. The CFO operates the model. We build it.
A business plan is a static document written once and rarely updated. The Strategic Operating Plan is a living model — change one assumption and the entire forecast recalculates. It’s built for daily use, not one-time presentation.
Yes. The hand-off includes a recorded video walkthrough, and I’m available for one team or board presentation as part of the engagement.
Ready to See Your Business the Way It Actually Works?
Ready to See Your Business the Way It Actually Works?
A free 30-minute discovery call is where every engagement starts. No pressure, no pitch — just a direct conversation about whether the Strategic Operating Plan is the right fit for where you are.
Book Your Free Discovery Call