Fixed-fee engagement · Two weeks
The diagnostic. $2,500, two weeks, a written answer.
Most owners who call me already suspect something is wrong with their numbers. They just cannot name it. The diagnostic names it. It is a fixed-fee, two-week engagement. I go through the books, the margins and the cash cycle the way I would if I were taking over as your CFO, then hand you a written findings memo. No retainer, no commitment, and no obligation to hire me afterward.
What I examine
- The books themselves
- Whether the balance sheet is real, what is unreconciled, what is misclassified, and whether your statements can carry a decision.
- Margin
- By job, product line or service, what actually earns and what quietly does not.
- The cash cycle
- How long a dollar of work takes to become a dollar in the bank, and where it gets stuck.
- Overhead
- What you carry, what it costs a month, and what it buys.
- Pricing
- What your current prices imply about your margins, whether you meant them to or not.
- Controls
- Who can move money, who approves what, and where one person is a single point of failure.
What you get
A written memo, not a slide deck. Findings ranked by dollar impact, the numbers behind each one, and what I would do about it. Plus a working session to go through it with you. The memo is yours to keep and act on, with me or without me.
The two weeks
Days 1 to 3: Access to the books, a kickoff conversation, and my questions.
Days 4 to 10: The work - reconciliation review, margin analysis, cash cycle, controls.
Days 11 to 14: The memo is written and delivered, then we sit down with it.
What it costs
$2,500, fixed, quoted in writing before anything starts. If you begin a monthly retainer within 30 days, the full $2,500 credits against your first three months. Work with me afterward and the diagnostic effectively cost nothing. Do not, and you still keep the memo.
Who it is for
Owner-led businesses roughly between $500,000 and $10 million in revenue that have books but do not trust them. It is frequently the first step. It is never a requirement - if you already know what you need, start with a retainer instead.
Start with a written answer.
Send a short note or call directly. The first conversation is free, and I reply personally within one business day.