- PHASE 1 — LISTENING
Three weeks to understand how the company currently operates and
how much the rest of the process will cost.
An eight-to-ten-page document and a fixed quotation for all subsequent phases. Anyone who decides to stop at this stage still keeps the document.
- How It Works
Two parallel tracks running together.
On one side, interviews to understand how the company operates from the perspective of the people who work there: those who sell, issue invoices, collect payments and make decisions. On the other, data exports from the ERP system, which I use to independently calculate the same figures: customer concentration, seasonality, actual payment collection times and overdue receivables.
Where the two pictures match, the figures are reliable and need no further investigation. Where they differ, each discrepancy becomes a question to put to the people who have the information needed to answer it. The aim is to understand which figures the company can already rely on to make decisions, not to check anyone's work.
Interviews*
how the company operates, according to the people who work there
Data exports
what the figures reveal, independently recalculated by me
Comparison
every discrepancy becomes a question
Playback
eight to ten pages, and the quotation
* Interviews last between 45 and 90 minutes and take place during the first three weeks. I conduct them individually, one person at a time. Differences in answers between roles are common in any company and provide useful information: in the final document, they are recorded as identified discrepancies, never attributed to an individual.
- WHAT IS NEEDED
Information that most companies already have.
The complete list will be provided in a separate document after the confidentiality agreement has been signed. In summary:
Financial statements
The last three completed financial years and the current accounting position.
Invoices and payments
An export of invoices issued and the corresponding payments received over the last 36 months.
Open quotations
The current pipeline of open quotations, in whatever format it exists today.
Contracts and overdue receivables
Existing recurring contracts and an aged receivables report.
Organisation and ERP system
The organisational chart, the name of the ERP system and the person responsible for managing it.
Data must be provided in CSV or Excel format, as calculations cannot be reproduced from a PDF.
Files are transferred through a secure shared folder rather than as email attachments.
If a document is missing.
If anything on this list does not exist, or exists in a different format from the one described, simply let me know. The absence of a document is itself a piece of information captured during the assessment, and often one of the factors that most significantly affects the scope of the work. If preparing a document would require considerable effort, it is better to discuss it before creating it. What matters here is an accurate picture of the company as it operates today, which a document prepared specifically for the assessment might not reflect.
- WHAT YOU RECEIVE
Eight to ten pages, written
for those who make decisions.
The document delivered at the end of Phase 1 is structured from the top down: if the CEO reads only the first page, it should provide enough information to make a decision.
01 — Executive summary
What I found, what is missing, what I propose, how much it will cost and how long it will take. Plus, in a single line, what I was unable to verify.
02 — The current process
From sales forecasting to budgeting and cash flow: where the process already exists, where it may break down, and where figures pass between people without being checked. One diagram and two pages.
03 — Present / missing
The assessment checklist, with the practical implications of each missing element for the work ahead. This is the section on which the quotation is based.
04 — The data
What data is available, its condition, and what would be needed to calibrate the model: historical data, seasonality, payment patterns and customer concentration.
05 — Who will be responsible for what
For each spreadsheet in the future tool, the person responsible for keeping it running.
06 — Conditions and risks
What needs to be in place for the plan to work: staff availability, ERP data exports, dedicated time, and the CEO's involvement at the start and at handover.
07 — My assessment
Half a page of explicitly personal judgement, kept separate from the findings and clearly labelled as such.
08 — Proposal
Scope, phases, working days, schedule and fees.
- Every figure included identifies its source and level of certainty: measured, estimated or assumed based on established practice. This makes the document open to scrutiny and, therefore, useful.
- WHAT IS REQUIRED
Nine working days for a standard engagement,
spread over three calendar weeks.
7 on-site + 2 remote
Experience has taught me that nine working days — seven on-site and two remote — are enough to produce a thorough assessment for a company of moderate complexity. If your business proves more complex, or if the historical data is in poor condition, more time may be needed: any adjustment is agreed before work begins, never once it is underway.
calendar
The three-week timeframe assumes that interviews can be scheduled within that period, ERP data exports are provided by the second week, and the CEO is present at the opening meeting and the presentation of findings.
agreed before work begins
The fee is agreed after our initial conversation, once I understand what the work involves, and remains fixed from that point onwards.
The outcome is a fixed quotation for all subsequent work, with no obligation to accept it. Anyone who decides to stop at this stage keeps the document and knows how to use it, including by passing it on to someone else.
- The data exports received remain in the secure shared folder for the duration of the engagement and, upon completion, are returned or deleted according to your instructions.