Case Study 2: Professional Services (20 people)

Challenge: A well-established Professional Service Org. was at a critical growth juncture. Despite a strong client base and brand recognition, processes had broken down, the CRM was empty, employee turnover was worrying. The CEO needed to modernise operations, build and strengthen team relations, while maintaining quality services and preparing for expansion.

- Legacy systems limiting scalability
- Manual processes creating bottlenecks
- No structured employee development pathways
- Premises expansion needed to accommodate growth
- Board requiring greater operational visibility and governance
Digital Transformation & Infrastructure:
- Led rollout of integrated HRM software, CRM system, and new digital member platform. Integrated data-driven insights into operational decision-making.
- Project managed €1m premises expansion, coordinating across facilities, IT, and finance
- Documented all core business processes
- Established risk register and compliance framework (H&S, privacy, cybersecurity)
- Designed and implemented structured onboarding program
- Created employee development pathways and internal training framework
- Built engagement and retention programs aligned with organisational values
- Employee engagement increased. Structured development pathways improved retention and satisfaction
- Governance maturity elevated - From informal processes to documented, compliant frameworks
- Board confidence strengthened - Clear operational visibility and reporting enabled better strategic decisions
- Premises expansion delivered - €1m project completed on time, enabling physical growth
- Digital foundation established - Integrated systems replaced fragmented legacy tools
- Key Insight: The transformation succeeded because we addressed people, process, and technology simultaneously. Digital systems alone wouldn't have worked without the cultural shift and capability building. The organization now has the operational maturity to support its next growth phase.

Case Study 3: Tech Start-Up (40 employees)

Industry: Technology / SaaS

Challenge: A high-growth technology company had scaled rapidly from 15 to 50+ employees in 12 months. Revenue was growing, but operational chaos was becoming the bottleneck. The CEO and leadership team were firefighting constantly. Important client projects missed deadlines. There was no visibility into team capacity or delivery progress. The company needed operational structure before a crisis hit.

- No delivery governance or project visibility. Opposition to Scrum methodology
- Leadership team overwhelmed with tactical firefighting
- Product and engineering working in isolation from commercial teams
- €3m operational budget with limited oversight
- Limited standardised processes across functions
- Launched cross-dept KPI dashboard to track delivery. Introduced business planning cycles and review cadence.
- Introduced traditional Project Manager
- Rolled out OKR framework across organisation
- Improved project delivery timelines by 30%
- Standardised governance frameworks for private equity diligence
- Leadership team effectiveness increased. CEO and exec team renewed focused on strategy
- PM forced cross-functional collaboration. Teams aligned through shared KPIs and rituals
- Operational credibility built. Strong governance and reporting supported successful fundraising
- Budget oversight implemented. €3m operational spend optimised and controlled
- Compliance achieved - ISO 27001 certification completed
  Key Insight: Start-ups often resist "process" as bureaucracy. The key was introducing just enough structure to enable scale without killing agility. OKRs and dashboards provided visibility without micromanagement.

Case Study 1: Recruitment & Healthcare Services Firm (100+ employees)

Challenge: A growing healthcare services business was preparing for private equity investment. Despite strong revenue growth, operational maturity was lacking. There was limited governance framework, limited process documentation, and vendor relationships were informal. The CEO needed to professionalise operations quickly to satisfy PE due diligence requirements while maintaining business momentum.

- Limited documented processes and governance frameworks
- Vendor relationships informal and unmanaged
- Risk management non-existent
- Due diligence readiness poor
- CEO spending too much time on operational detail
- Management team unclear on accountability and priorities
Solution: Build operational foundations required for PE investment.
- Worked with CEO to translate business objectives into executable projects
- Divided project ownership with management team
- Established project governance and tracking mechanisms
- Built risk &compliance framework
- Standardised key business processes
- Private equity acquisition completed - PE investment secured, supported by strong operational foundation
- Governance framework established
- Informal to structured vendor and risk management
- Risk visibility created - First-time risk register enabled proactive management
- CEO time freed up - strategic objectives translated into executable projects managed by team
- Operational credibility demonstrated - PE investors confident in business's ability to scale
Key Insight: PE investors care about operational maturity as much as revenue growth. We built the governance foundations in parallel with due diligence, not as a blocker. The key was prioritising what investors needed to see (risk management, vendor governance, process documentation) while keeping the business running. The operational infrastructure built during this period positioned the company for post-investment growth

Real operational transformations across service businesses