Find what's slowing your business down. Get a plan to fix it.
For founder-led businesses with 10–50 employees where operations have outgrown the systems running them.
The Margin works with founder-led businesses navigating the gap between early growth and scalable operations.
Fixed fee. Fixed scope. 72-hour turnaround. We review every application to confirm fit.
Most growing businesses lose margin in places they barely notice.
Not in one dramatic disaster. In the slow bleed.
A founder still in the middle of too much. Work getting stuck between people. Approvals that take too long. Manual work where systems should exist. A team that works hard but still can't move cleanly.
That drag costs money. It costs time. It costs attention. And it usually gets worse as the business grows.
The Margin Diagnostic is built to find where that drag is coming from and what to fix first.
This is for you if:
- The business has grown, but the operating system hasn't kept up
- Too much still depends on you as the founder
- Things are getting dropped, delayed, or stuck
- Costs, inefficiency, or wasted effort are hurting margin
- Your team is busy, but the business still feels harder to run than it should
Not for:
- Very early-stage solo businesses
- Buyers looking for coaching or broad advisory
- Companies looking for custom strategy work before the problem has been properly diagnosed
- Teams unwilling to share real operating context
Six sections. Zero fluff.
Bottleneck Map
The main constraints slowing execution, coordination, and throughput.
Margin Leak Review
Where time, money, effort, and attention are being wasted.
Founder Dependency Analysis
Where the business still depends too heavily on you.
Process Improvement Opportunities
Practical places to reduce manual work and help the business run more cleanly.
Priority Recommendations
What to fix first, what to leave alone, and what can wait.
30/60/90-Day Plan
A practical plan for what to change over the next three months — with owners, metrics, and dependencies.
How it works
Apply
Complete a short intake and share the materials that show how the business runs.
We review
We look at where the business is getting jammed up, where margin is leaking, and where the founder is still carrying too much.
You get the diagnostic
Within 72 hours of complete intake, you receive a written diagnosis and a 30/60/90-day fix plan.
This is not a vague audit.
You are not paying for abstract advice. You are paying to see, clearly, what is slowing the business down and what to do about it.
Most companies at this stage are losing more per month in operational drag than this diagnostic costs once. The question is whether you can see it clearly enough to fix it.
That is what this diagnostic does. It exposes the waste, delays, founder dependency, and manual drag the business is already paying for — and puts a fix plan on it.
What happens after
Some clients will take the diagnostic and handle the work internally. The 30/60/90-day plan is designed to work without outside help.
Others will want help installing the highest-priority changes. We offer fixed-scope implementation sprints built around the top recommendations from the diagnostic. Details available after delivery.
Frequently asked questions
A fixed-scope operating diagnosis that identifies bottlenecks, margin leaks, founder dependency, and the highest-priority fixes for the next 30/60/90 days.
No. This is an operating diagnosis with practical recommendations and a fix plan. Not a slide deck. Not a workshop. Not advice that requires another engagement to act on.
Founder-led businesses with enough team and process complexity that hidden inefficiencies are slowing growth and compressing margin. Typically 10–50 employees, $1M–$10M revenue.
Within 72 hours of receiving complete intake materials.
No. We do not guarantee outcomes we do not control. We do guarantee a complete, serious diagnostic with clear recommendations and one revision pass if anything material is incomplete or unclear.
You can execute internally using the fix plan, or use it as the basis for a fixed-scope implementation sprint. Your call.
Apply for The Margin Diagnostic
Tell us how the business runs, where things are getting stuck, and what you most want fixed.
$2,000 fixed fee · 72-hour turnaround · One revision pass included