Case Study: Company A (Loveland, Colorado)

Executive Summary

Company A was a referral-driven, reputation-first restoration shop that grew beyond what owner-centric, informal operations could reliably support. Work was getting done, but labor time attribution and job coding were inconsistent, invoicing depended on the Owner’s availability, and reporting could break down on multi-year jobs. These gaps created operational leakage: unpredictable billing, uneven cash flow, and data that could not be trusted for decisions.

My Fractional COO work focused on installing discipline where it directly affected margin, cash flow visibility, and execution reliability. The engagement introduced evidence-based labor accountability, a repeatable invoicing and collections cadence, and stronger accounting readiness, including packaging financials for third-party review during 2016 sale preparation. The operating improvements supported staffing corrections, equipment investments, and a facility expansion that increased capacity to work on more vehicles simultaneously.

• Revenue and profit tracking became concrete: 2013 revenue (pre engagement) $212,473 2014 revenue of $305,936 2015 total revenue of $413,944.
• Payroll structure corrected: replaced a $6,000/month role with two $2,500/month roles, a net reduction of $1,000/month while improving administrative reliability and shop throughput.
• Billing execution improved: Set standard 2 week cadance for billing with dedicated Office Manager to own the task.
• Operational scale supported: facility expansion from ~2,000 sq ft to ~10,000 sq ft, alongside equipment investments including a hydraulic vehicle lift and a professional paint booth.
• Sale preparation supported: delivered the last three years of financials on January 27, 2016 for business sale.

Starting Point: What Was Breaking

• Weak labor accountability and time attribution, including reliance on paper timesheets completed from memory.
• Invoicing triggered by the Owner’s availability rather than a predictable cadence, creating large, unexpected invoice amounts and uneven cash flow.
• Reporting limitations on multi-year, high-hour jobs, forcing manual audits and undermining confidence in totals.
• Collections follow-up that needed a defined rhythm so receivables did not drift.
• Owner dependency across billing, accountability, and operational control points, limiting scale and increasing stress.
• Need to professionalize accounting records and package financials for third-party review during 2016 sale preparation.

Objectives for the Engagement

• Make labor time attribution and job costing trustworthy so shop output converts into accurate billing.
• Stabilize cash flow by shifting invoicing from ad hoc to a consistent operational cadence with defined follow-up.
• Reduce owner dependency by documenting and enforcing repeatable procedures (SOPs) for billing and shop standards.
• Improve decision quality through stronger reporting and accounting readiness.
• Support operational scale (facility and equipment) by improving financial predictability and execution discipline.
• Provide financial packaging and documentation needed for third-party review during 2016 sale preparation.

What I Changed: The Interventions

Operating Cadence and Accountability

• Installed camera-supported accountability to validate that clocked time matched observed work creating evidence-based controls reduce leakage and conflict.
• Implemented detailed timecard capture with job codes tied to restoration phases improving job-cost integrity and accurate attribution.
• Used time and job-code data to surface performance gaps and coaching needs.
• Reset performance expectations through direct conversations with a high-paid & low-performance technician.

Financial Visibility and Decision Support

• Strengthened bookkeeping and record readiness (including recommending a professional bookkeeper), because clean financials are required for confident decisions and outside review.
• Assembled the last three years of financials for third-party review in 2016.

Sales Follow-Up and Pipeline Discipline

• Converted collections into a defined follow-up sequence (same day, one week later, then weekly until paid) this improved cash flow.
• Planned outbound invoice confirmation calls to reduce confusion and delays which reduced billing disputes and stalled cash flow.
• Applied a call threshold (call only invoices over $500).

Process, Tools, and Delivery Systems

• Formalized an invoicing SOP with semi-monthly billing ranges (1–15 and 16–31), to prevent customer sticker shock and stabilize cash flow.
• Standardized invoice construction (labor as carts, add parts/materials, require Owner/Manager review before creating orders), because review gates reduce errors and rework.
• Coordinated facility and equipment enablement, including a professional paint booth documented at 1604 N Lincoln Ave, Loveland, CO 80538, because capacity investments require operational controls to pay back.
• Supported financing coordination during the location transition and later payoff documentation, because controlled cash flow transitions reduce operational risk.

KPIs and Outcomes

Tighter labor accountability improved job-cost integrity, and predictable invoicing plus follow-up improved cash flow reliability. The staffing correction reduced payroll while improving throughput and administrative consistency, reinforcing the billing rhythm. Stronger accounting readiness and packaged financials supported external review during 2016 sale preparation, while operational stability helped justify expansion and equipment investments.

Why This Worked

The engagement treated growth and stability as an operations problem, not a motivation problem. By moving from memory-based timekeeping and owner-triggered billing to evidence-based accountability and a defined invoicing rhythm, the business reduced leakage between work performed and cash collected. That shift also lowered friction inside the team, because standards and review gates made expectations clearer.

Follow-through became measurable. A semi-monthly billing cycle and a documented collections sequence created a predictable cadence that could be executed repeatedly, rather than reinvented each time. This improved decision quality because the Owner could rely on more consistent financial signals, including organized statements and clearer job-cost inputs.

Finally, tribal knowledge moved into SOPs. When billing steps, review gates, and follow-up rules are written and reinforced, the operation is less dependent on one person’s memory and availability. That is what creates room for scale, including staffing changes, equipment investments, and facility expansion without destabilizing the business.

Transferable Value

• Operational diagnostics focused on margin leakage, cash flow visibility, and execution reliability.
• Labor accountability systems using time capture and job coding to improve job-cost integrity.
• SOP creation for billing, review gates, and collections follow-up to reduce owner dependency.
• Collections discipline and receivables follow-up sequencing to stabilize cash timing.
• Staffing assessment and performance standards, including executing corrective action when needed.
• Financial packaging and readiness work to support third-party review during sale preparation.
• Accounting process strengthening through improved bookkeeping practices and cleaner records.
• Operational enablement for scale, including coordinating facility expansion and capacity investments.
• Cross-functional alignment between shop execution, office operations, and customer-facing documentation.