A monthly retainer, scoped after the sprint.
One engagement shape for both kinds of founder: a free thirty-minute call, a two-week diagnostic sprint, then a monthly retainer until capability transfers.
30-min discovery call
Diagnostic sprint
Retainer until capable
Typical engagement length
Cash retainer, monthly.
Equity considered on a case-by-case basis for exceptional fits. No long-term lock-in — the retainer rolls monthly for as long as the capability transfer takes. Typical arrangements run three to nine months.
Pricing is scoped after the discovery call based on the shape of the work. Fixed monthly retainer, no hourly meter, no scope creep.
THE SCOPE
Six roles across a typical engagement.
Six roles across a typical engagement. Each engagement uses the subset the founder needs; the rest stays off the invoice.
Financial modelling
Business-case rigour from $100M+ of capital modelling.
P&L, unit economics, runway math, next-round narrative. The number you quote the board survives audit.
Product & GTM
Ship-ready MVPs, test architecture, first ten customers.
Eight products shipped for a global energy major; three ventures of my own.
Weekly operating rhythm
Leadership meetings that end in decisions.
Board & investor interface
Next-round timing, dilution math, term-sheet sanity check.
First hires & delegation
The infrastructure that lets the founder stop approving everything.
When scope needs hands
Delivery partners for specifics. I bring them in, I stay accountable.
Common questions
Why fractional and not full-time?
Because capability transfer is the deliverable, and full-time advisors never leave.
Why a retainer rather than equity?
Because I want to be accountable this quarter, not dependent on exits. Equity is case-by-case for exceptional fits.
What if scope grows?
We re-scope. The point isn't to stretch the retainer; it's to keep the work moving.
Do you work with pre-funding founders?
Rarely. The work is most valuable when there's a cheque to defend and a runway to protect. Pre-funding, the diagnostic sprint is usually overkill.
The first call is free.
Thirty minutes, no prep. We scope the retainer after the sprint, never before.