For new COOs
You have been brought in to change something. The board expects evidence inside a quarter. You do not yet have the relationships, the budget or the data to run a big programme. This page is the playbook for delivering a credible first win anyway.
You inherited it. You now own it.
You are the change. The board wants proof of that inside 90 days.
If this is you
What the board is asking
The quiet costs
Beyond 30 days, your listening phase stops being considered prudence and starts being considered avoidance. Move to action.
A single, measured, before/after pilot is worth more politically than a polished strategy deck. The one builds authority. The other does not.
Your people are deciding, in the first 60 days, whether you are going to be the leader who actually fixes things. That opinion is hard to shift later.
A 90-day path
Days 1–30
Listen structurally. Identify the real trigger driving your mandate, the workflow where pressure is most visible, and the internal sponsors who already want change.
Days 31–60
Scope and kick off one reversible, fixed-price pilot on the single workflow where a measured improvement is most defensible. Build cover with your CFO.
Days 61–90
Run in parallel with the existing process. Measure on live cases. Present a one-page board readout with before/after numbers, next-phase scope, and recommended decision.
Who already did it
Where to start
A 30-day, fixed-scope, reversible pilot is precisely the motion a new COO needs. It delivers a board-ready result inside the first 90 days and limits the downside to a capped, pre-agreed fee. If it passes, you scale. If not, you walk away with the process map and the baseline.
The objections we hear
The pilot is scoped to one workflow and runs in parallel with the existing process. We do the build. Your team's time commitment is two half-day discovery sessions and training at go-live.
A fixed-fee pilot with pre-agreed pass/fail criteria is structurally easier to get CFO sign-off on than an open-ended programme. Use the Board Case Builder to draft the internal case before you pitch.
A single page. Baseline number. Result number. Cost. Pass/fail verdict. Scope and cost of phase two. Nothing a non-technical board member cannot read in two minutes.
Or build the internal case first. Or run the diagnostic. All three are useful. Pick whichever is next for you.
