Fix how your business runs, then make it run without you.
Operations consultant for small and midsize companies. We rebuild the processes, tools, and reporting that still run through you, and stay until they work.
Two exits. One company taken public.
An operations consultant fixes how a business runs day to day: processes, systems, tools, fulfillment, and reporting. Lockhold also does the implementation, so the fix ends up running, not just written down.
11%
monthly growth after the systems went live
A brand-new fitness studio went from a $0 start to $15k a month in sales on the brand, booking, marketing and pricing systems we built from day one.
Business process improvement: what we fix
- Processes: how work moves from one person to the next, written down and simplified.
- Tools: the software you already pay for, set up properly and connected. CRM & software implementation
- Fulfillment: orders, inventory, and shipping that hold up when volume rises. Shopify & 3PL operations
- Reporting: the few numbers you need each week on a KPI dashboard, without building them by hand.
- Handoffs: SOPs your team can follow, so the work doesn't wait on you. Systems & SOPs
Advice is cheap. Finished work isn't.
Most operations consulting ends with a report. Ours ends when the new process is running, your team knows how to run it, and you've stopped being the one holding it together. Where AI removes real work, we build it in. Where it doesn't, we leave it out.
Owners often come to us looking for a small business consultant or a business growth consultant. When growth is the goal, the constraint is often operations, so that's where we start.
Who it's for, and who it's not for
For
Founders and owner-led teams where the business has outgrown the way it's run, and the owner is still the glue.
Not for
Anyone looking only for a slide deck, an hourly advisor with no defined outcome, or recruiting, tax, or legal work.
How engagements work
- Selective. A small number of engagements at a time.
- Set scope. What we'll fix, what “done” looks like, and the timeline, in writing first.
- Fixed price. No open-ended hourly billing.
- Plain updates. What moved and what's blocked, every week.
Free 13-week cash flow template
See the cash crunch before it hits. A 13-week cash flow forecast for Excel and Google Sheets, with a how-to tab and a filled example.
- Thirteen weeks on one page: cash in, cash out, net and ending cash for each week.
- A built-in warning: set your minimum cash, and any week that drops below it turns red.
- A filled example so you can see how it reads before you start.
- Plus the one-page guide: The 30-Day systems audit, ready to print or share.
Here's your 13-week cash flow template.
Plus the one-page guide: download the PDF.
Check your inbox and click Confirm. Then we’ll email you a copy, and you’ll get our monthly operator note.
That didn't go through. Please try again, or email hello@lockhold.com.
Who's behind it
Joe, founder. He started his first company at 24 with no investors, built it on cash flow, and sold it in a seven-figure deal. He has raised over $30M from investors, built a team of 50+, run contract manufacturing for other brands, and helped take a company from an idea to a public listing. Products he built reached 50,000+ U.S. stores and 26 countries.
Ro runs the client experience. No handoffs: the people you meet are the people who do the work. Meet the team.
“Joe physically came out here and started at the beginning at the receiving department, then worked back to stocking, then out the door to order fulfillment, and found the pitfalls. … Now we have a much better system today.”
Free guides and tools
The 30-day systems audit
What to check, a week-by-week plan, and how to decide what to build first.
Read the guide Guide
What operations management looks like in a small business
What it includes, what it is not, a typical week, and who should do it at your size.
Read the guide Guide
What to fix before you hire more people
The signs you are hiring for the wrong reason, what to fix first, and how to tell a role is ready.
Read the guideFree tools for this work: the capacity vs demand planner and the gross margin calculator. They run in your browser, and what you enter stays on your device. See all the free tools
The Blueprint
Three full days at your business, working with you and the people who run each area. On the last day we lay out what’s broken, what it costs, and the order to fix it. You get a written plan within a week. From $7,500, travel included. Monthly support is quoted after, once we both know the work.
- 3 full days on site (U.S.)
- Travel included
- Written plan within a week
- From $7,500
Questions about operations consulting
What does an operations consultant do?
An operations consultant fixes how a business runs day to day: processes, systems, tools, fulfillment, and reporting. Lockhold also does the implementation.
What's the difference between an operations consultant and a fractional COO?
An operations consultant fixes a defined set of problems. A fractional COO owns operations part-time on an ongoing scope. Lockhold does both.
Do you work in my industry?
Most likely. Cash flow, systems, operations, and sales work the same way across product, service, and software businesses.
How is it priced?
A fixed quote, agreed before work starts. Most engagements start with the Blueprint: three days on site, from $7,500 with travel included, and a written plan within a week.
What does a business consultant do?
A business consultant helps an owner solve a specific business problem, such as growth, operations, or a stalled project, by diagnosing it and recommending or building the fix. The term is broad, so it's worth asking whether a consultant only advises or also does the work.
Is a business consultant worth it?
It's worth it when the problem costs you more than the engagement does, and when the work ends in something that runs, not just a report. Agree the scope, the price, and what “done” looks like in writing before you start, so you can judge it.
What is business process improvement?
Business process improvement is finding where a process is slow, error-prone, or dependent on one person, and redesigning it so it works better. It usually means mapping how the work really moves, removing steps, then documenting or automating what's left.
How do I scale a small business?
A small business scales when the work can grow without everything running through the owner. That takes documented processes, connected tools, a clear owner for each area, and numbers you can trust. Growth on top of fragile operations usually breaks something first.
Fitness studio: double-digit monthly growth
A new fitness studio went from a $0 startup to $15k a month in sales, growing at 11% month over month.
Read →WorkFractional COO
An operator who owns your operations part-time, on a set scope.
Read →WorkAI automation
The repetitive work, handed to automations and AI agents.
Read →What would you fix first?
A few lines is enough. If it's a fit, we'll come back with a scope.
Scope your project