Operating Diagnostic
A clear read on how the company runs today and the two or three changes that will matter most.
Operations, security & commercial for tech startups
You built the product. Now the company needs building.
First, speed matters more than structure. Then, the company grows and that exposes the gaps.
Groundwork can build the foundations of what comes next.
- Tailor to your needs
- Set up in weeks, not quarters
- We build it, hand it over and support you
Who it's for
Founders past the idea, short on operating time
The product is moving and the team is growing faster than the way you run things. That gap is where we work.
Fragmented operations, security and commercial functions
Groundwork intervention
Team-owned operating system
Built by Groundwork Owned by your team
How we work
Simple to start. Practical to run.
Start with a diagnostic, build the foundations, sort out contracts and procurement, coach your leaders, or embed us on a retainer. Take one or move through them as you grow.
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Diagnose
We identify the gaps, priorities and risks that matter most.
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Build
We put the right operating and commercial foundations in place.
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Embed
We help the team adopt them so they keep working without us.
Services
Five ways in, one operating standard
Start
DiagnoseBuild
FoundationsOperating Model for New Companies
How work flows, who owns what, and the rhythm that keeps it all moving as you scale.
Founder Foundations
The handful of systems, roles and habits every founding team needs in place early.
Operating Structure Sprint
A focused stretch to redraw structure, ownership and cadence when the current shape is straining.
Funded Programme Setup
Governance, milestones and reporting for grant and government-funded delivery, built to pass scrutiny.
Contracts & procurement
CommercialVendor & Procurement Setup
A lightweight way to choose, onboard and manage vendors, with assurance that fits your stage.
Contract Review & Negotiation
A commercial eye on the terms that carry real cost and risk, and the negotiation to improve them.
Coach
CoachingOps mentoring
Regular, practical support for a first ops hire or a founder wearing the operating hat.
Leadership coaching
Steadier decisions and clearer leadership for the people carrying the company through growth.
Embed
FractionalFractional retainer
A COO in the room part-time, owning the operating agenda alongside you month to month.
Day-rate support
Senior operating and commercial help by the day, for a specific push or a busy stretch.
About
Three partners who have done the operating, not just advised on it
One runs operations and scaling. One runs commercial and procurement. One runs security and technology risk. Together that covers most of what breaks between seed and Series B.
Operations & transformation
16+ years building and scaling operations in technology, from stealth deep-tech to a public AI company.
- £8M+ government-funded programme delivered to 100% milestone completion
- Scaled an organisation ~50 → 450 through a public-market transition
- ~35% delivery throughput uplift; sub-10% attrition during rapid scaling
- MSc Computer Science (UCL); AWS Solutions Architect; Google Cloud Architect
Commercial & procurement
13+ years in commercial, partnerships and procurement across fintech and payments.
- 70+ global partnerships managed, including AWS, Google Cloud and Mastercard
- £15M+ annual vendor contracts negotiated; £2.5M cut from SaaS & vendor spend
- Built procurement and vendor-assurance functions; commercial due diligence on M&A
- MBA Finance (in progress); PRINCE2; Scrum; AWS Cloud Practitioner
Security & technology risk
10+ years in information security across fintech, payments and financial regulation, including two CISO roles.
- c.15% annualised saving on cloud infrastructure and tooling, through AWS optimisation, PCI-DSS scope removal and licence rationalisation
- Built a fintech security function from InfoSec lead to CISO across five years of scaling
- True environment segregation for c.120 microservices (Terraform, Lambda); c.20% fewer change-related incidents
- Led five of eight workstreams on a UK regulator's operational resilience assessment framework; scoped CBEST testing across retail banking, investment and lending
Let's find the groundwork you're missing
A short call is the fastest way to see if we're a fit. Tell us where the company is and what feels shaky, and we'll tell you straight whether we can help.