Insights
Notes on making product operations work
Field notes on the problems that come up repeatedly in hardware, manufacturing and regulated-product businesses — written from the operating seat, not the sidelines.
Showing 9 articles.
- Industrialisation9 min read
Why hardware scale-ups fail between prototype and production
A working prototype proves the idea. It does not prove that the product can be built repeatably, to cost, at quality, by someone else. Most hardware businesses underestimate the distance between the two.
Read the article - Investment readiness11 min read
What a Series B operational plan must prove
Investors at Series B are no longer buying the idea. They are buying the company's ability to deliver it repeatedly, and the operational plan is where that case is either made or lost.
Read the article - Leadership model11 min read
Fractional COO or full-time COO: when each model makes sense
Hiring a full-time COO too early consumes cash and narrows the role to the wrong problems. Hiring too late leaves execution unowned. The decision is about stage, not seniority.
Read the article - Operating systems12 min read
The operating controls every product business needs before scale
Control is not bureaucracy. It is the small set of mechanisms that let a business grow without losing sight of cost, quality, delivery and risk.
Read the article - Supply chain13 min read
Selecting a contract manufacturer without buying future problems
The lowest quoted unit price is rarely the lowest total cost. Choosing a manufacturing partner is a decision about capability, control and leverage over several years.
Read the article - Operating model15 min read
Why quality, supply chain and product release cannot be separate workstreams
Split these three and the seams become the failure points: unqualified parts reach production, quality inherits problems it did not create, and release dates slip for reasons nobody predicted.
Read the article - Fractional COO8 min read
Hiring a fractional COO in the UK: what the role is, and when to hire one
A fractional COO is an experienced chief operating officer who works with your business for part of the week, carrying full executive accountability for operations without the cost of a permanent hire. This guide explains what the role actually involves in the UK market, what it costs, and the signals that tell you it is time to hire one.
Read the article - Investment readiness7 min read
From working prototype to working business: the Series B challenge
A working prototype is a real achievement. It can also create a misleading sense of how much of the journey is complete. Series B planning should make the transition to repeatable commercial delivery explicit — and cost it honestly.
Read the article - Scaling deep tech11 min read
The Deep Tech Scale Readiness Model
Turning technical progress into a business that can deliver at scale. A four-stage, eleven-dimension framework for deciding which commitments the evidence can support — and releasing capital in proportion to what has been demonstrated.
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