WORK WITH ME

You're the reason this business runs. That's becoming the problem.

Running a growing business shouldn't feel like this.

Every decision still comes back to you, even the small ones. The team is bigger than it used to be, but somehow you're more in the weeds, not less. You've hired help before and it didn't actually take anything off your plate. You know something needs to change. You just don't have the time or distance to see what, or build it yourself.

You don't have to figure this out by yourself.

That's where I come in.

I'm a Fractional Director of Operations. I step into your business as the operations leader it needs, build the structure that takes the weight off you, and stay until it holds without you in the room.

PROCESS

Start the Conversation

Book a Strategic Ops Call. We'll talk about where the business is, where it's trying to go, and what's actually in the way.

Build the operating structure.

Together, we'll map out the systems, decision-flow, and team alignment your business needs to grow without breaking.

Lead instead of carry everything.

With the right structure in place, the business runs without routing every decision through you. You get to lead it instead of hold it up.

“I had big ideas, but when it came to creating a clear plan, I felt like I was floundering. Char helped me prioritize tasks and map them out on my calendar, keeping me focused and on track. The best part? Thanks to her guidance, I successfully launched my new business!”

HEIDI | EMPOWER AND ENGAGE

"I was in a time crunch and needed guidance! I knew to call on Char for the job and she took it by the reins and made the vision I wanted come together. She goes above and beyond to ensure you have everything you need."

CRYSTAL | SHAPE YOUR SUCCESS COACHING

“One of my favorite things is that I can contact her and bounce ideas off of her to get me back on track or to come up with fresh ideas! I'm so grateful to have her in my corner!”

COURTNEY | COURTNEY RANCK-COPHER PHOTOGRAPHY

What a Fractional Director of Operations Actually Does

A Fractional Director of Operations is a senior operations leader who works inside a company part-time, on a defined retainer, instead of as a full-time hire. Unlike a consultant who advises from a distance, a Fractional Director joins the leadership team, sits in the actual meetings, and carries real operational responsibility for a defined window of time.

What I focus on:

Strategic operations and systems design
Team structure, hiring strategy, and leadership development
KPIs, dashboards, and the data that drives decisions
Project management for launches and major operational shifts

What I don't do:

Implementation-only work. I lead, I don't execute alone from the sidelines.
Work with companies still validating their offer or finding their first customers.

Who This Is For

This works best for founder-led companies that have customers, revenue, and a team, or the beginning of one. Course creators, coaches, consultants, agency owners, and service businesses where the founder is still the one everything routes through. If decisions pile up because they all come back to you, and the systems are duct-taped together from when the business was smaller, that's the stage I work in.

This isn't the right fit if you're still finding your offer or your first customers. That's a different kind of help than what I provide.

How the Retainer Works

I work in 3-6 month fractional retainers. I join your leadership team for a defined window, diagnose what's actually slowing growth, build the systems that let the business run without you holding every piece together, and stay until things are stable.

Not Ready for a Retainer Yet

If a full retainer isn't the right next step, I also offer:

The Bottleneck Diagnostic

A focused look at one specific operational bottleneck, plus a 30-day plan to fix it. Details are here.

Implementation Support

Help executing a specific fix once you know what's broken. Details on the Resources page here.

FAQ

What's the difference between a Fractional Director of Operations and a Fractional COO?

In practice, the roles overlap significantly. Both provide part-time, senior operational leadership to a company that isn't ready for a full-time executive hire. “Director of Operations” is often the more accurate title for earlier-stage, founder-led businesses; “COO” tends to describe the same function at larger or more funded companies.

What's the difference between hiring you and hiring an OBM or a VA?

A VA executes tasks you assign. An OBM typically manages projects and operations within an existing structure. I build the structure itself, sit on the leadership team, and carry decision-making responsibility, not just task ownership.

How is this different from a full-time Director of Operations hire?

A fractional engagement gives you senior-level operational leadership without the cost or commitment of a full-time executive salary, and it's designed for a defined window, not an open-ended hire.

What size of business is a good fit?

Most of my clients are founder-led businesses in the $250K to $1M+ revenue range, with customers, revenue, and a team or the start of one. If you're earlier than that, the Bottleneck Diagnostic is usually a better starting point.

Do you work with businesses outside the online/course/coaching space?

My core experience is with founder-led online businesses, course creators, coaches, consultants, and service businesses, but the operational problems I solve (decision bottlenecks, duct-taped systems, lack of KPIs) show up in plenty of other founder-led companies too.

How do I know this will work for my business?

We start with a Strategic Ops Call, not a commitment. That conversation is where we figure out whether this is actually the right fit, for you and for me. If it is, the first thing we do together is diagnose what's actually slowing the business down, not guess at it. Every engagement starts there, because the structure we build is specific to your business, not a template dropped into it. If it's not the right fit, I'll tell you that too, and point you toward what would actually help.

Will I still have control over my business?

Yes, and honestly, you'll have more of it than you do right now. When every decision routes through you, that's not control, that's a bottleneck. What we build together gives you visibility into what's happening without you having to be in the middle of every piece of it. You'll know what's going on, your team will know who owns what, and decisions will get made without landing on your desk first. That's the kind of control that actually lets you lead.

What happens after the retainer ends?

The goal is to leave the business with systems, documentation, and team structure that don't require me to keep functioning. Some clients bring me back for a defined project later; most move forward with what we built.

YOUR NEXT STEP? LET'S TALK.

Imagine a business that doesn't need you in every decision. That's what we'll build, together.

Schedule a Strategic Ops Call

Charlene Stackle | Fractional Director of Operations