Strategic operational leadership for ambitious firms.
Whether you need consistent COO-level input, short-term executive support, or targeted transformation expertise, Oaksteer offers flexible operational leadership shaped around your firm’s needs designed to scale with you.
Fractional Chief Operating Officer
Ongoing, part-time operational leadership for growing firms.
For regulated firms that need COO-level thinking but aren’t ready (or don’t want) to make a full-time hire. I become a trusted member of your senior team — providing operational clarity, structure, and direction on a retained basis.
What I provide:
Operational strategy aligned to business goals
Board-level insight on risk, governance, and process
Support for leadership decision-making and planning
Mentorship and upskilling of internal operations teams
Support with project / transformation delivery
Process design and performance improvement oversight
Best for:
Firms experiencing growth, operational stretch, or preparing for succession or investment.
Interim Chief Operating Officer
Short-term senior leadership during transition or transformation.
If your current COO has stepped down, you're restructuring, or you're navigating a key period of change, I step in to provide continuity, focus, and experienced guidance.
What I provide:
Considered, strategic leadership during sensitive periods
Executive-level continuity and prioritisation
Integration of transformation plans into day-to-day delivery
Coaching for new or emerging internal leaders
Best for:
Leadership transitions, internal realignment, or short-term capacity gaps.
Operations Consulting
Project-based support to fix, refine, or future-proof operations.
If you're tackling a specific challenge, from process inefficiencies to operational risk, or CRM/data transformation — I deliver scoped, strategic projects designed to build stronger, more scalable operations.
What I provide:
Project management
Process re-engineering
Support with automation, AI use cases, data migrations and tech adoption
Risk and resilience reviews (e.g. disaster recovery, BCP)
Best for:
Defined challenges or opportunities that require external expertise without long-term commitment.
Non-Executive Director Appointments
Independent oversight informed by real operational depth.
For boards that value independent challenge, UK regulated Financial Services knowledge, and practical experience in operational delivery. I bring a strategic, commercially aware lens with particular strength in transformation, governance, and scale-readiness.
What I provide:
Independent board challenge and support
Input on risk, resilience, and regulatory frameworks
Operational scrutiny across service delivery and capacity
Best for:
Boards seeking operational insight at the top table, especially in regulated or growth-stage firms.
How I work
My preference is to begin each engagement with an on‑site day—meeting key people, building context and putting faces to names. After that kick-off, I work on a remote‑first basis, making ad‑hoc on‑site visits whenever they will accelerate outcomes and where travel is practical.
Most engagements are outcome‑led and structured outside IR35, so you get flexible access to senior operational leadership without the commitments or overhead of a full‑time hire.
Where a role requires deeper integration into internal teams, such as certain interim COO appointments, I can engage on an inside IR35 basis via an umbrella.
My role is to contribute strategic insight, shape operational direction, and support execution, not to act as an employee or line manager unless explicitly structured that way.
Engagement Models
COO Retainers: Typically 1–8 days/month, reviewed quarterly
Project engagements: Fixed-scope and outcome-aligned
NED appointments: 1-4 days/quarter, aligned to board schedules
Inside IR35 options: Available where appropriate, subject to agreement
All services are tailored. We’ll agree the right scope, cadence, and delivery model based on your needs and review regularly to ensure continued fit and value.