What an Operating Risk Assessment produces
The written picture you hold on day thirty. This sample is a composite: “Northline” is an invented company, assembled to show the structure. Clients are never named; nothing on this page is a client.
By day thirty you hold a written picture in five parts: the situation as it actually is, the top three pressures ranked with evidence, where the leverage sits, the sequence for the next ninety days, and a proposed monthly scope with a price. Below is what each part looks like, using an invented company.
The five parts
- The situation — what is actually happening, in plain operator language.
- The three pressures — ranked, each with the evidence that put it there.
- The leverage — the one or two moves that change the shape.
- The ninety-day sequence — what first, what second, who owns it, how you know it worked.
- The proposed monthly — scope and price, agreed with you, or declined.
What does the situation read look like?
Northline (invented): a 42-person professional-services company, eleven years old, two operating entities, founder in every decision. Revenue flat for two years at roughly $6M; margin eroding; three of the top five clients are on legacy pricing. The founder reads every proposal, approves every hire, and is the only person who can quote. The last board update was fourteen months ago. A former contractor has sent a demand letter over an unpaid invoice and an IP claim; the founder has been replying by email.
The situation read is one page. It says what is, not what should be. Every sentence is traceable to a document, a number, or a conversation from the thirty days.
How are the three pressures ranked?
Ranked by exposure — what it costs if nothing changes — not by how loudly they present:
| Rank | Pressure | Evidence from the assessment | Exposure if unchanged |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Founder is the only person who can quote | Every proposal in the shared drive carries the founder’s edits; three-week average proposal turnaround | Revenue capped at the founder’s calendar; legacy pricing persists |
| 2 | Demand letter being handled by email | Eleven messages to the former contractor in six weeks, none reviewed by counsel | Admissions on the record; a two-invoice dispute becomes an IP claim |
| 3 | Two entities, one bank account in practice | Intercompany transfers with no memo; the second entity has no separate books | Liability shield weakened; tax and audit exposure |
Where is the leverage?
Northline’s leverage is the quote. Every proposal routes through the founder, which caps throughput at the founder’s calendar and keeps legacy pricing alive because renegotiation is a conversation only the founder can have. A rate card, a proposal template, and a second person authorised to quote within bounds converts the bottleneck into capacity and forces the pricing conversation with the top five clients on a schedule.
Leverage is usually one move, occasionally two. If the picture lists eight, it has not found it.
What does the ninety-day sequence look like?
Owners named, signals defined:
| Weeks | Move | Owner | Signal it worked |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1–2 | Stop emailing the counterparty; route all contact through counsel; readiness memo drafted | Founder + counsel | Zero direct messages; counsel holds the thread |
| 2–4 | Rate card and proposal template; second quoter authorised within bounds | Founder + operations lead | First proposal issued without the founder’s edits |
| 4–8 | Legacy-pricing conversations with top five clients, scheduled | Founder | Three of five repriced or on notice |
| 6–10 | Separate books and accounts for the second entity; intercompany memo policy | Finance + CPA | Clean intercompany ledger; CPA sign-off |
| 10–13 | First board update in fourteen months; operating cadence installed | Founder | Update sent; weekly scorecard running |
What does the proposed monthly scope say?
Proposed: a weekly forty-minute operating call for twelve weeks; the founder’s seat in the fortnightly leadership meeting; review of the first three quotes issued under the new bounds; readiness posture on the demand-letter matter alongside counsel. Price stated as a monthly figure, agreed before month one, no auto-renewal. Alternative: stop here and run the sequence internally with the written picture.
The proposal is one paragraph. The client accepts, adjusts, or declines. The assessment stands on its own either way.
What the deliverable is not
- Not a deck. It is written prose and two tables, readable in one sitting.
- Not legal, tax, or investment advice. Where a licensed professional is needed, the picture says so and the sequence routes to one.
- Not a sales document. The proposed monthly is one paragraph at the end, and “stop here” is written as a real option.
- Not a case study. Yours will never appear on this site, with or without the name.
This is not legal, tax, or investment advice. Clemons Wright is a management-consulting and risk-advisory firm, not a law firm, and Dustin L. Clemons is not a licensed attorney. This page is general operating information; reading it creates no attorney-client relationship. For advice on your matter, retain a licensed professional — here is how we help you choose one.
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This is the shape. Yours would be about your business.
Thirty founder-led days, $500, one written picture. Then a monthly price agreed to the focus — or stop there.