Engagement
How an advisory engagement unfolds
From discovery call to handover — the stages we use for budgeting, cash-flow planning, and controls work with UK SMEs.
Built for real diaries
Director calendars are crowded. Our process is designed to move in clear stages with homework that fits between trading days, not around an endless workshop marathon.
Discovery
A thirty-minute call to understand your trading pattern, who holds the numbers, and whether cash, budget, or controls is the sharpest pain. No fee, no obligation.
Scope and fee
We send a short engagement note: outcomes, sessions, exclusions, timeline, and fee. Work starts only when you confirm in writing.
Numbers intake
You share bank history, sales summaries, open payables, and any existing forecasts. We flag gaps early rather than discovering them mid-project.
Working sessions
Interactive meetings — usually two or three — to build the cash map, budget structure, or controls findings with the people who will use them.
Handover and follow-up
You receive the agreed documents and ownership notes. Flagship cash-flow engagements include a review four weeks later to see how the map behaves in live trading.
Who needs to be in the room
For cash-flow planning, the managing director and whoever chases invoices should attend at least one session. Budgeting workshops work best with cost-centre owners present. Controls reviews need access to whoever authorises payments — even if that is the founder with a banking app.
When we decline work
If the books are too incomplete to support a forecast, or if you need statutory audit or insolvency advice, we will say so and point you toward the right professional rather than stretching our brief.
Begin
Browse consultations or request a call to place your firm on the diary.