My Big Idea: The Structurist, Inc

‍Hi! What's your elevator pitch?‍

The Structurist, Inc exists for founders who have built something that’s working and are suddenly realising that success is creating chaos. I’m a Fractional COO and Board Adviser who works inside scaling startups at the exact moment things get complicated. Headcount is growing, investors are asking harder questions, regulators are involved and the business starts to feel heavier than it should. I help founders put the right operating structure in place so they can scale without losing momentum, control or themselves.‍

What does the market need it?‍

Most advice for startups focuses on product, fundraising or customer acquisition. Very little attention is paid to how the business operates once it starts to grow. Founders are expected to figure it out while managing people, cash flow and their own stress levels. The market needs senior operational support that is practical, embedded and battle-tested. Not theory, not generic AI-built frameworks, but someone who has lived through scale from the inside and knows where it really hurts.

Where is the business today? 

The Structurist, Inc works across four to six scaling businesses at any given time, primarily in fintech, insurtech, healthtech and cybersecurity. These are companies at real inflection points: preparing for Series A, doubling headcount, navigating FCA permissions, launching new products, or managing founder exits.

Alongside client work, I have designed, directed and contributed to several accelerator programmes, including serving as the Programme Director for FinTech Wales Foundry, which gives me a live comparative view across multiple businesses facing similar challenges at once.

In terms of growth, contrary to the popular narrative of productising and removing the founder, I am building this business intentionally around human connection and hands on support for founders, via a referral led and strategic partnerships approach, and a long-term vision to scale impact not products.‍

What made you think there was money in this?‍

I didn’t set out to build a consultancy. I became the person founders called when things started wobbling. Over time, I noticed the same pattern: once a startup hits around 8–12 people, the problems stop being about ideas and start being about structure. Momentum slows, decisions get messy, and founders feel like they’re firefighting all day.

Earlier in my career, I founded and sold a service-based business and lived through the payroll sweats myself. That experience gave me a very different perspective from traditional consultants and made it clear that founders will always pay for calm, clarity and progress when the stakes are real.

The research came from years inside fast-growth companies. I kept seeing the same structural friction at the same stage of scale. Many consultancies stay at arm’s length, diagnose problems and leave. Fractional roles can be too narrow or overly tactical. The Structurist, Inc sits in the middle by being embedded, accountable and delivery focused. The biggest issue with competitors is that they either overcomplicate scale or underestimate how emotional and human it really is.

‍What's your biggest strength?

Pattern recognition, grounded in experience. I’m forever grateful that my early career was spent in fast growth environments where far more went wrong than right. That exposure is my edge. I’ve seen what breaks, when it breaks, and what it costs if you ignore it. Combined with the ability to translate complexity into clear decisions, that’s where real value is created.

What is the secret to making the business work?

Working from the end backwards. I always start with where the business needs to land, then design decisions and structure to support that outcome. It forces clarity when everything feels important and urgent.

I also remind myself and founders that it’s do or die, not life or death. That mindset reduces panic, improves decision-making and helps teams move forward without burning out. Most scaling problems aren’t crises. They’re structural milestones.‍

How do you market the company?‍

I don’t market in a traditional sense. Most work comes through referrals, ecosystem involvement and strategic relationships. I share what I’m seeing inside real businesses, speak honestly about the messy middle of scale, and stay close to founder communities. Trust compounds faster than content. The focus is depth over volume.‍

Tell us about the business model

The business is bootstrapped and profitable. It has been designed to be resilient from day one, with low overheads and strong margins. That gives me independence, selectivity and long-term stability.

What were you doing before?

I spent my career inside scaling businesses in operational and leadership roles, often stepping in during periods of growth, change or uncertainty. I was usually brought in when things needed steadying or structuring. The Structurist, Inc is simply that work applied across multiple companies rather than one at a time.

Are there any technologies you've found useful?

Tools matter less than people think, but the right ones can be powerful enablers. I regularly use Granola, Claude CoWork, Notion, Proposify and Toggl. They support clarity, documentation and accountability across teams. The value comes from how teams use tools together, not which platform they choose.

What is the future vision?

The Structurist, Inc will remain focused on high-impact work at critical moments of scale. The goal isn’t growth for its own sake, but depth, reputation and leverage through partnerships. I want to shape how founders think about structure as they scale, not just step in when things wobble. I want to stay close to the work while building a brand that founders trust when things really matter.

Build structure before you feel ready. Work from the end backwards. And remember that most scaling problems aren’t personal failures, they’re predictable stages. Once you accept that, you can handle them with far more confidence and far less overwhelm.

‍