Sara Hammoudou London · Remote
Fractional operator · STRATEGY & Operations Advisory

I build the operating backbone startups need to scale.

Processes, governance, teams and AI-enabled workflows, for startups from seed to Series C.

Where does it hurt?

Pick a symptom to see which workflow is breaking.

Lead to cash
OpportunityContractProvisionBillCollectRenew
Forecast to report
PlanForecastCloseReportDecide
Procure to pay
RequestApproveOrderReceivePay
Hire to retain
PlanHireOnboardPayDevelopRetain

Four workflows carry most of the operational load in a scaling company. A Scale Readiness Assessment checks all four.

What I help with

Four areas, one goal: an operating machine that runs smoothly as you grow.

Scale readiness

Diagnose and fix the core workflows that break with growth: lead to cash, forecast to report, procure to pay, hire to retain.

AI adoption in operations

Find where AI removes manual work, build the internal tools, and get teams to use them.

Org design & team building

Structure, hiring and operating cadence that let the team run without escalating everything.

Investor and fundraising readiness

A forecast investors trust, clean KPIs, a due-diligence-ready data room and sharp board reporting.

How I work

I diagnose fast, then stay to make it run.

Weeks 1–4

Assessment

With your permission, I ingest your data (Slack, docs, systems exports) and meet your teams to understand how you’re organised and how work really flows. I spot where things stall, then we agree a prioritised plan of what to fix first, with quick wins for the first 30 days.

Then, part-time

Fractional operator

Embedded in your team a few days a week, I run the plan with your leaders, build the processes, tools and AI automations, and track progress with a few clear metrics. As things stabilise, I hand over to your people so the improvements last after I leave.

About me

Strategy, with sleeves rolled up.

I work side by side with founders and their teams. I think strategically about where the business needs to go, then roll up my sleeves to make it happen: building the processes, tools and habits with your people, and staying until they stick.

I spent six years at Dataiku, a pre-IPO enterprise AI scale-up. I led finance transformation for public-company readiness, took six countries from market-entry decision to operational readiness, and ran an EMEA operations team.

Before that, I spent seven years in strategy and innovation consulting working with companies from telcos to global banks.

I hold an INSEAD MBA and a master’s degree in engineering from École Centrale Paris, one of France’s top engineering schools.

See my full résumé
Contact

Let’s get your engine running smoothly.

Tell me where your operations hurt most, and I'll tell you honestly whether I can help.