The Handbook: The Operations Podcast

A short one to close out the year! 🎁No frameworks. No deep dives. Just a genuine thank you.Whether you found The Handbook last week or you’ve been listening since episode one, I wanted to reflect on the year and say how much I appreciate you making time for the show.This year I’ve had the chance to sit down with brilliant operators and leaders across agencies and consultancies, covering people, process, tools, data, and growth – all anchored by one belief: operational maturity is what lets professional service businesses scale without burning people out.I'd also love your input on what to tackle next!What should we go deeper on next year?What’s been most useful?What challenges are you dealing with right now?Please fill out the short survey below, and it genuinely shapes what comes next for the podcast.Survey: https://bit.ly/handbook25surveyHave a great holiday, and see you in 2026!

Ops Quickies – snackable episodes on tech, tools, and systems. 🍿"Ballpark" is a dangerous word.Especially when Sales sells the dream, and Delivery is left living the nightmare.In this Quickie, Harv shares a real story from a consulting session with a 100+ person agency. They had the headcount and the revenue, but behind the scenes? It was pure chaos.We're talking manual spreadsheet reconciliation, "remembering" to log expenses, and invoicing based on memory rather than milestones.Harv breaks down why this "Chaotic Era" caps your growth and why moving to a PSA is the way to align what you sell with what you actually deliver.Stop running your business on memory. Start running it on data.

When your business feels busy but the numbers don’t back it up, something’s off.Agencies and consultancies often confuse effort with progress – and today’s guest has the data to prove it.In this episode of The Handbook, Harv Nagra sits down with fractional CFO and Trimline founder Michael Wark to unpack why so many service businesses hit revenue ceilings, run on thin margins, and stay stuck in that exhausting cycle of over-servicing.If you’ve ever wondered why more clients and more staff don’t automatically create more profit, this one’s for you.Here’s what we get into:The hidden math behind low profitability – and why over-servicing is usually the real culpritWhy headcount growth can become an ego metric (and why hiring your way out of inefficiency rarely works)How to diagnose your true unit economics and reset your pricing based on reality, not optimismThe operational signals your business is running harder in place rather than growingWhat healthy, scalable service businesses measure – and the benchmarks Michael looks for in top-performing firmsWhether you’re firefighting day to day or thinking seriously about scaling, Michael brings a clear, practical lens to understanding your numbers and building a healthier business.Listen to the full episode to hear the data, the patterns, and the playbook that can help you break the cycle. 🎧Additional Resources:👉🏽 Follow Michael on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-wark-18627628/ 💰 Check out Trimline: https://trimline.co/ 📺 Check out Michael’s Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@MichaelWarkTrimlineCFO 👨🏽 Follow Harv on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/harvnagra/ 📈 Measure your business maturity and find out how to get to the next level: https://bit.ly/assess-business-maturity 📬 Stay up to date with regular ops insights. Subscribe to The Handbook: The Operations Newsletter: https://www.scoro.com/podcast/#handbook ➡️ This podcast is brought to you by Scoro, where you can manage your projects, resources and finances in a single system. Sign up for a free trial or a demo at https://scoro.com/demo – and for the VIP treatment, tell them Harv sent you. 

Ops Quickies – snackable episodes on tech, tools, and systems. 🍿Flat demand, tighter budgets, squeezed margins. And AI is adding uncertainty on top of it all. But the real risk? It’s flying blind. If you don’t know what’s profitable, where time’s going, or what’s around the corner, every decision is a gamble.In this Quickie, Harv lays out how visibility and control de-risk your business – and why data beats gut feel when markets wobble. When the foundations are tight, AI becomes an amplifier, not a threat. If you're wondering how to make your professional service business more resilient, this one's for you. 

Most teams treat annual planning like a spreadsheet exercise.Finance builds the numbers. Everyone else nods along. Then the plan gets filed away until next year.But real planning isn’t about producing a static budget – it’s about creating a rhythm that connects finance, operations, and delivery all year round.In this episode of The Handbook: The Ops Podcast, Harv sits down with Adam Cooper, founder of ACC Finance Solutions and host of The Fractional CFO Show, to unpack how finance can become your business’s operating rhythm – one that brings clarity, accountability, and foresight to every decision.Here’s what we cover:How to use finance as your sat nav, not your rear-view mirrorBuilding a monthly rhythm that links financials, KPIs, and team accountabilityCreating a planning cycle that goes beyond budgets – with scenarios, reforecasts, and 3 - 5 year goalsManaging cash flow and runway with discipline (and less stress)Why financial storytelling matters – and how it helps the whole business make smarter choicesIf your annual planning still feels like a finance ritual, this episode will help you reframe it as an operating plan for the year ahead – one that helps your team navigate, adapt, and grow with confidence.Additional Resources:👉🏽 Follow Adam on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adamfcooper/ 💰 Check out ACC Finance Solutions: https://www.accfinancesolutions.com/ 🎧 Listen to The Fractional CFO Show: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2275917/episodes 👨🏽 Follow Harv on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/harvnagra/ 📈 Measure your business maturity and find out how to get to the next level: https://bit.ly/assess-business-maturity 📬 Stay up to date with regular ops insights. Subscribe to The Handbook: The Operations Newsletter: https://www.scoro.com/podcast/#handbook ➡️ This podcast is brought to you by Scoro, where you can manage your projects, resources and finances in a single system. Sign up for a free trial or a demo at https://scoro.com/demo – and for the VIP treatment, tell them Harv sent you.