The back office your business deserves.
Built Together. Built to Last.
Your dedicated fractional operations partner — working quietly alongside you to build the systems, structure, and clarity your business needs. No cookie cutter solutions. No fluff. Just real work, built around you.
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Sound familiar?
Every entrepreneur starts a business chasing the same thing — financial success, and the freedom and flexibility that comes with it. But how do you enjoy that freedom when you're running full speed just to keep your head above water?
It's like trying to build an engine while driving.
Here's the hard truth — if your business can't operate without you in it every single day, you don't have a business. You have a job.
We give you back the one thing you can't buy more of. Time.
What is a Fractional COO?
A Fractional COO is an experienced operations leader who works with your business on a part-time or contract basis — bringing senior-level strategic and operational expertise to businesses that need it but aren't ready for, or don't need, a full-time executive hire.
For small and mid-size businesses, a Fractional COO is often the missing piece between where you are and where you want to go.
You might need a Fractional COO if:
Your back end hasn't kept up with your growth
You're spending more time on administration than on the work that drives revenue
You know your margins could be better but you're not sure where the money is going
You're ready to scale but don't have the systems in place to support it
You want professional operational structure without adding to your payroll
We start with a straightforward conversation — no risk, no pressure — just an honest look at your business and whether we're the right fit for each other. From there we work on a flexible arrangement based on the size and stage of your business and what it actually needs. Then we get to work — building and implementing solutions alongside you, and equipping your team to run independently once the foundation is in place.
Your time is best spent on leads, sales, client relationships, and the work that drives your business forward. We handle everything behind it.
Find your need.
We’ll find your solution.
I need organization
Running your business solo and the back end is overwhelming — or your partner is handling it for free. Receipts. Tracking. Year-end reporting. We take all of that off your plate with a simple subscription. No contract. No commitment. Just clarity.
Too busy to stop. Too buried to breathe.
I need structure
You've got a team, you're winning work, and you're good at what you do. Referrals are coming in and business is good. But somewhere in the back of your mind you know the foundation underneath it isn’t as solid as what you’re building on top of it.
You want to grow — but you want to grow with confidence. Not just hope it holds together.
That’s exactly where we come in. We build the operational foundation your business needs so that when you scale, it scales with you.
Scaling is exciting. And a little scary.
Ready to own it. Not just run it.I need optimization
You've built something real and it's running well. Now it's time to take it to the next level — vendor agreements, annual planning, automation, and the reporting that gives you full visibility without being in every conversation.
A well-greased machine doesn't just run. It runs without you. And when it does, new opportunities open up — a second revenue stream, a new market, or simply the freedom you started this business for in the first place.
Our Approach
Every Framework Alliance engagement follows our ARMED+™ methodology — a tried and true order of operations built from years of hands-on experience. Customized to your business, your stage, and what you actually need.
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Getting under the hood before touching anything. We shadow your workflow, review your documents, and identify exactly where the gaps are before we change a thing.
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Mapping who does what and where accountability lives. Because if the answer to everything is you — that's the first thing we fix.
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Auditing your job costing, estimating, labor tracking, and financial data to find where your money is going — and where the opportunity is hiding.
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Building and implementing the systems, templates, contracts, and workflows your business needs. Customized to how you actually work — not how a textbook says you should.
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Real time visibility into your business — taking the guesswork out of your sales pipeline, job margins, labour hours and profitability. When you always know exactly where you stand, it allows you to make quicker and more informed decisions with confidence.
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This is where we go deeper. Taking everything we've built together and pushing further — more customization, smarter automation, and longer term strategic planning. Annual and multi-year growth planning, identifying new opportunities, and mapping out exactly how big you want to grow and what it takes to get there. The alliance we've built doesn't stop — it evolves with you.
Meet the Founder
I didn't plan to start a business. I planned to make a difference.
My name is Michelle Dobson, and Framework Alliance exists because the people who build things that matter deserve good operations to help them achieve more of that. That's something I can get behind — and how I want to show up every day.
After 25+ years in senior operational leadership, I made a deliberate pivot into the construction industry. I immersed myself in every aspect of the business as Director of Project Operations at a residential custom home builder — from contracts and preconstruction through subcontractor management, job costing, and client relationships, all the way to final closeout. Learning a new industry from the inside out, I helped grow the company's profitability in a meaningful and measurable way.
I know your world because I've worked in it. I know what it costs when a change order doesn't get signed. I know what Friday afternoon feels like when everything hits at once. And I know exactly what it takes to make those moments fewer and farther between.
Working alongside small and mid-sized businesses, I kept seeing the same thing — good people struggling with the back end of their business. I knew I could help more than just one company. So I did something about it.
What sets me apart isn't just the operational expertise — it's that I genuinely like people. Building strong relationships is a skill many operators don't bring to the table. I'm not here to tell you what to do and leave. I'm here to work with you — in the background, in every aspect of your business, wherever I'm needed — to build something meaningful together.
I choose my clients with intention — and when we work together, you're not just a client. You become part of the alliance we build together.
Proudly Rooted in Durham Region.
Framework Alliance is based in Durham Region, Ontario — serving contractors and trades businesses across Oshawa, Whitby, Ajax, Pickering, Clarington, Bowmanville, and surrounding communities north and east of Toronto. Remote first means we can work with you wherever you are.
Most Fractional COOs and Operational Consultants operate out of Toronto at big city rates with big city overhead. We understand the regional markets, the relationships, and the unique challenges that come with building outside the core. Same caliber of expertise. Rates that make sense for the businesses we serve.
Questions? We have answers.
Answers to the most common questions are here for you. If you’re still wanting more clarification, I’m always happy to chat.
Reach out anytime.
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A fractional COO is an experienced operations leader who works with your business part-time or on contract — giving you senior-level expertise without the cost of a full-time executive. If you're running a trades or contracting business and feel like the back end is holding back the front end, a fractional COO is likely exactly what you need.
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Any stage can benefit. Solopreneurs benefit from basic tracking, organization, and year-end clarity through our subscription service. Growing businesses doing $1M–$3M benefit from systems, structure, and margin protection. Established businesses doing $5M+ benefit from deeper optimization, automation, and strategic planning.
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Anywhere between 10 and 20 hours per week depending on the size and needs of your business. Hours are discussed at the start of every engagement and reviewed together at each 90-day touchpoint — going up or down based on what your business actually needs at that stage.
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Engagements typically run 6-18 months with 30 days notice to step back at any time — because this relationship only works if it's working for both of us. At every 90-day touchpoint we review together, adjust as needed, and make sure we're building exactly what your business needs.
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We work in the background on the things you don't have time for — building contracts and change order processes, project management and tracking, job costing audits, operational workflows, labor hour and profitability tracking, business dashboards and analytics, and margin reporting. We show up consistently, do the work, and keep you in the loop without adding to your load.
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Most consultants tell you what to do and leave. Framework Alliance works alongside you to actually build it — project management systems, business dashboards, operational tracking, analytics, and ongoing back office support. We stay until it's running. We have direct hands-on industry experience, we know your world from the inside, and we genuinely care about the outcome. Our clients are clients for life.
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A full time operational executive typically carries a salary of $150,000–$250,000 per year. Framework Alliance delivers the same caliber of expertise at a fraction of that cost — so you get senior-level operational experience without the full-time overhead.
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Yes — and you're not alone. Most small trades businesses know AI could help them save time and work smarter, but figuring out which tools are worth it and how to actually implement them is a whole other job. That's part of what we do. We assess what makes sense for your specific business, cut through the noise, and help you integrate the right tools in a way that actually sticks — without disrupting how you already work. No tech jargon. No overwhelm. Just practical solutions that save you time and money.
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Absolutely. Not every trades business needs a fractional COO — but every trades business deserves to know where their money is going. We offer a simple subscription service designed specifically for the solo contractor who just needs the basics done right. Receipt tracking, labor and mileage tracking, HST separation, and clean monthly and year-end reporting — delivered to you without the late nights, the shoeboxes, or the year-end panic. You stay on the tools. We handle the rest.