Stefan Gauci SciclunaStefan Gauci SciclunaCompliance & Quality Assurance Advisory

Fractional COO packages · Updated 17 October 2026

Fractional COO packages, with the price on the page.

Most owners I speak to ask the same thing within the first five minutes: what will this cost me? I would rather answer that here than on a call. The work begins with a Diagnostic, which has one fixed fee. Once that is done you pick a package of two, three or four days a month, and the list under each package is what those days pay for. Work that falls outside the three packages gets its own written quotation.

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In one line

Stefan Gauci Scicluna's fractional COO service starts with a fixed-fee Diagnostic at €2,950 (£2,550), followed by Essentials at €1,950 (£1,700) a month for 2 days, Core at €2,850 (£2,450) for 3 days, or Plus at €3,650 (£3,150) for 4 days, all excluding VAT, for owner-managed firms in the UK, the EU and Malta. There are no discounts; a 6 or 12-month term earns up to 25% extra days instead.

Step one: the Diagnostic

I will not sell you a monthly package until I have spent two or three days inside the business, because without that I would be pricing guesswork and you would be paying for it.

Fixed fee

Diagnostic

Two to three days, once

€2,950 / £2,550

Excluding VAT

  • I sit in on how the operation actually runs: which meetings happen, how the main processes work, which suppliers you depend on, who is signed off for what, and which figures you look at on a Monday.
  • I go through the compliance file, meaning what the law, your licence and your contracts ask of you, and whether you could prove it to an inspector tomorrow.
  • You receive a written report of what I found, and a 90-day plan in which every action has a named owner and a due date.
  • We then sit down for one meeting to go through it, and you keep the plan whether you carry on with me or not.

The monthly packages

The difference between Essentials, Core and Plus is the number of days, and so how much ground we cover in a month; the kind of work does not change.

Package 1

Essentials

2 days a month

€1,950 / £1,700

A month, excluding VAT

For a smaller firm, or one where the basics are mostly in place and need someone to keep them going.

  • Monthly operations review, chaired by me, minuted with actions and dates
  • Monthly operations report, on the same headings every month
  • Obligations register and risk register kept current, with an owner on every line
  • One core process reviewed and rewritten with its owner each month
  • Replies to questions between visits within two working days

My usual recommendation

Package 2

Core

3 days a month

€2,850 / £2,450

A month, excluding VAT

For the owner-managed firm that has outgrown the owner watching everything. Everything in Essentials, plus:

  • A weekly operations meeting set up on a fixed agenda, which I join twice a month
  • Two core processes reviewed and rewritten each month
  • Supplier checks: I set what each check covers, and look each month at whether it was done
  • A competence matrix for each role, with the sign-off records filed beside it

Package 3

Plus

4 days a month

€3,650 / £3,150

A month, excluding VAT

For regulated firms, firms working to ISO 9001, and firms facing an audit or an inspection. Everything in Core, plus:

  • An internal audit of one area every quarter, with findings tracked to close
  • Preparation for a certification audit, a customer audit or an inspection
  • A quarterly report for you or your board
  • Replies to questions between visits on the same working day

I stop at four days a month. A firm that needs more than that, month after month, is usually ready to hire its own operations manager, and I will say so when I see it. The one exception is bonus days from a longer term, set out below, which you use when it suits you.

The packages side by side

What is includedEssentialsCorePlus
Days a month234
Price a month, excluding VAT€1,950 / £1,700€2,850 / £2,450€3,650 / £3,150
Monthly operations review, chaired by meYesYesYes
Monthly operations reportYesYesYes
Obligations and risk registers, with an owner on every lineYesYesYes
Core processes reviewed and rewrittenOne a monthTwo a monthTwo a month
Weekly operations meeting on a fixed agendaNoYesYes
Supplier checksNoYesYes
Competence matrix and sign-off recordsNoYesYes
Internal audit of one areaNoNoEach quarter
Preparation for an audit or inspectionNoNoYes
Report for you or your boardMonthlyMonthlyMonthly and quarterly
Replies between visitsTwo working daysTwo working daysSame working day

Swipe sideways to compare the three packages.

Not sure which one?

The Diagnostic answers it.

The 90-day plan from the Diagnostic tells us how many days the work really needs. I base my recommendation on that, and if the plan shows that even Essentials is more than you need, you will hear it from me.

Longer terms: extra days, not discounts

I do not discount. If you sign up for longer, you get more of my time for the same monthly price: up to 25% extra days on a 12-month term.

Package3 months (standard)6-month term12-month term
Essentials, 2 days a month6 days12 days + 1 bonus day24 days + 6 bonus days
Core, 3 days a month9 days18 days + 2 bonus days36 days + 9 bonus days
Plus, 4 days a month12 days24 days + 2 bonus days48 days + 12 bonus days
Bonus on top of the package daysNoneAbout 10%25%

Swipe sideways to see each term.

Bonus days are banked rather than added to every month. You use them when they help most: a deeper look before an audit, a busy month, or extra time with a new manager. Bonus days are counted in whole days and have to be used before the term ends.

How the packages work

Anything else: a custom quotation

The packages cover the regular running of the operation. Some work is bigger, shorter or different. Tell me what you need, and I will send a written quotation with the scope, the days and the price.

More time

Extra days

A busy month, a launch or a move. Extra days are added at the same day rate as your package.

Audit

Audit programmes and supplier audits

A full internal audit programme across every area, or audits carried out at your suppliers' premises.

Cover

Cover for a gap

Someone in your operations seat is on leave or has left, and you need the routine kept going until they are back or replaced.

Groups

More than one site or company

Groups with several sites, or several companies under one owner, are scoped and priced as one engagement.

After hand-over

Keep, Assure and Assure Plus

Once your own people run the routine, a lighter arrangement keeps it current. See the compliance and quality pages.

Related

The role

Fractional COO

What I focus on, how the role runs, and what it does not include.

Service

Quality assurance

The quality side: ISO 9001 systems, internal audit and certification readiness.

Common questions

How much does a fractional COO cost?

With me, it starts with the Diagnostic at €2,950 (£2,550). After that you choose a monthly package: Essentials at €1,950 (£1,700) for two days a month, Core at €2,850 (£2,450) for three days, or Plus at €3,650 (£3,150) for four days. All prices exclude VAT.

Why does every engagement start with a Diagnostic?

Because otherwise I would be guessing. In two or three days I see how the operation is run and what the compliance file looks like. The 90-day plan that comes out of it decides which package fits, so you are not paying for days the work does not need.

Can I stop after the Diagnostic?

Yes. The findings report and the 90-day plan are yours, and you can work through the plan with your own people. There is nothing more to pay unless you choose a package.

Is there a minimum term?

Three months, because the 90-day plan needs that long to work through. After that the package runs month to month, and either of us can end it with 30 days' notice. You can move up or down a package at the start of any month.

Do you offer discounts?

No. If you commit for longer, you get more time instead of a lower price. A 6-month term earns about 10% extra days and a 12-month term earns 25%, so Core on 12 months gives you 36 package days plus 9 bonus days. Bonus days are banked and used whenever they help most during the term.

Do the prices include VAT?

No. All prices on this page exclude VAT, which is added where the law requires it. Clients in Malta and the rest of the EU pay in euro, and clients in the UK pay in sterling.

What if I need something the packages do not cover?

Tell me what it is. Extra days, a full ISO 9001 or ISO 37301 build, audit programmes, cover for a gap in your team and multi-site groups are all quoted separately. You get a written quotation with the scope, the days and the price before anything starts.

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