Operators in your corner, Est. MMXXVI
Fractional COO for Founder-Led Companies

You built a company that still needs you for everything.

Every hire, every contract, every judgment call still routes through you, and it's not because your team can't be trusted with it. It's that you never had time to write down how decisions actually get made, so everyone defaults to asking. We build the decision systems and operating cadence that let the company run on more than your bandwidth.

$56B+
Business units led
40+
Combined years of operations
2
Senior operators, not coaches
01
The Problem

The business grew. The systems didn't.

The company has grown past what one person can hold in their head. The decisions haven't caught up.

01

Every real decision still comes back to you.

Hiring, pricing, vendor terms, product calls. Your leadership team is smart and capable, but they've learned that the safest move is to check with you first, because nothing tells them otherwise.

02

There's no operating rhythm, just your calendar.

Meetings happen when you call them. Priorities shift when you notice something. The business runs on your attention span, not on a cadence anyone else can rely on or run without you.

03

You've hired good people and still can't let go.

You brought in real talent, and you still find yourself in the weeds of their work. Not because they're failing, but because you've never built the systems that would let you trust the outcome without checking it yourself.

04

You don't need a coach. You need the operating system built.

You already know you're the bottleneck. What's missing is someone who will build the decision rights, the cadence, and the accountability structure and actually get out of the way.

Mariam and Sean, the Headroom Advisors team
Headroom Advisors, Field Notes
02
What We Offer

Four ways to
work together.

We work with a focused number of founder-led companies at any given time. Hover over an engagement to reveal the details, then step inside to learn more and apply.

We don't hand you a report and leave. We build the decision rights, the cadence, and the accountability structure that get you out of every approval, without losing control of the business.
Mariam Laes & Sean Genovese
03
Who We Are

Operators. Not coaches.

We've run P&L, not just advised on it. We've been the person everyone calls when something breaks, at companies with a lot more moving parts than most founders ever have to manage alone. We bring that same approach to founder-led companies with 8 to 40 employees who've outgrown what got them here.

Mariam Laes, Co-Founder and Senior Advisor at Headroom Advisors

Mariam Laes

Co-Founder & Senior Advisor

Mariam has owned P&L responsibility for a $40M+ aerospace business unit with direct accountability for strategy, customer relationships, supply chain, manufacturing, and engineering. She brings a systems-first lens to operational problems, identifying root causes, restructuring processes, and building organizations that scale without requiring the founder in every room.

Industrial Engineering General Management P&L Ownership Supply Chain USC MBA
Sean Genovese, Co-Founder and Senior Advisor at Headroom Advisors

Sean Genovese

Co-Founder & Senior Advisor

Sean spent nearly 14 years at Boeing leading large-scale organizational change across $56B business units, directing cross-functional teams spanning manufacturing, supply chain, engineering, and IT. He now runs SG Enterprises and teaches engineering management at CSUN. He brings the rare combination of enterprise-scale operational rigor and the grounded instincts of a business owner.

Organizational Change Lean Manufacturing Boeing Alumni Cross-functional Leadership Industrial Engineering
04
Work With Us

Tell us where the
business still runs through you.

We review every inquiry personally. If your problem is a good fit, we will be in touch within 48 hours. No pitch, no pressure, just a direct conversation about whether we can help.

You have 8 or more employees and every real decision still routes through you personally
Your leadership team is capable, the decision systems around them haven't caught up
You're ready to fix the actual problem, not add another piece of software
Presenting in a leadership meeting

Each service also has its own dedicated application on its page, Assessment, Workshop, Project, and Fractional COO. This form is the fastest way to simply start talking. We will not add you to a mailing list.

We've received your note.

Mariam and Sean review every inquiry personally. If it's a fit, expect to hear from us within 48 hours.