Is this the same as exit planning or working with a business broker?

No. Brokers and exit planners handle the transaction — the valuation, the buyer search, the deal structure. Clean Canvas happens before that. It's the work of deciding whether to sell at all, and getting clear on what you want before you enter any process. Many Clean Canvas clients go on to work with a broker. They just show up to that conversation ready.

What if I'm not sure I want to sell — I might want to keep the business?

That's exactly who this is for. Clean Canvas doesn't presuppose an exit. It ends with one of two outcomes: a clear decision to sell, or a concrete plan to transform the business and re-engage with it on different terms. Both are legitimate. The goal is a decision, not a particular direction.

How is this different from working with a business coach or consultant?

Most coaches and consultants help you run your business better. Clean Canvas is specifically for founders at a crossroads — people who are questioning whether they want to keep running it at all. It's a defined engagement with a defined deliverable: a decision and a plan. Not an ongoing coaching relationship.

How long does Clean Canvas take?

Clean Canvas is a focused intensive, not an open-ended engagement. The timeline is structured and bounded — this is not a months-long retainer. The specifics are discussed on the discovery call, where Kathleen can tailor the scope to where you are and what you need.

Is Clean Canvas right for me if my business is still performing well?

Yes — and often this is the best time to do it. Founders who wait until the business is struggling have fewer options and less leverage. The crossroads question isn't about performance; it's about whether you still want to be the person running this. Many of the founders who get the most from Clean Canvas are running profitable businesses. They're just exhausted, or no longer sure it's what they want.

What happens after Clean Canvas — what's the actual next step?

It depends on the decision you make. If you're selling, Kathleen can introduce you to the right advisors — brokers, attorneys, wealth managers — at the right time, with a clear brief on what you're looking for. If you're transforming, you leave with a concrete restructuring plan and accountability for the first phase of executing it. Either way, you don't leave with a set of options to think about. You leave with a direction.

Project Engagement

Some owners have specific objectives, a defined timeline, and a clear end.

Not every engagement needs to be ongoing. The Project Engagement is built for situations with a defined scope, a defined timeline, and a specific output as the objective

When a Project Engagement is right

M&A Preparation

Transaction on the horizon. Clean the financials, normalize EBITDA, build the financial narrative, prepare and execute due diligence.

Capital Raise Readiness

Build the financial story, prepare supporting documentation, position the business for capital conversation.

Specific financial objectives

A financial model for a particular decision. A reporting infrastructure built to a specific standard. A define deliverable with a natural finish.

How a Project Engagement is structured

Scope definition

What is the specific objective? What does the finished work look like? Answered before the engagement begins, not discovered during it.

Execution

Focused, intensive work toward the defined objective. Stays oriented toward the defined finish line.

Timeline definition

When does the project start? When does it end? Milestones that mark progress toward the objective.

Delivery and transition

When the objective is achieved, the engagement concludes cleanly. Some projects lead into additional advisory work, but they don’t have to.

Frequently asked questions

How is a Project Engagement different from the Embedded Strategic CFO?

The Embedded Strategic CFO is an ongoing, sustained Strategic CFO partnership with no fixed end date. The Project Engagement is a defined scope, defined timeline engagement structure around a specific objective with a clear finish line.

Can a Project Engagement turn into an ongoing Embedded Strategic CFO relationship?

Yes, an it often does. The path is available when the completed project makes it the obvious next step. It is never assumed or built into the Project Engagement structure as an expectation.

The right structure is the one that fits your situation.

Let's talk about the project