10 business days
▸ SC // LIGHTHOUSE · 10-DAY OPERATIONS DIAGNOSTIC · AI READINESS + PLANNING
01 / 09
Ten working days. One operations diagnostic your board can act on, with a grounded plan for where AI fits and where it doesn't.
Your audit committee is asking for operational evidence — and AI adoption evidence — that the annual report and vendor decks were never built to provide. Lighthouse sends senior operators on site for ten working days and returns a bilingual findings register, KPI baseline, and an ROI-quantified register of opportunities for applying AI across operational workflows your board can act on — in writing, in both languages, before the next quarter closes. It is also the productized entry SKU into a fractional operator engagement — the natural next step is a monthly fractional retainer with the same lead operator, executing against the AI readiness plan.
Fixed scope · single invoice
5 days · HK + PRC
6 artifacts · English / Mandarin
02 · PRINCIPLES · HOW LIGHTHOUSE IS BUILT
02 / 09
Five operating principles. The rest is execution.
01 ▸
Operators, not consultants
Every Lighthouse is led by a senior operator who has carried a P&L or run a plant, backed by a specialist bench. No associates, no offshore analysts, no handoff between pitch and delivery.
02 ▸
Bilingual by default
Findings are authored in English and simplified Chinese. Your board reads one version; your shop floor reads the other. Neither is a translation afterthought.
03 ▸
Fixed scope, written down
Scope is sized on the 30-minute scope call and written into a charter both parties sign before Day 01. Ten business days on the flagship. Six deliverables. No change orders, no scope creep, no phase-two upsell unless you ask for one.
04 ▸
Evidence, not theatre
We screenshot systems as we find them. The hub shows the actual state of your operations on the day we saw it — not a cleaned-up narrative.
05 ▸
We build software, not just advise on it
The studio also builds and runs its own software — Frenzee, a sourcing and production tool for consumer brands. We've built operational software ourselves, not only advised on it.
03 · TIMELINE · 10 BUSINESS DAYS · LOCKED
03 / 09
Day by day. No ambiguity.
START → BOARD IN 10 DAYS · KICKOFF WITHIN 2 WEEKS OF SIGN
D01
Kickoff
Boardroom framing & scope lock
On-site with COO/CFO. We map the operating model, identify the 40–60 systems in scope, and agree on the 3 KPIs the board will judge Lighthouse against.
▸ Scope charter · EN/ZH
D02
Discovery
Production floor walks
Senior operators on site across plants and shifts. We shadow line leads, observe handoffs, and screenshot every system as it is actually used — not as the manual describes.
▸ Systems inventory · 52 entries
D03
Discovery
Warehouse, QC, compliance audits
Deep dive on WMS, QMS, LIMS, EHS. Interviews with shift-B supervisors. Rework loops, near-miss patterns, and handoff quality are first quantified here.
▸ Draft findings · 14 logged
D04
Discovery
Planning & reporting systems
ERP → MES → APS flow audit. Reconciliation between financial reporting and operational reality. ESG disclosure trail.
▸ Systems map · v1
D05
Synthesis
KPI baseline re-run
Cycle time, handoff quality, escalation P50, pilot-to-production conversion, OEE, near-miss reporting. Measured twice across two shifts for each KPI.
▸ KPI baseline · 12 metrics
D06
Synthesis
Bilingual findings register
Every finding typed in English and simplified Chinese. Severity, system, owner, and ROI band assigned by consensus between both operators.
▸ Findings register · 23 entries
D07
Synthesis
ROI-quantified opportunities
6 opportunities selected against hard criteria: quantifiable, ownable inside 90 days, defensible at board level. We discard ideas that cannot be measured.
▸ Opportunity register · 6 items
D08
Board prep
Board readout draft + sponsor review
90-minute working session with the internal sponsor to stress-test claims and numbers before the board. We rewrite anything a director will flag.
▸ Board readout · EN/ZH draft
D09
Board prep
Final readout & hub handover
Live hub walkthrough with the executive team. Hub remains read-only for 90 days. All artifacts exportable to your document management.
▸ Hub read-only · 90 days
D10
Board
Board delivery
We present alongside the COO or CFO. 45 minutes presentation, 45 minutes Q&A. Board pack, hub link, and findings register go into the meeting minutes.
▸ Board pack · signed off
04 · DELIVERABLES · SIX ARTIFACTS · LOCKED
04 / 09
What you get. Down to the filename.
01 ▸
Bilingual findings register
- Every finding typed EN + ZH by an operator, not a translator
- Severity, system of origin, suggested owner, ROI band
- Exportable to XLSX and board-ready PDF
EXPORT · XLSX / PDF · BILINGUAL
02 ▸
Systems map
- 40–60 operational systems, mapped by dependency
- Status annotated from actual observation, not vendor claims
- Editable handoff to internal architecture team
FORMAT · PNG / DRAW.IO · SYSTEMS MAP
03 ▸
KPI baseline
- 12 metrics measured twice across two shifts
- Methodology documented — reproducible on Day 100
- Baseline becomes the scoreboard for every future initiative
DATASET · CSV + METHOD · BASELINE KPIs
04 ▸
Opportunity register
- 6 ROI-quantified opportunities — ownable in 90 days
- Each with scope, quantified impact range, suggested sponsor
- No generic "digital transformation" entries
FORMAT · PDF + XLSX · OPPORTUNITY LIST
05 ▸
Live engagement hub
- Everything above, viewable in a real dashboard
- Read-only for 90 days post-delivery
- EN / ZH toggle across findings, map, KPIs, activity log
URL · 90-DAY ACCESS · LIVE HUB
06 ▸
Board readout
- 45-min presentation, authored with the COO or CFO
- Delivered on-site at your HK or PRC board meeting
- Optional follow-up delivery at audit-committee or strategy offsite
DELIVERY · ON-SITE · HK/PRC · BOARD READOUT
05 · HUB PREVIEW · WHAT YOUR TEAM SEES ON DAY 04
05 / 09
The hub is the product. The deck is just the readout.
A live bilingual workspace where your COO, CFO, and sponsors watch the diagnostic unfold in real time. Findings are logged as we see them. The KPI baseline rebuilds itself each evening. The board readout is never a surprise — by Day 10 it has already been reviewed in this hub.
DEMO · NOT A REAL CLIENT · ALL DATA ANONYMIZED
●hub.signalcollective.co / engagements / lh-2026-04 · demo
▸ DEMO ENVIRONMENT · ENGLISH VIEW · BILINGUAL IN PRODUCTION
| ID | System | Severity | Finding | Owner | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F-003 | MES · 2003 / 2024 | HIGH | Production planning authority ambiguity between legacy MES (2003) and new APS (2024). | COO | HIGH |
| F-007 | WMS · Warehouse B | HIGH | Handoff quality 67% — 1-in-3 outbound picks require rework at dispatch. | Ops Dir. | HIGH |
| F-011 | QMS / SAP QM | MED | Quality gate bypassed when shift-B supervisor absent; no systemic alert. | QA Head | MED |
| F-014 | Warehouse · Area B | MED | Rework loop detected — SKUs >42 days aged re-enter picking queue. | Logistics | MED |
| F-017 | Line 3 · Shift B | MED | Escalation time exceeds 30-min SLA on 18% of exceptions this week. | Line Mgr. | MED |
| F-019 | ESG Reporting | LOW | Scope-2 emissions data manually reconciled across 4 plants, no audit trail. | CFO | LOW |
| F-023 | Safety / EHS | HIGH | Near-miss reporting underreported — frontline uses WeChat group, not system. | EHS | HIGH |
Nominal · 38
Active finding · 7
Critical · 2
Cycle time (min)
42.1
41.2 → 43.4 P80
Handoff quality
67%
Target ≥ 90%
Escalation · P50
18 min
SLA 30 min
Pilot → production
11%
12-mo avg
OEE · Line 3
0.71
Target 0.80
Near-miss reports / wk
4
Expected ≥ 12
06 · COMMERCIAL · FIXED SCOPE · SINGLE INVOICE
06 / 09
Commercial discipline, written down before Day 01.
Every engagement is sized on a 30-minute scope call, written into a charter both parties sign before work begins, and delivered against a fixed scope. No change orders mid-engagement, no phase-two upsell unless you ask for it. Scope and commercials are shared with qualified buyers on the scope call.
▸ HOW LIGHTHOUSE IS BOUGHT
Scope in writing.
Before Day 01.
Before Day 01.
Sized on the 30-minute scope call. Written into a charter both parties sign before we arrive.
- ▸Senior operators on site · 5 days HK + PRC · bench-backed as scope requires
- ▸Six deliverables, all authored bilingually EN / ZH
- ▸Live hub access · read-only for 90 days post-delivery
- ▸Board readout delivered alongside your COO or CFO on Day 10
- ▸One follow-up review at 30 days · included in the original fee
INVOICING · 40% ON SIGN · 30% ON D05 · 30% ON D10 BOARD SIGN-OFF
▸ ENGAGEMENT FRAMEWORK
- Scope call · 30 minutes — we size the engagement against your operating model, disclosure calendar, and site footprint
- Scope charter · signed before Day 01 — fixed scope, fixed deliverables, fixed cadence, in writing
- Ten business days on site — senior operators · specialist bench pulled in as scope warrants
- No change orders — if the scope shifts mid-engagement, we pause and re-charter; we do not invoice on top
▸ NOT INCLUDED · BY DESIGN
- Implementation of recommendations (separate scope)
- Technology selection or vendor procurement
- Change management rollout beyond Day 30 review
- Translation of third-party materials not authored by SC
- Regulatory filings or audit opinions
▸ PROCUREMENT NOTES · HKEX / MAINLAND-LISTED
- Engagement agreement and mutual NDA, in writing, before Day 01
- Independence · no commissions, no reseller arrangements, no kickbacks
07 · OPERATORS · WHO IS ON SITE
07 / 09
Senior operators. Specialist bench. Named in the engagement agreement.
Your engagement team is assembled from the bench and named in writing before kickoff. The people who scope Lighthouse are the people who deliver it and the people who sit in the boardroom on Day 10. No associates, no offshore analysts.
▸ OPERATOR · HK
Managing Partner
- 2019—24COO · HK-listed industrial
- 2014—19VP Ops · PE-owned manufacturer
- 2007—14Plant GM · PRC · multinational
- —HKUST / Cornell ILR
▸ OPERATOR · Shenzhen
Principal
- 2018—24Transformation Dir. · A-share listed
- 2012—18Head of Operations · regional mfg
- 2005—12Lean consultant · Tier-1 auto
- —Tsinghua / Fraunhofer IPT
▸ BENCH · HK + PRC
Specialist pool
- Native ZHInterview & bilingual authoring
- SystemsSAP · MES · WMS · QMS specialists
- ESGHKEX / CSRC disclosure drafting
- Site opsPlant GMs · Tier-1 / EMS / semicap
08 · FAQ · QUESTIONS A COO ASKS ON THE SCOPE CALL
08 / 09
Six questions. Answered straight.
For the operator perspective behind these answers, see Notes — operator essays.
Q.01 Why is it fixed-scope when every company is different?
Because the operators who deliver Lighthouse have run operations diagnostics across dozens of engagements, and the shape of a listed-industrial operating model is more similar across companies than either side wants to admit. Fixed scope removes the first two weeks of scope negotiation that traditional consulting gets paid for. If your business is truly an outlier, we will tell you in the scope call and decline the engagement. See a Q1 2026 engagement ▸
Q.02 We already work with a Big Four. Why Lighthouse?
Our deliverables sit alongside, not against, your audit and advisory relationships. Big Four advisory teams produce strategy documents; Lighthouse produces an operational baseline. Several of our engagements have been commissioned by the audit committee specifically to validate or challenge a Big Four recommendation. Side-by-side comparison ▸
Q.03 Can Lighthouse be delivered confidentially?
Yes. Hub access can be restricted to named seats on your side. All deliverables are watermarked per-recipient. A mutual NDA is signed before Day 01.
Q.04 What if the board reads the findings and rejects them?
Then Lighthouse did its job. The findings are evidence, not recommendations. If the board concludes that the status quo is acceptable, that is a defensible position taken with eyes open — which is more than most diagnostics produce.
Q.05 Do you implement the recommendations?
Not as part of Lighthouse. We will introduce you to implementation partners we trust, or work alongside your own team under a separate engagement. We keep the diagnostic independent of implementation economics on purpose.
Q.06 Is Lighthouse ever delivered in English only?
In our operators' experience, English-only delivery consistently produces weaker shop-floor adoption than bilingual delivery. We strongly recommend bilingual delivery for any PRC-operations component, even when the board reads English.
09 · NEXT · 30-MIN SCOPE CALL · NO COMMITMENT
09 / 09