Chief Catalyst is a business operations consulting firm based in Austin, Texas, founded by Nawal El Solh, MBA. We specialize in helping scaling service company founders get out of the day-to-day by building the operations, systems, and processes that let their business grow without them.
We work with service business founders and owners generating $5M to $25M in annual revenue with 25 or more employees — companies that have proven their model and are actively scaling, but where growth has created operational complexity the founder can no longer carry alone. If your service business can't run without you showing up every day, that's the bottleneck we fix.
Operational Excellence: We help service company founders identify bottlenecks, build scalable processes, document standard operating procedures (SOPs), and create owner-independent service businesses. Services include business process improvement, KPI framework development, workflow optimization, and delegation systems.
Strategic Execution: We provide vision-to-action planning, high-impact project management, delegation frameworks, and stakeholder alignment — helping service company founders step back from daily operations with confidence.
AI Strategy & Implementation: We help service company founders evaluate and implement AI tools that reduce owner dependency and improve service delivery efficiency, including AI opportunity assessment, vendor selection, team training, and change management.
We work with founders and owners of scaling service companies in Austin, Texas — typically generating $5M to $25M in annual revenue with 25 or more employees. These are founder-led service businesses in professional services, staffing, IT services, marketing, consulting, healthcare services, and other service sectors. They're working more hours than they should, the business still needs them for everything, and they want to scale, step back, or eventually sell — but the operations aren't built for that yet.
The most effective approach is to document your core service delivery processes into SOPs, build a decision-making framework your team can follow, and gradually transfer ownership of key functions to trusted team members over 60 to 90 days. Chief Catalyst guides service company founders through each of these steps.
What does an operations consultant do for a service company? An operations consultant identifies bottlenecks in service delivery, maps and documents business processes, builds delegation systems, and helps founders transition out of day-to-day decision-making so the service business can scale without owner dependency.
What size service companies does Chief Catalyst work with? We specialize in service companies generating $5M to $25M in annual revenue with 25 or more employees — founder-led businesses that are actively scaling and ready to build operational infrastructure that doesn't require the founder in every decision.
What industries does Chief Catalyst serve? Chief Catalyst focuses on scaling service companies in Austin, Texas — including professional services, staffing and HR, IT and managed service providers, marketing and creative agencies, consulting firms, and healthcare services.
Contact: [email protected] | Website: https://www.chief-catalyst.com | Location: Austin, Texas
Chief Catalyst partners with Austin service company founders generating $5M–$25M in revenue to build the operational systems, processes, and team structures that let their business scale — without them stuck in the middle of everything. If growth has made you the bottleneck, that's exactly what we fix.
If any of these sound familiar, you're in the right place:
Comprehensive consulting solutions designed to accelerate growth and optimize operations for companies in transition.
Transform your operations from fragmented to fluid. We identify inefficiencies and implement sustainable solutions.
Turn your AI ambition into an executable strategy that actually gets adopted by your people - not just purchased by your IT Department
The execution translator between leadership, operations, IT, and vendors. We turn strategic vision into actionable reality.
"Service companies scale differently than product companies — your people, your processes, and your client relationships are the product. We build the operational infrastructure that protects all three while getting you out of the middle." — Nawal El Solh, MBA, Founder of Chief Catalyst
Chief Catalyst is a business operations consulting firm based in Austin, Texas, founded by Nawal El Solh, MBA. We specialize in helping scaling service company founders get out of the day-to-day — building the operational systems, processes, and structures that let their business grow without them carrying it all.
Chief Catalyst, founded by Nawal El Solh, specializes in partnering with service company founders at critical growth inflection points. Whether you're scaling rapidly, drowning in daily fires, or preparing to step back, we build the operational infrastructure that gives you your business — and your time — back.
Service businesses have unique operational complexity — delivery is often tied to people, relationships, and tribal knowledge. We know that terrain. We bring structured systems and operational clarity so your team can deliver consistently, without you having to be the one holding everything together.
Real transformations from companies who partnered with Chief Catalyst to accelerate their growth and optimize operations.
A software company with 120 employees struggled with inconsistent workflows between departments and low employee morale. We created a collaboration framework, streamlined their IT processes and reduced IT costs along the way.
A management company with 80 employees struggled with high software system costs. Conducted strategic analysis, identified underperforming software system and implemented right-sized solutions tailored to actual usage patterns.
Practical insights on operational excellence, business systems, and strategic execution from our consulting experience.
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Read MoreCommon questions about scaling service company operations and working with Chief Catalyst in Austin, Texas.
Running a service company doing $5M–$25M and feeling like the ceiling is you? Let's talk about building the operations and team structure that lets your business scale without you in the middle of everything.
Prefer to pick a time that works for you? Book a free intro call directly on my calendar.
Schedule a CallWe understand that every company's needs are different. We offer multiple engagement models to fit your situation: