FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Last updated: October 21, 2026
Who does Promethus work with?
Promethus works with the CEO, COO, CFO and leadership teams of mid-sized companies, typically $5M to $500M in revenue and 50 to 500 employees: founder-led oil and gas service companies, energy producers, midstream and pipeline operators, and mining companies. Most arrive in a period of rapid growth, a leadership transition, a merger or acquisition, or carrying operational risks the company has lived with for years. We are based in Calgary and work across North America, on site for assessment conversations and job shadowing, and remotely for analysis and advisory.
How do we know if what we are dealing with is structural?
Owners describe the same signs: decisions stop when the owner steps away, the same fires come back every quarter, the best people carry the work the company is winning, every job gets done a different way, or an acquisition is harder to absorb than planned. Two or three of these together point to how the company is organized rather than to any one person.
What happens in a Discovery chat?
A sixty to ninety minute conversation with our founder about what is going on in your company, with nothing to prepare. You leave with a clear read on whether the issue is structural, where we would look first, and a focused next step. Everything you share is held in confidence from this first conversation, and it is where we both decide whether this is the right fit.
How long does an assessment take, and what do we receive?
Four weeks for a single function, eight to twelve weeks for the whole company. You receive a written report that ranks your highest business risks, links each to a priority initiative, names the three things to fix first, and sets out a 12 to 18 month roadmap, short enough for your leadership team to work through in one meeting.
What is an operating model, and do we need one?
It is your company's playbook: who decides what, how the work gets done, and the policies and processes that connect the two across every function, written the way the work is actually done. Companies need one when growth, a transition or an acquisition has outpaced the informal way the company used to run; in pipeline and producer companies it is often called an operations management system, and our founder has built both from a blank page.
Can you help the leadership team run the company when the founder steps back?
Yes. We attach accountabilities and decision rights to roles rather than to people, so the company keeps running through promotions, departures and the owner's time away, and executive advisory gives the owner and the leadership team an experienced outside read as the company grows.
We have risks we have lived with for years. Is that where you start?
Often, yes. A risk that has stayed open for years usually lacks a named owner, a stated tolerance, a decision right, or an escalation path, so each deferral looks reasonable on its own. A risk the company could live with at one size is often where client relationships break down, culture suffers and trust is lost as the company scales, so we put those four in place for each risk and the leadership team decides on it instead of carrying it.
Can you help us integrate an acquisition?
Yes. Integration combines two ways of operating into one playbook, and our founder led the merger of two operations management systems into a single system for a 6,000-employee pipeline company.
How is Promethus different from a large consulting firm?
Every engagement is led by a senior practitioner with twenty-seven years in oil and gas service companies, producers, pipelines and mining, with only the people the work requires: same expertise, fewer slides, a fraction of the price. We build your playbook with your team, written the way your work is done, rather than handing you ours.
How are engagements structured?
Each one starts with a Discovery chat and leads to an assessment (four weeks for one function, eight to twelve for the whole company), implementation (six to twelve months, billed monthly, with your team leading by the end), or executive advisory (hourly or on a monthly retainer). We work with two clients at a time so each one gets the attention the work deserves.
Will the improvements last after you leave?
That is the point of the work. Your team leads the build by the end, the playbook is written the way the work is actually done, and your people run the system once we step away.