INSIDE BUILDER-OF-LEADERS MENTORING

Release Execution to an Integrator

You are in another handover meeting and the same scheduling decision has come back to you for the third time this month. Ivanka Menken uses the Release Dial inside Builder-of-Leaders Mentoring, a 6-month 1:1 programme at AUD $1,500 per month ex GST, to move one operational area from founder-owned to integrator-owned. You leave with a written release commitment: the area, the decision rights your COO now has, what triggers an override, and the 14-day check.

Join Builder-of-Leaders Mentoring, AUD $1,500/mo, 6 monthsBook a 20-minute intro call

The Release Dial is a tool inside the programme, not a separate product.

AN EXAMPLE TRADES BUSINESS

A ready COO. A founder still deciding.

  1. STILL WITH THE FOUNDERscheduling, purchasing and site decisions3 areas
  2. WITH THE COOplenty of work, no authorityTasks
  3. THE RELEASEscheduling, with written override triggers1 area, 14 days

THE RULE

“Move the decision rights, not the task list. Check at day 14.”

Your areas and integrator will be your own.

SOUND FAMILIAR?

You handed it over, and it came back

  1. 01You are still the decision-maker for work you thought you handed over.
  2. 02Your COO has tasks but not authority.
  3. 03Every handover comes back to you within a fortnight.

THE OPERATION, AS IT STANDS

  • Scheduling: decided by the founder
  • Purchasing: approved by the founder
  • Site decisions: escalated to the founder
  • COO: ready, busy, waiting for a yes
  • Decision rights in writing: none

A capable integrator, and every changing decision still routed to one person.

THE EXAMPLE CASE

A trades founder with a COO ready to integrate

  1. 01

    THE MOMENT

    The same call back on the founder’s desk

    It is the weekly handover meeting. Your COO has a full list and a clear head. Then a job runs late, a crew is short, and the schedule needs to change. Everyone looks at you. It is the third time this month the same scheduling call has landed back on your desk. The COO was given the work. Nobody gave them the decision.

  2. 02

    WHAT THEY HAD TRIED

    A weekly handover meeting

    In this case, the founder of a trades business had a COO ready to take on the integrator role: running the day-to-day so the founder could lead. The obvious fix was a weekly meeting to hand over tasks. The list moved across each week. Then a job changed, and the decision came back, because nothing said the COO could make it. Within a fortnight the founder was the bottleneck again.

  3. 03

    WHAT IVANKA NOTICED

    Work without authority

    Ivanka noticed the COO was being given work, not the authority to decide when the work changed. Scheduling, purchasing and site decisions all had the founder’s name on the final call. The COO could do every task on the list and still had to ask about the one moment that mattered. The handover meeting moved effort. It never moved a single decision right.

THE DIAGNOSIS

A release step, not a task list

The real issue was a release step, not a longer task list. One area needed to move from founder-owned to COO-owned, with the decision rights written down and a clear rule for when the founder steps back in.

The reframe: a COO becomes an integrator when decision rights move, not when more tasks are handed over. Move one area one notch on the Release Dial, write what triggers an override, and leave it alone for 14 days.

A COO becomes an integrator when decision rights move, not when more tasks are handed over.

THE COST OF STAYING STUCK

While the decisions stay with the founder, the founder stays the integrator, every operating change waits for one person, and a ready COO learns to ask instead of decide.

THE TOOL

The Release Dial, for one operational area

The Release Dial is how Builder-of-Leaders Mentoring moves work from the founder to a leader one notch at a time. For an integrator, the dial is turned on one operational area, and the decision rights for that area move with it.

The Release Dial, for one operational areaTwo lanes. The top lane, founder-owned, shows three areas: scheduling, purchasing and site decisions, with scheduling faded because it has moved. An arrow labelled decision rights move carries scheduling down to the lower lane, integrator-owned by the COO, where it sits in gold with the note changes the schedule without asking. On the right, three override triggers: a client escalation, a safety issue, a cost above the agreed line. Below them, a strip of 14 days ending in a gold day 14, the check, with no override in between and notes only. Underneath, the written release to copy, with blanks for the name, start date and cost line.ONE AREA MOVES, WITH ITS DECISION RIGHTSFOUNDER-OWNEDSchedulingPurchasingSite callsDecision rights moveINTEGRATOR-OWNED (COO)SchedulingChanges the schedulewithout askingOVERRIDE TRIGGERSA client escalationA safety issueA cost above the agreed lineTHE 14-DAY CHECKDAY 1DAY 14No override in between, notes only.THE WRITTEN RELEASEScheduling is ________’s for 14 days.I step in only for a client escalation,a safety issue or a cost above $_____.Everything else: notes for day 14.A COO becomes an integrator whendecision rights move.

Tap a part. Your areas and triggers are yours.

Release Dial · a framework by Ivanka Menken

What it is

It is one page for one area. The area, the decisions that now belong to the integrator, the few written triggers that bring it back to the founder, and the 14-day check. Everything else in the operation stays where it is until this one release has been reviewed.

What it replaces

It replaces a weekly task handover, an unspoken rule that the founder has the final say, and the hope that a busy COO will start deciding without being told they can.

It sits inside Builder-of-Leaders Mentoring, next to the monthly scorecard that records release commitments kept. One release is written each fortnight and reviewed at the next session. It is coaching with written commitments, not done-for-you implementation.

THE RELEASE, FOR ONE AREA

  • 01The area: scheduling, crews and job order
  • 02Moves to the COO: changes to the schedule, without asking
  • 03Stays with the founder: anything on the written trigger list
  • 04Override triggers: a client escalation, a safety issue, a cost above the agreed line
  • 05The check: day 14, at the next session
  • 06What comes back: the coaching item for that session

HOW IVANKA WORKED WITH THEM

One area, one notch, 14 days

In the session, Ivanka asked which decision kept coming back to the founder. Scheduling won, easily. Then she asked what the COO would own for 14 days and what would trigger an override. Together they wrote a release commitment: scheduling moved to the COO, with the decision rights and three override triggers on one page. The founder told the team who now decided, and kept out of it until the check.

THE RELEASE COMMITMENT, AS WRITTEN

Area
Scheduling: crews, job order and changes.
Decision rights
The COO changes the schedule without asking.
Override triggers
Client escalation, safety issue, cost above the line.
Check
Day 14, review what came back.
Review
Day 14, at the next session

Your area and triggers will be your own.

THE FOUR-STEP LOOP

  1. 1The one thingScheduling, decided by the founder every time.
  2. 2The numbersThree calls back on the desk this month.
  3. 3The storyIt is quicker if I just decide.
  4. 4The commitmentScheduling to the COO for 14 days, triggers in writing.

THE QUESTIONS

  • Which decision keeps coming back to you?
  • What would your integrator own for 14 days?
  • What would trigger an override?
  • Who needs to hear that the decision has moved?
  • What will you do instead of stepping in?

Before the next session, the founder told the crews and the office that scheduling now sat with the COO, noted every urge to step in, and brought the notes and anything that came back.

WHAT CHANGED

One area owned by the integrator

By month 6, the founder has moved one operational area to the integrator, has a written release commitment checked every fortnight, and the monthly scorecard records release commitments kept.

BEFORE

  • Every schedule change went to the founder.
  • The COO had tasks and no authority.
  • Handovers came back within a fortnight.
  • The founder was the integrator by default.

BY MONTH 6

  • Scheduling owned by the COO, in writing.
  • Override triggers agreed and short.
  • A release checked every fortnight.
  • Release commitments kept on the monthly scorecard.

THE 12 FORTNIGHTS

  1. 1Call
  2. 2Call
  3. 3Call
  4. 4Call
  5. 5Call
  6. 6Month 3
  7. 7Call
  8. 8Call
  9. 9Call
  10. 10Call
  11. 11Call
  12. 12Month 6

The programme is the container: 12 fortnightly 60-minute sessions, one release each fortnight, and reviews at month 3 and month 6.

ILLUSTRATIVE RESULT

The founder used the Release Dial to move scheduling to the COO for 14 days and wrote down what would trigger an override. The next check focused on what came back, not on whether the COO was busy, and purchasing became the next area on the dial.

Ivanka Menken speaking with a microphone in a wood-panelled room
One area moves to the integrator, with the decision rights in writing.

WHAT THIS MEANS FOR YOU

Give your integrator one decision, in writing

Ivanka Menken built Builder-of-Leaders Mentoring for founders of $500K to $3M businesses who build leaders but still do it all. She helps you choose the first area to release, write the decision rights down and keep out of it long enough to see the leader act.

This fits if you have a COO, an operations manager or a second in charge who is ready for more ownership, and decisions still come back to you. It does not fit if you want leadership theory or someone to run the operation for you. The decision in front of you is one area and one name. Write them down before the next handover meeting.

“Helps founders lead with clarity and integrity by modelling vulnerability, emotional intelligence, and grounded decision-making. Creates an environment where leaders can openly explore challenges and grow without fear of judgement.”

R.W., founder

WHO IT IS FOR

It fits

  • You have a COO or operations lead ready for more ownership.
  • Decisions you handed over keep coming back.
  • You run a $500K to $3M business.
  • You will move one area and stay out for 14 days.

It does not fit

  • You want leadership theory rather than one written release.
  • You want a done-for-you fix or someone to run operations.
  • You have nobody yet to hand an area to.
  • You want to keep the final say on every change.

THE INVESTMENT

AUD $1,500

per month ex GST

6 months · 12 fortnightly sessions

The Release Dial is part of Builder-of-Leaders Mentoring, a 6-month 1:1 programme at AUD $1,500 per month ex GST. It is not sold separately.

  • 12 fortnightly 60-minute sessions
  • One release each fortnight
  • A monthly scorecard with release commitments kept
  • Reviews at month 3 and month 6
Join Builder-of-Leaders Mentoring, AUD $1,500/mo, 6 monthsBook a 20-minute intro callSee the Builder-of-Leaders Mentoring programme →

Three founding places in total, shared across all 1:1 mentoring, are available at AUD $1,000/month ex GST, in return for honest monthly feedback and a testimonial, which can be anonymous. Claim a founding place.

The Release Dial is part of the programme. It is not sold separately.

FREQUENTLY ASKED

Questions about releasing work to an integrator

What is the Release Dial?

It is the tool Ivanka Menken uses inside Builder-of-Leaders Mentoring to move one area from founder-owned to integrator-owned, one notch at a time. Each release names the area, the decision rights that move, the override triggers and a 14-day check. The programme runs for 6 months at AUD $1,500 per month ex GST, with one release each fortnight.

Do I need a COO already?

You need someone ready to take more ownership: a COO, an operations manager or a capable second in charge. The Release Dial clarifies the decision rights they need for one area. If nobody is ready yet, the first release may be smaller. Ivanka Menken helps you choose it inside Builder-of-Leaders Mentoring, 6 months at AUD $1,500 per month ex GST.

Is this a done-for-you fix?

No. It is coaching inside Builder-of-Leaders Mentoring, not done-for-you implementation. You write the release, tell the team and keep out of it for 14 days; the review at the next session is where the coaching happens. Ivanka Menken works with you for 6 months at AUD $1,500 per month ex GST, one release each fortnight.

How long is Builder-of-Leaders Mentoring?

Builder-of-Leaders Mentoring runs for 6 months at AUD $1,500 per month ex GST: twelve fortnightly 60-minute 1:1 sessions with Ivanka Menken, one release each fortnight, a monthly scorecard of release commitments kept and reviews at month 3 and month 6. The Release Dial is part of the programme and is not sold separately. A 20-minute intro call shows whether it fits.

Release one area to your integrator

If your COO is ready and the decisions still come back to you, start with Builder-of-Leaders Mentoring. The Release Dial is inside it, and the 20-minute intro call is where you can see whether the programme fits.

Not leadership theory or a done-for-you fix.

Join Builder-of-Leaders Mentoring, AUD $1,500/mo, 6 monthsBook a 20-minute intro call

See the Builder-of-Leaders Mentoring programme →

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