When a business owner hasn’t paid themselves in two years and is operating at a loss, most would assume they need more revenue. Pete Perry knows better. In just 20 minutes, he helped that founder identify $30,000 in immediate expense savings. Within a month, they’d cut costs by 30% and were finally taking home a paycheck.
This transformative approach is why agency owners put sticky notes on their monitors asking, “What would Pete do?”
The four numbers that matter
Pete Perry, founder of Pete Perry Coaching and veteran business coach with over a decade of experience, has a refreshingly simple philosophy: “Every business owner should know by heart their four numbers—revenue, cost of goods sold, fixed expenses, and profit.”
Yet most founders, especially in the digital marketing agency world where Pete specializes, are so focused on lead generation and client fulfillment that they’ve never truly examined their financials.
“It depends on the business, but if you’re talking about digital marketing agencies, almost always they got into it because they were good at design or development,” Pete explains. “All they ever cared about was, ‘Am I putting enough food on the table?’ They didn’t really think about how the numbers relate to each other.”
Starting with financial reality
Pete’s coaching process is methodical and begins exactly where most founders are weakest—the profit and loss statement. Rather than diving into growth strategies or marketing plans, he requests their P&L before the first meeting.
“We start by doing a deep dive into their finances,” Pete says. “I’ll dive into their profit and loss statement specifically. In my world, I call profit the owner’s pay as well as anything that’s left over at the end, because to me it all goes in your pocket.”
This financial-first approach immediately reveals opportunities. Pete consistently finds founders wasting money on forgotten subscriptions, overpaying for services, or maintaining expensive contractors when more cost-effective solutions exist.
“I’ll often go to cost of goods sold, which for agencies anyway, is almost always just labor,” he notes. “They’ll oftentimes have really high-end contractors when they could bring in somebody fractional who could still do the work, probably do it better, more of a somebody-on-their-team thing, and save money.”
Beyond the numbers: the self-discovery process
Once the financial foundation is established, Pete moves to what he calls “self-discovery”—turning the typical agency discovery session inward. This process covers mission, vision, values, SWOT analysis, client avatars, and product/service offerings.
But Pete’s approach to values is particularly unique. Rather than brainstorming aspirational values in a conference room, he has clients survey their customers, colleagues, and even family members.
“A lot of that can actually come not from here or here, but from there—the people you’ve worked with in the past,” Pete explains. “If you ask the right questions, you are gonna get back what your values really are.”
When Pete did this exercise himself, 25 out of 30 people said his superpower was cutting through complexity without making people feel foolish. That insight became central to his coaching approach—something he might never have discovered through traditional values exercises.
The crystal ball org chart: escaping the chief everything officer trap
Perhaps Pete’s most powerful framework addresses the universal founder challenge: doing everything yourself. His “Crystal Ball Org Chart” provides a visual roadmap for smart delegation.
“I make them take off all the hats and draw a box for every hat,” Pete explains. “If you are in five of the boxes, then put your name in all five boxes. That’s okay.”
The framework uses color coding:
- Green: Where each person truly belongs
- Red: Danger zones where founders shouldn’t be
- Other colors: Future hires or contractor positions
Combined with time tracking, this visual representation makes it crystal clear which responsibilities to delegate first. Pete often finds founders trapped in development or project management roles when they should be focused on business growth.
The 1-3-5 framework for daily focus
Even after hiring, founders struggle with prioritization. Pete’s 1-3-5 Framework provides daily structure:
- 1 Big Rock: The major initiative that moves the business forward
- 3 Medium Stones: Important but not critical projects
- 5 Pebbles: Quick tasks that need handling
“By hiring a designer or a developer or a project manager, every one of my clients can now focus more on that one big rock,” Pete notes. “Which is usually gonna be about growing revenue, operations, or managing expenses.”
The power of fractional talent
Pete consistently recommends starting with fractional hires, particularly through services like Quickly Hire. This approach addresses both trust and budget concerns that keep founders stuck in the do-it-all trap.
“They probably don’t need full-time yet, and also don’t trust to just give everything away full-time yet,” he observes. “So they can start at 10 hours a week and gradually build up to learn how to delegate better.”
Project managers, in particular, deliver exceptional ROI. “They feel like they get the most bang for their buck with a project manager because it’s such an important role in their business,” Pete says.
Sound mind, sound body, sound business
While Pete is quick to clarify he’s neither a health coach nor therapist, he recognizes that business success requires personal balance. His framework addresses time management, family relationships, and the burnout that comes from wearing too many hats.
“It’s all about balance,” he emphasizes. “We always talk about work-life balance, but it’s all about balance. Part of the sound mind part is feeling safe in your family life.”
Building community for sustainable growth
Looking ahead, Pete is expanding beyond one-on-one coaching to build a mastermind community. While clients meet with him biweekly and have Slack access during business hours, he recognizes the power of peer support.
“The hive mind can do a lot of great things,” he notes. “I want that to come together in the next 12 to 18 months.”
Key takeaways
Pete Perry’s approach succeeds because it addresses the real challenges founders face—not the ones they think they have. By starting with financial clarity, building authentic values, creating visual hiring roadmaps, and encouraging sustainable practices, he helps founders transform from overwhelmed operators into strategic leaders.
His frameworks aren’t just theoretical. They’re battle-tested tools that have helped founders go from two years without pay to profitable operations, from doing everything to leading teams, from burnout to balance.
For growth-stage founders feeling trapped in their own success, Pete’s message is clear: You don’t need more revenue. You need better systems, clearer priorities, and the courage to stop being Chief Everything Officer.
Ready to transform your business? Listen to the full Partner Pulse episode with Pete Perry to discover how his frameworks can help you scale smarter, not harder.