COO Operating Model and Enterprise Execution Training Course

Programme Summary

COO operating model and enterprise execution is a five-day training course for sitting and incoming chief operating officers at executive level, culminating in a first-year COO operating plan. Many organisations appoint a COO without settling what the role owns or how performance is reviewed, so strategy stalls before reaching the front line. The approach moves from the COO mandate to operating model design, the operating rhythm, scaling and resilience. Mars Training Centre UK delivers this programme on the COO operating model and enterprise execution.

The Business Case

The chief operating officer converts strategy into results across functions competing for the same people and budget. When the operating model is unclear, decisions escalate upwards, initiatives multiply without owners and reviews report activity rather than outcomes. A deliberately designed model and review cadence free the chief executive for strategy and give every unit a line of sight to enterprise priorities.

• Strategy Execution Rate: Rises as priorities become owned objectives with a fixed review cadence.
• Cost to Serve: Falls as duplicated processes are standardised or shared.
• Operational Disruption: Shortens as critical activities and recovery plans are tested.

Principles and Evidence Base

• Operating Model Canvas: Structures the operating model diagnostic and design in Session 2.
• Balanced Scorecard and OKRs: Link strategy to measurable objectives reviewed in Session 3.
• Lean: Its focus on flow and waste removal guides process standardisation and scaling in Session 4.
• ISO 22301: Its business continuity management system frames operational resilience planning in Session 4.

Intended Participants

• Executives who run the enterprise day to day for the chief executive.
• Leaders who decide how functions, regions and business units are organised and governed.
• Executives who chair business performance reviews and set enterprise objectives.
• Leaders accountable for shared services, process standards and operational risk.

The programme serves manufacturing, logistics, financial services and government organisations.

Learning Outcomes

1. Participants will be able to define a COO mandate and decision rights agreed with the chief executive.
2. Participants will be able to diagnose gaps in the current operating model using the Operating Model Canvas.
3. Participants will be able to design an operating rhythm of business reviews, KPIs and OKRs.
4. Participants will be able to prioritise processes for standardisation, automation or transfer into shared services.
5. Participants will be able to evaluate operational risk and resilience against business continuity requirements.
6. Participants will be able to construct a first-year COO operating plan with sequenced initiatives and owners.

Programme Structure

Day 1: The COO Mandate and the CEO Partnership

What does the chief operating officer own, and how is the role shared with the chief executive?

• COO Role Archetypes and the Choice of Mandate
• CEO and COO Division of Responsibilities
• RACI Decision Rights for the Executive Team
• Stakeholder Map of Functions, Regions and the Board
• First Hundred Days Listening and Diagnostic Plan

Day 2: Designing the COO Operating Model

How should the enterprise be organised to deliver its strategy?

• Operating Model Canvas Diagnostic of the Current State
• Value Chain Mapping and Critical Capabilities
• Centralised, Federated and Decentralised Organisation Choices
• Spans, Layers and Accountability Design
• Target Operating Model Blueprint and Transition Path

Day 3: The Operating Rhythm and Performance Management

How does the executive team know whether strategy is being executed?

• Balanced Scorecard Cascade from Enterprise to Unit Level
• OKRs for Quarterly Priorities and Cross-Functional Goals
• KPI Tree Design and Leading Versus Lagging Indicators
• Monthly and Quarterly Business Review Cadence
• Executive Dashboards and Escalation Routes

Day 4: Scaling Processes, Shared Services and Resilience

Which processes should be standardised, shared or protected as the enterprise grows?

• Lean Process Standardisation and Waste Removal
• Shared Services and Outsourcing Decision Criteria
• Automation and Digital Workflow Prioritisation
• ISO 22301 Business Impact Analysis and Recovery Priorities
• Operational Risk Register and Control Ownership

Day 5: Applying the COO Operating Model to Enterprise Execution

Is the operating plan ready to present to the chief executive and the board?

• Portfolio Prioritisation of Cross-Functional Initiatives
• Aligning the Day 2 Blueprint with Day 3 Review Cadence
• Testing the Plan Against Day 4 Resilience Findings
• Change Leadership Messages for Functions and Regions
• First-Year COO Operating Plan Completion

Methodology

The programme uses case analysis of enterprises that redesigned operations after growth, merger or disruption, drawn from manufacturing, services and the public sector. Each session pairs a short briefing with exercises applying the tools to participants' own organisations, with peer challenge from other senior leaders.

• Suggested activity: Agreeing a CEO and COO division of responsibilities.
• Suggested activity: Redesigning the operating model of a regional logistics group.
• Suggested activity: Running a mock quarterly review against OKRs.

Capstone Output

Each participant completes a first-year COO operating plan. It contains the mandate and decision rights, an operating model gap analysis, the review cadence and scorecard, processes to standardise or share, resilience priorities and a sequenced roadmap with owners.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the COO operating model course suitable for operations directors who are not yet COOs?

Yes. It is set at executive level and assumes experience leading a function or business unit; directors preparing for an enterprise-wide remit use it to shape their mandate early.

Which frameworks does the COO operating model and enterprise execution course use?

It draws on the Operating Model Canvas, the Balanced Scorecard, OKRs, Lean and ISO 22301 for business continuity, with RACI used to agree decision rights.

How is the COO operating plan from this enterprise execution course used at work?

You can present it to your chief executive as your first-year agenda and use its scorecard to run business reviews.

How does COO operating model training differ from operational excellence courses?

It covers the whole enterprise from the executive seat, from mandate to review cadence, rather than methods for improving individual processes.