Working with Whisky & White Paper
What do you actually do?
We streamline the operations behind your business so you can focus on what drives growth. In practice, that means clean systems, clear processes, and someone who gets into the detail of how your business actually runs and makes it work better.
Depending on your setup, that might look like overhauling your client management systems, clarifying your workflows, documenting your processes, or implementing tools that save you hours every week. The common thread is that your business runs more smoothly by the time we’re done, with or without you in the room.
Who do you work with?
Primarily freelancers, business owners, and small teams who are good at what they do but find the operational side of running a business is slowing their growth. If you’re spending more time on admin and managing the business than growing it, that’s usually a sign we’d be a good fit.
All services are provided on a business-to-business basis. If you’re not sure whether that applies to you, just ask.
How is Whisky & White Paper different from a VA or OBM?
A VA typically handles tasks. An OBM typically manages people and projects. What we do sits in a different space. We focus on the infrastructure and systems that underpin how your business operates.
Think less ‘doing your admin’ and more ‘fixing the reason you have so much admin in the first place’.
We’re not a task-taker or a team manager. We’re an operations specialist, which means we look at the whole picture, identify what’s creating friction, and implement systems that work for where your business is right now.
How do I know if I’m ready to work with you?
If you’re asking, it’s worth a conversation. The most common signs:
If none of those fit but you’re curious, a discovery call is the right place to find out. There’s no obligation and no hard sell.
Services and Scope
What’s the difference between the Consult and Execution retainers?
The Consult retainer is for businesses that have the capacity to implement things themselves but want an experienced eye on their operations. You get ongoing operational audit, a prioritised recommendations log, and a monthly strategy call. We tell you what to fix and how; your team does the doing.
The Execution retainer is for businesses that want us to actually implement, not just advise. We take the recommendations and carry them out. It’s a more hands-on, higher-capacity engagement.
Both are billed monthly in advance on a rolling basis with 30 days’ notice to cancel.
What’s a Bespoke Project, and how is it different from Ad Hoc work?
A Bespoke Project is a standalone project with a defined scope, a fixed fee, and a clear deliverable. Think a full systems audit and implementation, or a complete onboarding process designed from the ground up. It has a start point, an end point, and everything in between is agreed upfront.
Ad Hoc work is smaller and more defined: a one-off task with a specific output. Both require scope and payment to be agreed in writing before anything starts.
Any tasks added to a Bespoke Project after scope is agreed are treated as separate work, scoped and billed accordingly. Smaller additions are usually handled as Ad Hoc, larger ones as a new Bespoke Project.
Can I switch between service types?
Yes, with notice and subject to capacity. If you’re on a retainer and your needs change, we can discuss moving to a different arrangement. Any change is agreed in writing and takes effect from the next billing period. We don’t do mid-month switches.
What’s not included?
A few things worth being upfront about:
We don’t work with businesses that want someone available on demand. Our model is structured and scheduled. That said, urgent requests are available in some circumstances, subject to capacity. See ‘What if I need something urgently?’ below.
If you’re not sure whether something falls inside or outside scope, just ask. That conversation is always easier before work starts than after.
Process and Communication
How do we get started?
Book a discovery call here. It’s a relaxed conversation about your business, where you’re at operationally, and whether there’s a good fit. No prep required, no obligation.
If we’re a match, you’ll receive a client agreement and, depending on the service, an invoice or proposal. Work begins once both are signed and payment has cleared.
How do you communicate with clients?
Everything runs through our client portal (SuiteDash). That’s where project updates are shared, documents are stored, and work is tracked. It keeps everything in one place and means nothing gets lost in email threads.
We don’t accept instructions via personal email, WhatsApp, social media, or text message. Not because we’re difficult, but because a clear channel means better work and fewer mistakes.
How quickly do you respond?
Our standard response window is three to five business days (although often faster). We work in structured schedules rather than as a reactive support service, which is part of how we deliver quality work consistently.
If something is genuinely urgent, see the next question.
What if I need something urgently?
Urgent requests are possible but they’re the exception, not the rule. To flag something as urgent, email hello@whiskyandwhitepaper.com with the subject line “URGENT – [Your Business Name]”.
Whether a request qualifies as urgent is determined by us based on the nature of the request and available capacity. Urgent work is billed separately at £200 per hour with a one-hour minimum, and may displace other scheduled work.
If you find yourself regularly needing urgent turnarounds, it’s usually a sign that a retainer would serve you better than ad hoc requests.
What access will you need from me?
That depends on the work, but in general: named user access (not shared logins) to the platforms we’re working in, with the right permission level to actually do the job. Two-factor authentication needs to be set up in a way that doesn’t require you to manually approve every single action.
We’ll tell you specifically what we need before we start. The cost of any additional licences or seats is yours to cover.
What if I cause a delay?
Life happens and we understand that. But delays do have consequences worth understanding upfront. If we’re waiting on information, approvals, or access from you, work pauses. Any capacity that was allocated during that period is lost and cannot be recovered. You don’t get it back at the end of the month or carried forward.
If the wait goes beyond 14 days, you may lose your place in the schedule. Beyond 30 days, we may need to close the project. Payment obligations continue throughout, regardless of delays on your side, and previously agreed timelines may no longer be guaranteed once a delay has occurred.
Do you offer in-person meetings?
Occasionally, by mutual agreement. Travel, accommodation, and subsistence are invoiced on top of your retainer or project fees. This is agreed in advance, not added as a surprise.
Calls
What calls are included?
Discovery and kick-off calls sit outside your retainer and are not deducted from your monthly capacity.
Retainer clients get one optional strategy call per month, up to 40 minutes. It doesn’t roll over if unused.
Additional calls may be included at our discretion where they’re operationally useful.
What happens if I miss a call?
If you cancel with less than 24 hours’ notice, the session will be deducted from your retainer capacity. After three no-shows without adequate notice, we may pause further calls or ask for a booking fee before scheduling new ones.
We know things come up. But we hold space for you, and that space has a cost.
Fees and Payments
How does pricing work?
Retainer fees are fixed monthly amounts, paid in advance. See Services page for more details and pricing. Bespoke Projects and Ad Hoc work are quoted individually based on scope.
Fees are reviewed periodically and any changes will be communicated in writing with at least 30 days’ notice. Please check the Services page for the most current pricing.
Our pricing reflects structured capacity and expertise. You’re not paying for a clock running in the background; you’re investing in work that moves your business forward.
Do you charge VAT?
No. Whisky & White Paper is not currently VAT registered, so no VAT is added to your fees. If that changes, you’ll be notified in advance and updated terms will be issued.
What payment methods do you accept?
Payment is accepted via Stripe through the client portal, bank transfer, or Monzo. Any other method needs to be agreed in writing beforehand.
What happens if my payment is late?
Work pauses until cleared funds are received. Capacity lost during that period is not recoverable, and previously agreed timelines may no longer be guaranteed. Interest on overdue invoices may also be applied in line with the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998.
This is not a punishment. It's a consequence of a capacity-based model. The space was held for you.
What if I want to dispute an invoice?
You have seven calendar days from the invoice date to raise a dispute in writing. Any undisputed portion of the invoice remains payable by the due date regardless.
What’s your cancellation policy?
Retainers require one month’s written notice, aligned to the calendar month. If you give notice after the first day of the month, the notice period covers the remainder of that month plus the following full month.
Bespoke Projects also require one month’s notice. You’re liable for all work completed up to termination, plus any fees covering the notice period.
Ad Hoc work can be cancelled before it starts. Once we’ve begun, the full fee is payable.
Fees are not prorated and unused capacity is non-refundable.
Confidentiality and Data
Is my business information kept confidential?
Yes, absolutely. Everything you share with us stays confidential: your systems, your data, your strategy, your financials. We don’t share client information with third parties except where strictly necessary to deliver the work, and only ever under equivalent confidentiality obligations.
Confidentiality obligations continue for three years after our engagement ends. Trade secrets remain confidential indefinitely.
Do you use AI tools?
We do use AI-assisted tools to support our work. Your confidential information is never inputted into publicly accessible AI tools in a way that could expose it. Where AI tools process any personal data, appropriate safeguards are in place.
How do you handle my personal data?
In accordance with UK GDPR and our Privacy Policy, which you can read in full at www.whiskyandwhitepaper.com/privacy-policy. The short version: we collect only what we need, we keep it securely, and we don’t sell it or share it unnecessarily.
Legal and Intellectual Property
Who owns the work you produce?
Deliverables created specifically for you become yours once full payment is received. The underlying methodologies, frameworks, and processes we use to create them remain ours.
You’re granted a licence to use our intellectual property within your deliverables for your own internal business purposes. That licence is conditional on full payment and ends if fees go unpaid or the agreement is terminated.
Can I use your work to train AI models or share it publicly?
No. Our work must not be used to train AI models, contributed to public repositories, reverse engineered, or distributed without our prior written consent.
What law governs our agreement?
English law. Any disputes are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.
Still have a question? Get in touch at hello@whiskyandwhitepaper.com
Whisky & White Paper | whiskyandwhitepaper.com | Last updated: March 2026
What do you actually do?
We streamline the operations behind your business so you can focus on what drives growth. In practice, that means clean systems, clear processes, and someone who gets into the detail of how your business actually runs and makes it work better.
Depending on your setup, that might look like overhauling your client management systems, clarifying your workflows, documenting your processes, or implementing tools that save you hours every week. The common thread is that your business runs more smoothly by the time we’re done, with or without you in the room.
Who do you work with?
Primarily freelancers, business owners, and small teams who are good at what they do but find the operational side of running a business is slowing their growth. If you’re spending more time on admin and managing the business than growing it, that’s usually a sign we’d be a good fit.
All services are provided on a business-to-business basis. If you’re not sure whether that applies to you, just ask.
How is Whisky & White Paper different from a VA or OBM?
A VA typically handles tasks. An OBM typically manages people and projects. What we do sits in a different space. We focus on the infrastructure and systems that underpin how your business operates.
Think less ‘doing your admin’ and more ‘fixing the reason you have so much admin in the first place’.
We’re not a task-taker or a team manager. We’re an operations specialist, which means we look at the whole picture, identify what’s creating friction, and implement systems that work for where your business is right now.
How do I know if I’m ready to work with you?
If you’re asking, it’s worth a conversation. The most common signs:
- You know something needs to change but you don’t have the time or headspace to tackle it
- Your systems aren’t keeping up and are slowing down your growth
- Things keep falling through the cracks and you’re not sure why
- You’re spending time on the same operational problems repeatedly
Services and Scope
What’s the difference between the Consult and Execution retainers?
The Consult retainer is for businesses that have the capacity to implement things themselves but want an experienced eye on their operations. You get ongoing operational audit, a prioritised recommendations log, and a monthly strategy call. We tell you what to fix and how; your team does the doing.
The Execution retainer is for businesses that want us to actually implement, not just advise. We take the recommendations and carry them out. It’s a more hands-on, higher-capacity engagement.
Both are billed monthly in advance on a rolling basis with 30 days’ notice to cancel.
What’s a Bespoke Project, and how is it different from Ad Hoc work?
A Bespoke Project is a standalone project with a defined scope, a fixed fee, and a clear deliverable. Think a full systems audit and implementation, or a complete onboarding process designed from the ground up. It has a start point, an end point, and everything in between is agreed upfront.
Ad Hoc work is smaller and more defined: a one-off task with a specific output. Both require scope and payment to be agreed in writing before anything starts.
Any tasks added to a Bespoke Project after scope is agreed are treated as separate work, scoped and billed accordingly. Smaller additions are usually handled as Ad Hoc, larger ones as a new Bespoke Project.
Can I switch between service types?
Yes, with notice and subject to capacity. If you’re on a retainer and your needs change, we can discuss moving to a different arrangement. Any change is agreed in writing and takes effect from the next billing period. We don’t do mid-month switches.
What’s not included?
A few things worth being upfront about:
- We don’t manage your team or act as a people manager
- We don’t provide legal, financial, or compliance advice
- We don’t train your staff on platforms or tools
- We don’t offer unlimited access or reactive support outside agreed scope
- Ongoing platform support or maintenance isn’t included unless specifically agreed
We don’t work with businesses that want someone available on demand. Our model is structured and scheduled. That said, urgent requests are available in some circumstances, subject to capacity. See ‘What if I need something urgently?’ below.
If you’re not sure whether something falls inside or outside scope, just ask. That conversation is always easier before work starts than after.
Process and Communication
How do we get started?
Book a discovery call here. It’s a relaxed conversation about your business, where you’re at operationally, and whether there’s a good fit. No prep required, no obligation.
If we’re a match, you’ll receive a client agreement and, depending on the service, an invoice or proposal. Work begins once both are signed and payment has cleared.
How do you communicate with clients?
Everything runs through our client portal (SuiteDash). That’s where project updates are shared, documents are stored, and work is tracked. It keeps everything in one place and means nothing gets lost in email threads.
We don’t accept instructions via personal email, WhatsApp, social media, or text message. Not because we’re difficult, but because a clear channel means better work and fewer mistakes.
How quickly do you respond?
Our standard response window is three to five business days (although often faster). We work in structured schedules rather than as a reactive support service, which is part of how we deliver quality work consistently.
If something is genuinely urgent, see the next question.
What if I need something urgently?
Urgent requests are possible but they’re the exception, not the rule. To flag something as urgent, email hello@whiskyandwhitepaper.com with the subject line “URGENT – [Your Business Name]”.
Whether a request qualifies as urgent is determined by us based on the nature of the request and available capacity. Urgent work is billed separately at £200 per hour with a one-hour minimum, and may displace other scheduled work.
If you find yourself regularly needing urgent turnarounds, it’s usually a sign that a retainer would serve you better than ad hoc requests.
What access will you need from me?
That depends on the work, but in general: named user access (not shared logins) to the platforms we’re working in, with the right permission level to actually do the job. Two-factor authentication needs to be set up in a way that doesn’t require you to manually approve every single action.
We’ll tell you specifically what we need before we start. The cost of any additional licences or seats is yours to cover.
What if I cause a delay?
Life happens and we understand that. But delays do have consequences worth understanding upfront. If we’re waiting on information, approvals, or access from you, work pauses. Any capacity that was allocated during that period is lost and cannot be recovered. You don’t get it back at the end of the month or carried forward.
If the wait goes beyond 14 days, you may lose your place in the schedule. Beyond 30 days, we may need to close the project. Payment obligations continue throughout, regardless of delays on your side, and previously agreed timelines may no longer be guaranteed once a delay has occurred.
Do you offer in-person meetings?
Occasionally, by mutual agreement. Travel, accommodation, and subsistence are invoiced on top of your retainer or project fees. This is agreed in advance, not added as a surprise.
Calls
What calls are included?
Discovery and kick-off calls sit outside your retainer and are not deducted from your monthly capacity.
Retainer clients get one optional strategy call per month, up to 40 minutes. It doesn’t roll over if unused.
Additional calls may be included at our discretion where they’re operationally useful.
What happens if I miss a call?
If you cancel with less than 24 hours’ notice, the session will be deducted from your retainer capacity. After three no-shows without adequate notice, we may pause further calls or ask for a booking fee before scheduling new ones.
We know things come up. But we hold space for you, and that space has a cost.
Fees and Payments
How does pricing work?
Retainer fees are fixed monthly amounts, paid in advance. See Services page for more details and pricing. Bespoke Projects and Ad Hoc work are quoted individually based on scope.
Fees are reviewed periodically and any changes will be communicated in writing with at least 30 days’ notice. Please check the Services page for the most current pricing.
Our pricing reflects structured capacity and expertise. You’re not paying for a clock running in the background; you’re investing in work that moves your business forward.
Do you charge VAT?
No. Whisky & White Paper is not currently VAT registered, so no VAT is added to your fees. If that changes, you’ll be notified in advance and updated terms will be issued.
What payment methods do you accept?
Payment is accepted via Stripe through the client portal, bank transfer, or Monzo. Any other method needs to be agreed in writing beforehand.
What happens if my payment is late?
Work pauses until cleared funds are received. Capacity lost during that period is not recoverable, and previously agreed timelines may no longer be guaranteed. Interest on overdue invoices may also be applied in line with the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998.
This is not a punishment. It's a consequence of a capacity-based model. The space was held for you.
What if I want to dispute an invoice?
You have seven calendar days from the invoice date to raise a dispute in writing. Any undisputed portion of the invoice remains payable by the due date regardless.
What’s your cancellation policy?
Retainers require one month’s written notice, aligned to the calendar month. If you give notice after the first day of the month, the notice period covers the remainder of that month plus the following full month.
Bespoke Projects also require one month’s notice. You’re liable for all work completed up to termination, plus any fees covering the notice period.
Ad Hoc work can be cancelled before it starts. Once we’ve begun, the full fee is payable.
Fees are not prorated and unused capacity is non-refundable.
Confidentiality and Data
Is my business information kept confidential?
Yes, absolutely. Everything you share with us stays confidential: your systems, your data, your strategy, your financials. We don’t share client information with third parties except where strictly necessary to deliver the work, and only ever under equivalent confidentiality obligations.
Confidentiality obligations continue for three years after our engagement ends. Trade secrets remain confidential indefinitely.
Do you use AI tools?
We do use AI-assisted tools to support our work. Your confidential information is never inputted into publicly accessible AI tools in a way that could expose it. Where AI tools process any personal data, appropriate safeguards are in place.
How do you handle my personal data?
In accordance with UK GDPR and our Privacy Policy, which you can read in full at www.whiskyandwhitepaper.com/privacy-policy. The short version: we collect only what we need, we keep it securely, and we don’t sell it or share it unnecessarily.
Legal and Intellectual Property
Who owns the work you produce?
Deliverables created specifically for you become yours once full payment is received. The underlying methodologies, frameworks, and processes we use to create them remain ours.
You’re granted a licence to use our intellectual property within your deliverables for your own internal business purposes. That licence is conditional on full payment and ends if fees go unpaid or the agreement is terminated.
Can I use your work to train AI models or share it publicly?
No. Our work must not be used to train AI models, contributed to public repositories, reverse engineered, or distributed without our prior written consent.
What law governs our agreement?
English law. Any disputes are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.
Still have a question? Get in touch at hello@whiskyandwhitepaper.com
Whisky & White Paper | whiskyandwhitepaper.com | Last updated: March 2026