Growth Comes at a Cost
Introduction
In the fast-moving world of food and beverage, scaling isn't just about making more product—it's about navigating a maze of compliance, co-manufacturers, new SKUs, and retailer timelines. Whether you're onboarding a national grocery chain, expanding your product line, or gearing up for a CapEx project, the stakes are high. The margin for error? Almost nonexistent.
Most internal operations teams are filled with talented, dedicated people. But they were built to manage day-to-day operations, not the complexity that comes with hypergrowth. When scaling hits, even the strongest teams get stretched thin.
That’s where specialist partners come in. With deep experience, plug-in expertise, and a bias for execution, they don’t just help you plan—they help you do. In this blog, we’ll explore why in-house ops teams hit breaking points, and how Catapult’s proven team of 90+ food and beverage experts help ambitious brands scale faster, cleaner, and with more confidence.
The Growth Trap: Why Scaling Breaks Strong Ops Teams
Scaling exposes the operational cracks that weren't visible during the startup or regional phase. Suddenly, VPs who should be focused on growth and vision are being pulled into daily execution fires.
Internal bandwidth maxes out. Teams already running lean can’t absorb 3x the projects overnight.
Leaders become firefighters. Founders, VPs of Ops, and Innovation leaders are forced back into the weeds.
Execution falls behind. With no one owning cross-functional timelines, even minor issues snowball into major setbacks.
Compliance and regulatory steps are rushed or skipped. That exposes the brand to costly delays or even recalls.
These aren’t talent problems. They’re capacity problems.
Catapult's Solution: Catapult inserts seasoned, hands-on operators who can take the weight off internal teams immediately. Whether it's owning a co-man launch, managing a CapEx timeline, or aligning R&D with QA and supply chain, our experts know the terrain. We give you back your time—and protect your runway.
The 5 Common Challenges In-House Ops Teams Face at Scale
1. Co-Manufacturer Management Overload
Juggling multiple co-mans means juggling personalities, production calendars, paperwork, and capacity limits. One delay can ripple across your entire pipeline.
Catapult's Solution: We step in as your co-man quarterback. We handle scheduling, communications, troubleshooting, and QA oversight—freeing your internal team to stay focused on growth.
2. Capacity Planning & Forecasting Issues
Demand surges. Orders fluctuate. Co-mans miss projections. Suddenly, you're either overproducing or out of stock.
Catapult's Solution: Our demand planners and supply chain experts build proactive systems to match supply with real-time demand. We’ve seen every forecasting pitfall and know how to plan around them.
3. Cross-Functional Execution Gaps
Your R&D team finalizes the formula. Ops begins sourcing. QA starts writing specs. But timelines don’t line up and miscommunications abound.
Catapult's Solution: We integrate across departments to align teams on one critical path. We keep everyone focused, informed, and moving forward.
4. Regulatory and Compliance Blind Spots
New regions. New retailers. New documentation needs. It’s easy to miss something—and pay dearly for it later.
Catapult's Solution: Our regulatory specialists bring deep category expertise and know what documentation each retailer, region, or product type requires. No surprises. No delays.
5. Lack of Senior-Level Project Management Bandwidth
Your internal project manager is running four launches at once. They’re talented, but the system is overloaded.
Catapult's Solution: Our fractional project leaders step in to own timelines, coordinate stakeholders, and ensure every milestone is hit. We’re not consultants who disappear. We stay in the trenches until the work is done.
The Cost of Staying In-House
Trying to scale with an already-stretched internal team doesn’t just slow you down—it costs you real money and momentum.
Delayed Launches = Missed Revenue. That retailer reset won’t wait. If your product isn’t ready, someone else takes the shelf.
Mistakes Multiply. A small spec error or miscommunication with a co-man can delay production, damage retail relationships, or burn investor trust.
Team Burnout & Turnover. Your best people get overloaded, then overwhelmed. Replacing them mid-scale adds more risk.
Stalled Innovation. With everyone in execution mode, the pipeline dries up. You stop creating what’s next.
Catapult’s Value: Our model prevents all four. We jump in when things start slipping and keep you on track. And because we’re operators, not theorists, we know how to course-correct fast.
What Specialist Partners Bring to the Table
Specialist partners like Catapult don’t just bring extra hands—we bring targeted, seasoned leadership where and when it matters most.
Plug-in Expertise Without Full-Time Headcount Need a regulatory pro, a commercialization lead, or a project manager to own timelines? We’ve got them—ready to go.
Execution, Not Just Advice We don’t do decks. We do deadlines. Our team is there to get things done, not just make recommendations.
Deep Food & Beverage Industry Knowledge Every Catapult expert comes from food and beverage. We speak the language, know the systems, and understand the nuances of scaling CPG brands.
Clear Communication With Executive Leadership Our leaders know how to operate in high-stakes rooms. We give you clear updates, straight answers, and smart solutions.
Catapult's 3 Key Differentiators:
90+ Experts. 1,000+ Years of Collective Experience.
With a national bench of more than 90 consultants, Catapult offers deep and diverse experience across the entire food and beverage landscape.Hands-On Leaders, Not Just Consultants.
From R&D to commercialization, our experts build and execute the roadmap—and stay accountable from kickoff to closeout.Built to Solve Across Every Category.
Beverages. Plant-based. Confections. Supplements. Frozen. Functional. We’ve done it. And we’ve delivered.
Real Results: How the Right Partner Transforms Ops
Case Study: How Catapult Transformed Ops at a Plant-Based Beverage Brand
Challenge: Client initiated multiple CapEx projects in one year—10x their normal scope. Simultaneously, they were implementing rPET blow molders, upgrading facilities, and managing live production. Timeline slippage, budget risks, and cross-functional overload loomed.
Catapult's Role:
Took over project management for the rPET blow molder rollout
Unified timelines across three internal and two external teams
Implemented new budget and cash flow visibility systems
Standardized stakeholder updates and risk mitigation protocols
Impact:
Prevented production downtime during facility upgrades
Delivered project under budget and on time
Enabled full rPET shift in one phase (vs. two)
Left behind tools and trained team for long-term execution
Bottom Line: With Catapult in place, the client scaled without chaos—and kept their innovation engine running.
How to Know It’s Time to Call In Specialists
There’s no shame in hitting capacity. But there is risk in ignoring it.
If you’re seeing these signs, it’s time to bring in a partner like Catapult:
Your VP of Ops is managing co-man issues instead of growing the business
Timelines are slipping despite a solid internal team
You’re planning a major launch, and the team is already underwater
You’ve got CapEx projects kicking off, but no one can fully own them
You’re strong on strategy—but execution keeps derailing progress
That’s our lane. We step in with speed and precision, bringing your vision to life.
Conclusion
Scaling doesn’t have to mean burning out your team or blowing deadlines. With the right partner, you can grow faster, execute cleaner, and keep your internal team focused on what they do best.
Catapult is your department-for-hire. We bring over 90 proven food and beverage experts to the table—ready to plug in, lead, and deliver.
Whether you need support launching a new SKU, managing a CapEx project, or commercializing an innovation pipeline, we’re built for action.
Not advice. Execution.
Let’s talk about what’s landing on your desk that shouldn’t be—and how we can help clear the path to scale.
Contact us here to get started.