About Dash Two
Why “Dash Two”?
Every flight leader has a wingman — the number two who watches your blind spot and calls out what you can’t see. That’s what “Dash Two” means.
What we are
Most owner-led manufacturers are quietly leaking money through firefighting and inconsistency. You can sense it, but you can’t put a figure on it. We’re your operating board: we find where the money is going, measure it against the standard, and help you close the gap. ISO-grade rigour, aimed squarely at the money on your floor.
The founder
Elizabeth Balarezo
Founder & Managing Director
As a child, the highlight of Elizabeth’s week was standing at the fence of the local RAAF base, watching aircraft take off and land. That fascination turned into flying lessons and, soon after, aerobatics. Upside down and pulling Gs, what you feel and what’s actually happening aren’t always the same thing. Flying teaches precision, composure under pressure and trusting your instruments over your instincts, because there is little to no margin for error. It’s a mindset she has carried into every business she’s worked in.
Alongside flying, her lifelong passion is business, particularly manufacturing. For over 20 years Elizabeth has worked from both the operator’s chair and the consultant’s chair across manufacturing, building supply, engineering and mining, running operations, building businesses and fixing what wasn’t working.
The track record
From admin to the Management Board
Moved from administration to project manager within the first year at a security screen and door manufacturer, then led the complete re-systemisation of the business around a new ERP, from writing the specification to training every person in the office and on the factory floor. Went on to become National Sales Manager and sit on the Management Board and Design Committee.
A struggling branch, profitable in month one
Took over a struggling window, door and security screen manufacturing branch and rebuilt how it ran. A new production schedule and accountability system almost entirely eliminated overtime and lifted productivity, and quoting margins were restructured to turn a recurring cost leak into profit. The branch was profitable from the first month and every month after, and went on to be named one of its group’s most profitable manufacturing branches two years running. Along the way, delivered an under-quoted government contract for remote communities on time and on budget.
From $20,000 a month to $1.5 million a year
Took a small building supply operation turning over around $20,000 a month and set it up as a full branch end to end, from showroom design and build to recruitment, key accounts and new business systems. Smashed the $500,000 first-year target, then hit $1.5 million the year after.
From branch manager to the National Senior Leadership Team
As National Category Manager on the National Senior Leadership Team of one of Australia’s largest hardware and trade supply businesses, owned range, pricing and positioning across 15 product categories and 22+ branches. Managed 300+ supplier relationships and ran central bulk-buy and import programs.
Trusted with the numbers at executive level
As a consultant to a major bulk commodity export terminal, delivered business management consulting, workflow mapping and analysis, and operational assessments. Designed and rolled out daily planning and organising systems across its operations teams, and worked with union representatives and management to review the pricing structure, building the EBA calculator the executive team used to set negotiating positions.
From 80-hour weeks to a self-managing team
Designed and implemented a daily planning and organising system for an end-to-end commercial air conditioning and HVAC services business, giving front-line teams and management visibility of their workload and the ability to self-organise. Took the owner from 80-hour weeks to a team that runs itself.
What good looks like, on paper and on the floor
Qualified Lead Auditor in integrated management systems across ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001. Knows what good looks like on paper and on the floor.
Elizabeth knows what it’s like to run a business where everything lands on you, the leaks are hidden in plain sight, and the last consultant’s report is gathering dust on a shelf.
That’s why she built Dash Two: to be the wingman owner-led manufacturers and fabricators don’t have. One who has sat in their chair, flies alongside, reads the instruments with them, and stays until the gain is banked.
The co-founder
David Balarezo
Co-Founder & Business Development Manager
David has sat on both sides of the counter. He has spent his career selling, and five years as a business owner, carrying the P&L, the payroll, the suppliers and the staff. He knows what a sale is worth when it’s your own money on the line.
The products have changed over the years; the job hasn’t. Across solar, timber, home loans, education and property, the measure of his work has always been the same: did the business grow? With a grounding in accounting, bookkeeping and financial services, he speaks the language of business: margins, cash flow and growth.
The track record
Top seller and top earner, in solar and in timber
Started in solar as a sales consultant and technical design specialist, then moved into internal sales for a timber supplier, finishing with the most sales per month and the highest commission in both, and learning early that the easiest product to sell is the one you genuinely understand.
From $10 million to $150 million
Supported 30 mortgage brokers across the full loan lifecycle, helping lift their sales from $10 million to $150 million. Redesigned the application-to-settlement process, lifting broker capacity by 500%, then qualified as a Mortgage Broker himself, following up every lead within 12 hours of enquiry.
30 sales a day against a franchise average of 1–2
Bought a gym franchise and ran it as owner-operator, growing it from zero to more than 1,100 members, from pre-launch fit-out to a mature club. Set a club record of 30 sales a day for five days straight, against a franchise average of one or two. Owned the P&L end to end and wrote the business systems manual the team ran on.
Accounting and bookkeeping
Studied accounting at university, learning how every sale flows through to the books, the cash flow and the bottom line.
70 to 100 conversations a day
Ran consultative outbound sales for an education provider, making 70 to 100 calls a day and working a CRM of more than 700 clients.
Costing work straight from the drawings
Prepared quantity take-offs, bills of quantities and cost estimates straight from design drawings in a multidisciplinary engineering consultancy, while completing a Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) and a Master of Engineering Project Management, including contract administration.
Pipeline, follow-up and appraisals
Built and worked an active buyer and prospect pipeline in residential real estate, running structured follow-up, open homes and inspections, and supporting listing acquisition with market research, comparative market analysis and appraisals.
Having sat in the owner’s chair, David knows most owners don’t need another sales pitch. They need someone who listens first, understands how their business makes money, and tells them straight whether we can help.
That’s how he approaches every conversation at Dash Two.
Why Dash Two
Both sides of your business.
Most advisers look at one side of a business. We look at how it runs and how it grows, because one always affects the other.
Operations · led by Elizabeth
Stop the value leaking out
How the operation runs: systems, schedules, standards and the cost of inconsistency, scored against what good looks like.
Commercial · led by David
Unlock the value inside
How the business grows and makes money: pipeline, pricing, margins and cash flow, read with a commercial eye.
Measured, not guessed
Your business is scored against a defined standard built on the ISO management system standards, not a gut feel or a template.
A number, not a report
We put a dollar figure on what inconsistency is costing you, so every decision starts from the money.
We stay until it’s banked
We work alongside you and your team until the improvement shows up in your numbers.
The right people for the job
We bring in specialist expertise when the work calls for it, so you get what you need without the overheads of a big firm.
We’ve sat in your chair
Our founders have owned and run businesses. We know the difference between good advice and what works on a Monday morning.
Let's talk
Find out where your business is leaking money
Request your free Snapshot — a first look at your business on your own floor, and an evidenced dollar figure on your Tolerance Tax. Just the first thing you couldn’t see.
No obligation — just a straight conversation about where you’re at.