The method
Four steps, the same on every engagement. Scope is described in steps, not in hours, because I price the result.
1. Assess
I read the current state of the enterprise through four lenses.
- People: skills, roles, key-person dependence, how fast new hires become useful.
- Process: how the work really runs, and where it does not match how it is described.
- Software: what you pay for, what is used, what is near end of support, and what is duplicated.
- AI: every AI tool and agent in use, including the AI inside software you already pay for, who owns each, and what it can reach.
Every finding carries its evidence. Opinions are labeled as opinions.
2. Compare
I test that state against your mission, vision and strategic plan, and against where your markets and customers are going. Three outputs answer the three questions.
- Alignment Map. The Board, the CEO and senior leaders answer the same short questions in writing. Their answers sit beside the written plan and the budget. Every difference is marked.
- Exposure Register. Each risk with a dollar value, a named owner, the current control and the date the control was last tested.
- Readiness Gap. The capabilities the plan needs, against what the four lenses show, with the cost and the order of closing each gap.
At the end of this step the Board reads the findings and decides whether to commission the plan. If it stops here, it does not pay for the plan.
3. Plan
For every gap, options priced on the same cost lines: people, licenses, build, integration, maintenance, exit and risk. For each option, the two or three numbers that would change the answer. The result is an Actionable Plan: initiatives, owners, sequence, milestones, budget, the value each initiative targets, the risks, and the meeting rhythm for steering and for the Board. Sometimes buying is the right answer. Sometimes building is. Sometimes the right answer is to stop.
4. Prove
I come back at each milestone and test the result against the original numbers, using four rules.
Own it
Is a named person accountable, and can they state the number and the date?
Contain it
Did spend, scope, access and data stay inside the approved limits?
Check it
Did a named approver review the result before it counted, and can they stop it?
Prove it
Can the result be rebuilt from source records and does it match? For AI, was it tested with bad input, and do its guards fire?
Each milestone gets one status: Held, Slipping or Broken. A Broken finding goes to the Board sponsor in writing. I do not soften it to protect the relationship. These are management reviews against the plan. They are not audits and carry no assurance opinion.
The live value dashboard
Every client gets a dashboard of the agreed value metrics.
- Where it runs: inside your environment, in your BI tool, with read-only access. It is not hosted by me, and it is not a product you rent.
- What it shows: baseline, current and target by value lever, and the fee paid against the value verified so far.
- Who sees it: the CEO, the Board and the PE sponsor, with a Board-ready page for each meeting.
- Alerts: a metric that falls behind its path for two refreshes alerts its owner and the sponsor. A missed control or a breached limit alerts the Board chair the same day.
- How value is counted: conservatively, by a rule your finance owner signs at the start. Realized results count. Forecasts are shown in another color and do not count toward the ratio.
The value levers
Revenue generation. Employee capacity and value. Cost reduction. Risk avoided. Working capital and cash. Valuation (using your own stated multiple, never an opinion of mine). Speed. Capital avoided. Retention. Alignment of initiatives with the plan.
How I handle your data
Your data stays in your environment. Where a language model touches your data, it is only on a commercial-terms channel, a local model or your own approved AI tool, in a separate environment for your engagement that is deleted at the end with written confirmation. I name every AI vendor I use as a subprocessor.
Management consulting. Charleston, SC Metro Area.