You hire us to build it.
The diagnostic rolls directly into whichever of the three paths we recommended, with our team working alongside yours.
The Readout
Two weeks. Five sessions. One honest recommendation.
The Readout is a two-week diagnostic that tells you, in plain language, what your business actually needs and which of three paths fits. Not a strategy deck. A decision you can act on.
What The Readout is
A fixed-scope diagnostic. We look at your business the way an operator looks at it, not the way a strategy consultant looks at it. Two weeks inside the operating reality: the systems, the team, the tech stack, the economics, the founder’s role in all of it. Then we tell you what we found.
The deliverable is a written diagnostic with a specific path recommendation. Not options. A recommendation.
What’s included
Over two weeks:
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Five working sessions
Conversations with you and the people who know how the business actually runs. Not interviews. Each session does real diagnostic work, with some education woven through so the recommendation doesn’t arrive cold.
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Architecture review
Current operating systems, tech stack, team structure, and economics mapped against AI-era performance.
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The Two Debts assessment
Tech debt and operational debt, both quantified rather than hand-waved.
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The Six Lenses
Our diagnostic frame run across the business.
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A written diagnostic
What’s working, what isn’t, what the AI-era pressure looks like on your category specifically.
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Path recommendation
Optimize, Re-architect, or The Parallel Build. Named, with reasoning.
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Scope and commitment estimate
If you move forward on the recommended path, what that engagement looks like: timeline, team involvement, investment range.
Price
$10,000
to start
Engagements start at $10,000 for a two-week Readout at typical scope. Larger businesses with more complex architecture take longer and cost more. You’ll know the full number before you commit. No surprise scope, no change-order math.
Who it’s for
Who it’s for
- You run a business doing $1M to $10M in annual revenue.
- Your category is being reshaped by AI-native competitors, or you can see that it’s about to be.
- You’ve tried strategy decks or one-hammer consultants. You’re past the point where one more helps.
- You want a recommendation you can act on, not a menu of possibilities.
Who it’s not for
- Pre-revenue or early-stage businesses. The Readout is built for architecture that exists.
- Operators looking for validation of a direction already committed to. We’ll tell you what we find. If you don’t want that, don’t book this.
- Buyers shopping on methodology. We diagnose first. Methodology follows.
What happens after
One of three things:
You take the diagnostic and build it with your team.
The Readout is designed to stand alone. The written document is specific enough that a capable internal team can execute from it. That’s a valid outcome.
You don’t build it.
The timing isn’t right, the business isn’t ready, or the recommendation isn’t what you expected. You walk away with a clearer read on the business than you had two weeks ago. That’s worth $10K.
FAQ
How long from booking to kickoff?
Usually two to four weeks, depending on calendar. We run a limited number of Readouts concurrently.
Who at my company needs to be involved?
You, and up to four other people who know how the business actually runs. Operations lead, head of revenue, CTO or equivalent, one or two more depending on the architecture. We scope the sessions with you before kickoff.
What does the deliverable look like?
A written document, typically 15 to 30 pages, with the diagnostic findings, the path recommendation, the reasoning behind it, and a scope estimate for the follow-on engagement if you decide to work with us on the build.
Can we just skip to the build?
No. We don’t sell paths before we’ve diagnosed the business. That’s the firm.
What if you recommend a path you’d rather not sell?
We tell you anyway. That’s the agreement. If Optimize is the right path and you want Re-architect because it sounds more exciting, we’ll say so. If the honest answer is don’t hire us, hire somebody else, that goes in the diagnostic too.
Book The Readout
Two weeks. Five sessions. One honest recommendation.
A written diagnostic with a specific path recommendation. Starts at $10,000.
Book The Readout