Methodology
Five stages. One written report. No surprises in the middle.
Here is what happens between the intake form and the report in your inbox. Every stage lists what the auditor does, what you bring, and what feeds the final verdict — so the audit never feels like a black box.
The five stages
From a 60-second form to a written report in roughly ten working days.
Read top to bottom. Each stage lists three rows in the same order — what the auditor does, what you provide, and what feeds the final report— so you can compare stages side by side and follow the logic end to end.
- 01
Stage 1 of 5
Pre-audit intake
A 60-second form so the call starts on the right subject — not the org chart.
- What the auditor does
- Sends a short form covering revenue band, software stack, and three structured pain points.
- What you provide
- Honest answers — they reshape the interview questions and skip the obvious.
- Feeds the report
- The written brief the auditor carries into the call, so the 60 minutes starts on the right subject.
- 02
Stage 2 of 5
The 60-minute interview
One video call walking how work actually moves — leads, fulfilment, billing, support — not the org chart.
- What the auditor does
- Walks through how a real day moves a real order. Pulls on the handoffs that slow you down. Asks the follow-ups the brief surfaced.
- What you provide
- The real workflow, not the dressed-up version. Whoever owns a stuck handoff should be in the room.
- Feeds the report
- The raw evidence behind every recommendation in the final report — without it, nothing else is grounded.
- 03
Stage 3 of 5
The workflow diagram
A single-page map of how work enters, who touches it, and where it stalls.
- What the auditor does
- Returns one page mapping every step from intake to invoice, marking the stalls and the rework loops.
- What you provide
- A five-minute review. You confirm the hotspot names and usually spot the bottleneck before the auditor does.
- Feeds the report
- The diagram that opens the final report and anchors every recommendation that follows.
- 04
Stage 4 of 5
The scored opportunity list
Every candidate fix rated on impact, feasibility, risk, ROI, technology fit, and system compatibility.
- What the auditor does
- Rates each candidate — AI tool, traditional automation, existing software used better, process redesign, or "leave it alone" — across the same six dimensions on every engagement.
- What you provide
- Answer follow-ups by email for two weeks on the Standard tier; the Deep Dive adds two calls over sixty days.
- Feeds the report
- The body of the report. Every verdict cites which dimensions tipped the call, so you can disagree with the working.
- 05
Stage 5 of 5
Delivery & debrief
A 30-minute walk-through of the written report, with optional follow-on Q&A for two weeks.
- What the auditor does
- Walks you through the report on a 30-minute debrief, then emails a written PDF and Markdown copy with the diagram, the scored list, and — on the Deep Dive tier — a worked ROI model for every recommendation.
- What you provide
- The audience who needs to disagree in person — the ops lead, the accountant, whoever will carry the work.
- Feeds the report
- The deliverable. Optional follow-on Q&A for two weeks; the Deep Dive adds two calls over sixty days.
What we score
Six dimensions. Each verdict cites which ones tipped the call.
Readers of the report can disagree with us because we show our working. The dimensions are the same on every engagement so the score is comparable across audits.
- Impact
- Hours saved or revenue unlocked per month — not vibes.
- Feasibility
- Cost to implement with the team you already have.
- Risk
- Compliance, data quality, vendor lock-in, customer trust.
- ROI
- Payback window expressed in months, not "soon".
- Technology fit
- Whether to use a ready-made tool, a custom AI (one we adjust to your data — "fine-tuned"), or no new technology at all.
- System compatibility
- Where your CRM (customer-records system) and ERP (business-management software) will push back — and when that friction matters.
Verdict taxonomy
Three verdict shapes. Each maps onto the dimensional scores above; the annotations show the kind of threshold a reader should look for when comparing audits.
Build means…
The team stays in the loop and we stand up new tooling, training, and the change-management plan alongside it.
Automate means…
A working rule or workflow runs the loop end to end — ours to design, theirs to operate, no human in the hot path.
Skip means…
The cost or the compliance surface is bigger than the value of doing it now. We mark it and revisit at the next audit.
Worked example
Read a scored opportunity like a snapshot — six bars, one score, one verdict.
This is what shows up inside any audit report. Six plain-language dimensions drawn side-by-side so the reader can see the working, an overall score on the same 1–10 scale we use everywhere else, and a decision stamp that says whether the team should build it, automate it, or skip it. Each verdict cites which dimensions tipped the call — so you can disagree with the logic, not just the conclusion.
“Renewal follow-up sequence”
- Impact
- Feasibility
- Risk
- ROI
- Technology fit
- System compatibility
Higher = more hours saved / revenue won — keeps a good call at full value.
Higher = easier to ship with the team and tools you already have.
Higher = more compliance, data-quality, or vendor-lock-in risk.
Higher = faster payback in months, not vague "soon".
Higher = better match for a ready-made tool, a custom AI, or no new tech at all.
Higher = fewer handoffs will fight back against your CRM and ERP.
High impact, easy to wire into the existing CRM triggers, low risk because the audit sees no regulated data crossing the boundary, and a payback inside two quarters. The system-compatibility bar is the only one that holds the score back from a Build — the CRM will need a light schema change before the workflow can be turned on for the largest segment. Everything else points the same way, so the verdict is Automate: a working rule runs the renewal cadence end to end and the team keeps the laptop closed.
Illustrative only — not a real client outcome. Same shape as every recommendation in any audit report.
The honesty clause, repeated
Sometimes our recommendation is: don’t buy anything.
“Do nothing — tighten what you have” is a complete deliverable.
The recommendation can land anywhere across the spectrum —AI, traditional automation (rules engines, scheduled jobs, scripted handoffs), existing software used better, process redesign (clearer handoffs, CRM hygiene), or no change at all. If, on the call, the honest answer is that you do not need an audit yet — that you need to fix your CRM first, document one workflow, or revisit in six months — the report will say so and the fee is still owed only on delivery. That is one of the verdicts the audit is happy to return.
If we are not a fit, we’ll say so on the call.
Five stages. One report. Then you decide what to do with it.
The intake is a 60-second form. We reply within one working day to confirm the tier, the window, and the call link. After the debrief, the report is yours whether or not you hire us to act on it.
You will reach a human. Replies go out within one working day.
Fixed fee billed after report delivery · No NDA required · You own the deliverable