Decision Architecture Audit
A short, focused engagement to diagnose where decisions are stalling — and why
When this is the right intervention
The Decision Architecture Audit is designed for moments when:
execution feels slow or expensive despite capable teams
decisions require too much coordination or escalation
accountability is unclear or political
strategy exists, but follow-through keeps drifting
leaders sense the issue is structural, not motivational
If people are busy but progress feels fragile, this audit is usually the right starting point.
The problem it addresses
Most organizations treat slow execution as a performance issue. In reality, the bottleneck is often decision structure.
When decisions are:
undocumented
inconsistently owned
based on implicit criteria
or made differently depending on who is involved
work slows, alignment frays, and teams compensate with meetings.
The Decision Architecture Audit identifies where this is happening — and what to change.
What happens during the audit
This engagement focuses on diagnosis before solutioning.
It draws on the following methods:
The work typically includes:
mapping how key decisions are currently made
identifying decision bottlenecks and ambiguity
surfacing ownership gaps and hidden dependencies
documenting where judgment is compensating for system gaps
clarifying which decisions should be centralized, delegated, automated, or removed
The goal is to make the decision system explicit and governable.
What you get
At the end of the audit, you receive:
a clear map of how decisions actually flow today
a diagnosis of where and why decisions stall
a set of concrete recommendations for restructuring decision rights
guidance on which problems to solve first — and which not to touch yet
This is delivered as a concise, executive-ready memo designed to support action.
What changes afterward
Teams don’t suddenly “work harder.”
Instead:
decisions happen faster with fewer escalations
ownership becomes clearer and less political
meetings decrease because fewer things need consensus
leaders gain confidence that execution is structurally supported
Even without immediate follow-on work, clarity alone often unlocks momentum.
What this is not
It is not a re-org, process redesign, tooling or automation project. It is a focused diagnostic designed to prevent misdirected effort.
Next step
If this problem framing resonates, the next step is a short conversation to determine whether a Decision Architecture Audit is the right starting point — or whether a different intervention makes more sense.