Seeing what will break before it does.
The structural diagnostic is the foundation of everything we do. It's a clear-eyed look at how your company actually operates — and an honest assessment of what won't survive growth.
Six areas we examine closely
Each area represents a common point of failure during the 10-to-30 employee transition.
Process Inventory
We document every operational process — from how orders are handled to how payroll is calculated. We look at what's written down, what's verbal, and what lives only in someone's head. The goal is a complete picture, not an idealized one.
Role Clarity
We map who actually does what — not what the org chart says. We identify overlapping responsibilities, unowned tasks, and informal authority structures. In companies under 30 people, the real org chart is almost never the official one.
Informal Agreements
We surface the unwritten agreements that keep the company running: who covers for whom, what exceptions are made, what the real decision-making rules are. These agreements are often load-bearing — and invisible until they break.
Systems Assessment
We evaluate the tools and systems currently in use — from spreadsheets to software — and assess whether they can handle double the volume. We identify where the system is the problem, where the process is the problem, and where both are.
Decision Flow
We map how decisions actually get made: who has authority, who gets consulted, who just gets informed. In growing companies, bottlenecks are almost always decision bottlenecks — usually concentrated in the founder or a single manager.
Risk Prioritization
We don't just list problems — we rank them by urgency and impact. Not everything needs fixing at once. The output is a prioritized map of what to address first, second, and what can wait, with a rationale for each decision.
How we gather the picture
The diagnostic isn't a survey or a questionnaire. It's a structured observation process.
Structured interviews We talk with the owner, key managers, and frontline staff — separately. Different levels of the organization see different problems. We need all perspectives.
Operational observation We observe operations as they actually run. Documents and interviews reveal intent; observation reveals reality. Both are necessary.
Document review We review whatever documentation exists — job descriptions, process notes, system configurations — and note the gaps between what's documented and what actually happens.
Synthesis and mapping We bring everything together into a coherent picture: a process map, a role map, and a prioritized risk assessment that becomes the basis for the rest of the engagement.
What you have after the diagnostic
The diagnostic produces a concrete, actionable document — not a slide deck.
Process Map
A visual and written map of every significant process in your company, showing what's documented, what's informal, and what's missing.
Role Reality Map
A clear picture of who actually does what — not the org chart version, the real one — with gaps and overlaps identified.
Priority List
A ranked list of what needs to change, in what order, with the reasoning behind each priority decision.
Change Roadmap
A proposed sequence of changes for the following months — what to tackle first, what can wait, and how changes relate to each other.
Understanding your company is the first step
The diagnostic is where every engagement starts. Contact us to discuss your company's situation and how the diagnostic process would work for you.
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