Phase 2
What is the right approach, and which frameworks fit?
Framework-agnostic methodology selection and future-state architecture. We don't sell a framework. We design the right combination of approaches based on the evidence from your diagnostic, not on what we're certified to deliver.
What we do
Design the System, Not the Symptom
This is where the Northspire Method is most visible. Using the evidence base from the Diagnose phase, we design a coherent future-state operating model that addresses all five dimensions of modernization simultaneously, across every layer.
The centerpiece of the Design phase is the Methodology Selection Matrix, a structured mapping of your constraints, goals, and organizational context to the frameworks and approaches best suited to address them. SAFe where scale demands it. Lean where flow optimization is the priority. Kanban where evolutionary change is more appropriate than revolutionary. Team Topologies where organizational design is the constraint. And combinations where no single framework covers the territory.
This is the work no single-framework competitor can do. Most consultancies are certified in one methodology and apply it everywhere. Northspire starts with the problem and works backward to the approach.
Future-State Architecture
Target operating model across technology, organization, and governance
Methodology Selection
Framework mapping, combination design, sequencing rationale
Governance Design
Decision-rights, funding models, planning cadences, escalation paths
Change Architecture
Sequencing, risk mitigation, organizational readiness pathways
What you get
A Strategy You Can Defend and Execute
1 Design Artifacts
Strategic design documents with standalone value.
- Methodology Selection Matrix with constraint-to-framework mapping and rationale
- Future-state operating model architecture
- Governance framework design (decision-rights, funding, cadences)
- Organizational design recommendations (team structures, roles, collaboration patterns)
- Technology modernization strategy aligned to operating model
2 Synthesized Deliverables
Integrated, systems-level strategy connecting all dimensions.
- Transformation Strategy Document: the comprehensive design for how the organization evolves
- Risk and dependency analysis across all five modernization dimensions
- Success criteria and measurement framework
- Business case for transformation with expected outcomes and investment requirements
How it works
Collaborative Design, Evidence-Based Decisions
Diagnostic Review & Design Objectives
Starting from the Diagnostic Summary, we align on design objectives, constraints, and non-negotiables. What does the future state need to achieve? What can't change?
Framework Analysis & Selection
Structured evaluation of frameworks and methodologies against your specific constraints. The Methodology Selection Matrix is built collaboratively. Every selection has documented rationale.
Architecture & Model Design
Future-state operating model, governance structure, and organizational design, developed through working sessions with your leadership and key stakeholders.
Strategy Delivery & Alignment
Presentation of the Transformation Strategy to leadership. Review, refinement, and alignment. The strategy must be defensible to all stakeholders before it moves to mobilization.
What makes this work
Active participation from leadership and domain experts. Willingness to challenge assumptions about "how we've always done it." Access to current strategy documents and operational data. And decision-making authority. The Design phase produces decisions, not recommendations.
Typical duration: 6–12 weeks depending on organizational scale and complexity.
What comes next
From Design to Mobilization
The Transformation Strategy provides the blueprint for Phase 3: Mobilize. With the right frameworks selected and the future-state architecture defined, the Mobilize phase turns strategic decisions into an executable, resourced, sequenced plan.
A strategy without mobilization is a document. Mobilization makes it real.