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“Concentric didn't just manage our transition — they ignited it. Real momentum, real buy-in, at every level.”
— CEO, Finnriver Farm & Cidery
Why Concentric
Clients typically engage Concentric for support in three areas:
A key decision brought to the board is stalled or moving too slowly.
Board / management interactions need to be more predictable and productive.
The board has more to contribute than current processes allow.
Board / management dynamics: Key challenges
Decision scope and complexity expanding
The stakes and complexity of board / management decisions are expanding.
Board ROI: Low return on high effort
CEOs and executive teams undervalue the board as well as the ROI on the time and effort expended on board interactions.
Board contribution: Untapped value
Boards want to be more strategic, but often function more as approval and oversight bodies, leaving their strategic value largely unrealized.
Inefficient, riskier process
Conventional board processes and practices hamper productivity and underserve governance best practices.
What's getting in the way: Deficits and dysfunctions
Most approaches to board improvement focus on the directors themselves — assessing them, developing them, or replacing them. All of that has merit. But it takes considerable time, effort, and resources before getting to results.
There is a faster, more impactful way of improving the existing board's performance: Create a more productive interface that reduces the deficits and dysfunctions that undermine high-stakes board / management decisions:
There is a faster, more impactful way of improving the existing board's performance: Create a more productive interface that reduces the deficits and dysfunctions that undermine high-stakes board / management decisions:
Deficits
Time
Availability
Attention
Dysfunctions
Biases & communication dynamics
Conventional practices
Inertia & orthodoxy
“Concentric supported our CEO transition by helping us gather insights and build alignment with key stakeholder audiences, from our board, to funders, to our school principals, in the rollout of a new three-year strategy.”
— Chief of Staff, Mastery Charter School System
How we help: Concentric Decision Agility™
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Concentric Decision Agility™ unlocks the intelligence of your existing board to improve decision outcomes without board overstep.
We solve for the decision itself, not the people making it. Most boards have more intelligence in the room than ever makes it into the decision. It's not because of the people, it's the approach. Making it easier for directors and executives to overcome the biases that distort group decisions creates better outcomes more quickly, without needing to change (or change out) people. Independently surfacing deeper insights from every director—not just quick takes around the table—delivers better results while cutting through time deficits, groupthink, and communication friction. |
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Methodology: The DEEDs™ decision framework
DEEDs™ is an efficient, collaborative decision process that helps boards and management teams overcome common barriers to alignment and action. Built on established, proven methods, it transforms how boards and executives work through complex decisions together. Here is a brief overview of the process. Putting Concentric Decision Agility™ to work
Concentric Decision Agility™ provides a low-risk, laddered approach to confirm need and right-size application:
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Key Outcomes
Concentric Decision Agility™ creates a virtuous cycle that builds trust, fosters better collaboration and ultimately improves and accelerates decision making. Key outcomes:
Accelerate board / management decision making
Improve the quality, speed, and durability of key decisions and gain faster alignment and stronger commitment from all parties.
Create smoother, more predictable, and productive interactions
Reduce friction and frustration in board / management engagement. Meetings stay focused and avoid revisiting past decisions or unproductive tangents.
Increase board value contribution and ROI
Unlock the board's full experience, expertise, and cognitive diversity, improving decision outcomes and increasing everyone's return on time invested.
Reduce governance and decision risk
Distribute decision risk across a broader, more committed leadership pool through repeatable processes that meet fiduciary duties and deliver more durable decisions with less procedural drag.
Common use cases
Concentric clients typically engage us when boards and management face high-stakes decisions where alignment and speed matter—but traditional board processes create delays, friction, or suboptimal outcomes.
Strategy & material transactions
~M&A related
~Major capital allocation
~Strategic direction & pivots
~Major capital allocation
~Strategic direction & pivots
Leadership & talent
~CEO succession
~Talent dynamics & transitions
~Board composition & refresh
~Talent dynamics & transitions
~Board composition & refresh
Performance & relationships
~Unproductive board dynamics
~Board-CEO relationship / engagement
~Crisis & external pressure (Activists, regulatory, cyber, ESG, litigation, reputational)
~Board-CEO relationship / engagement
~Crisis & external pressure (Activists, regulatory, cyber, ESG, litigation, reputational)
The clarity streamlined decisions, saving us valuable time in putting together our strategic roadmap.
—Founder & CEO, Violet Flame Chocolate
Stakeholder benefits
Bringing a more structured process to board / management decisions benefits everyone involved, transforming how organizational leaders align and decide to positively impact their organizations.
CEOs & executives
~Faster board alignment for big moves
~Expand board engagement with minimal additional effort
~Flag any director concerns in advance of the board meeting
~More predictable board interactions
~Reduce overstep concerns
~Increase trust and collaboration
~Expand board engagement with minimal additional effort
~Flag any director concerns in advance of the board meeting
~More predictable board interactions
~Reduce overstep concerns
~Increase trust and collaboration
Directors & chairs
~Greater participation and candor across all directors
~Increase productivity with minimal increase in effort
~Enhance board’s value contribution & impact
~Increase trust and collaboration
~Increase productivity with minimal increase in effort
~Enhance board’s value contribution & impact
~Increase trust and collaboration
Board managers
(GCs / CLOs, Corp. Secretaries, etc.)
(GCs / CLOs, Corp. Secretaries, etc.)
~More structured decision processes
~Smoother, more predictable interactions
~Improve board / management engagement
~Supports governance best practices
~Smoother, more predictable interactions
~Improve board / management engagement
~Supports governance best practices
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