Get a decision brief for one business question.
The first Decision Brief costs $125,000. Choose one business question and name the person who owns it. Before payment, we agree the scope, required data, baseline, measurement period and $1M potential-value threshold in writing.
Within 72 hours of complete agreed data access, receive a decision brief identifying at least $1M in potential business value over an agreed measurement period, with findings, evidence gaps, options, action/inaction cost estimates and recommended next steps.
If we do not identify the agreed $1M opportunity within that 72-hour window, we refund the full $125,000 fee.
Free 20-minute conversation. No company data needed.
Evidence for the next decision.
Your brief includes:
The finding.
What the records and local judgment support.
The evidence.
Sources, dates, gaps and assumptions to inspect.
The comparison.
Act, wait, gather evidence or leave the process unchanged.
The economics.
Estimated business impact, full costs and uncertainties over one period.
The next step.
A recommendation to question, revise, accept or decline.
The measurement plan.
The baseline and later review needed to test the result.
Know what starts the clock.
Setup typically takes 1-2 weeks. We confirm complete agreed data access together before the 72-hour analysis window begins.
- 01 · Get set up1-2 weeks
Agree sources, checking frequency, permissions and the starting measure.
- 02 · Receive the brief72 hours
From complete agreed data access to findings, options, cost estimates and next steps.
The 72 hours cover analysis and recommendations after complete agreed data access. Your decision follows your timetable; implementation is separately scoped and scheduled.
Compare the five steps: consulting firms and Nodes
| Step | Consulting firms | Nodes |
|---|---|---|
| Get started | Agree scope, staffing and access. Time required: Varies with staffing and access. |
Agree owners, sources, permissions and baseline. Time required: Typically 1-2 weeks. |
| Understand the problem | Interview teams and review records. Time required: Part of the referenced 4-6 week diagnostic and design phase.* |
Investigate agreed records, human context and external developments. Time required: Within 72 hours of complete agreed data access. |
| Choose a solution | Present options and recommendations. Time required: Recommendations follow the engagement; the customer sets decision timing. |
Receive options, evidence gaps, economics and next steps. Time required: Recommendations arrive in the same 72-hour analytical window. Your decision follows your timetable. |
| Implement the change | Agree delivery resources and implementation scope. Time required: Separately scheduled by scope. |
Agree permitted changes, owners and required approvals. Time required: Separately scoped and scheduled. |
| Measure and improve | Review results and follow-up work. Time required: Agreed observation period. |
Compare results, actual costs and effort with the baseline. Time required: Later agreed period; retain outcomes. |
*Consulting schedules vary by firm and scope. The 4-6 week reference comes from BCG’s broader corporate-functions transformation approach; it is context, not a matched comparison with one Nodes workflow. See the published approach.
A production purchase is optional.
Bring the people who know the process.
The business owner defines the question. Local contributors explain exceptions; system and security owners agree access. Finance reviews the economics.
Baseline: agree the business measure, current cost, team effort and comparison period. Missing evidence stays visible.
Responsibilities: name handoffs and the exception owner. Confirm integration feasibility, permitted reads and dependencies before promising implementation.
Decision Replay: separate historical analysis with its own data requirements and terms. Review Decision Replay.
Which recurring charges could stop?
Suppose 300 unused services cost $500 a month. Contracts permit cancellation after month two of a 12-month period.
| Today’s approach | Proposed change |
|---|---|
| Charges renew; usage and contract dates sit apart. | Check usage and cancellation terms with the owner. |
| The expense continues. | If implementation is agreed, approve cancellations and check later invoices. |
Estimated opportunity: 300 × $500 × 10 months = $1.5M in avoidable expense. Subtract $300K in total costs: $1.2M in potential net savings.
If only 200 charges qualify, the same calculation produces $700K after costs.
That finding alone misses the $1M threshold.
Confirm that each service is unnecessary and cancellable on those dates. Count the brief once, licensing after credit, implementation, operation and exit costs. Later invoice checks and actual costs establish whether savings were realized.
$1.58M in Q1 2025 net savings at one Fortune 500 insurance carrier.
The customer’s CFO validated this insurance candidate-evaluation result under the customer’s definition of net savings. It was measured separately from this offer.
Read the evidence and methodologyPut the economics in writing.
Before payment, record the scope, required data, evidence standards, valuation period and relevant costs.
We distinguish added revenue, avoidable expense and the value of time freed.
Revenue is not profit; hours freed are not automatically payroll savings.
We agree on which benefits count and count each once.
The finding guarantee concerns the agreed opportunity calculation. Realized results are measured later.
Choose what happens next.
Accept, question, gather evidence or defer. If you proceed, separately agree implementation, owners, approvals, acceptance checks and guidance for the team. Later compare actual business results, operating costs and team effort with the baseline and agreed period.
Your company retains its agreed knowledge graph, context and outcome history, including failed or inconclusive results. The owner expands, holds or narrows delegated work after agreed quality, exception, risk and total-cost checks. Current permissions govern every step.
Before we talk
01When do the 72 hours start?
After complete agreed data access is in place. Setup typically takes 1-2 weeks. We confirm readiness together. The 72 hours cover analysis and recommendations; implementation is separately scoped and scheduled.
02What data do you need?
We agree the records and access needed for your question. No company data is needed for the first conversation.
03What if you cannot support $1M?
If we do not identify the agreed $1M opportunity within the 72-hour window, we refund your full $125,000. The finding follows the scope and calculation agreed in writing before payment.
04Do we have to buy an annual license?
No. After a successful decision brief engagement, your full $125,000 fee credits toward annual Nodes licensing if you choose to proceed. We agree on continuing work separately.
05We already have an AI team or consultants.
Bring the question they are working on. We establish what Nodes would need to demonstrate.
Bring one business question.
Discuss its owner, available evidence and whether a paid decision brief makes sense. Your people built the intelligence this brief draws on: the records, the judgment and what happened next.
No company data needed.