Build a stronger business.
Help it last.

Understand your stage first.

Working closely with your business does not always mean it depends too much on you. What matters is what the business needs at its current stage. As it grows, more work can be shared with capable people, supported by clear ways of working.

1. Emerging — Find customers and build a business they will pay for.

2. Founder-Carried — Help other people take on work and decisions that depend on the founder.

3. Leadership-Led — Help managers lead their teams and work well together.

4. System-Led — Keep the business running when key people are away.

5. Institutional — Prepare the business to continue and improve when leaders change.

Build in the right order.

Picture the future → Plan how the business will work → Set out jobs and reporting lines → Use the 5Rs → Follow the 6D steps → Set up regular work checks → Review and improve

Start with what the business needs to do. Decide which jobs are needed, what each person is responsible for and who reports to whom. Then choose the right people for those jobs. One person may do more than one job.

The 5Rs: five questions about people and jobs

Roles. What jobs does the business need?

Responsibilities. What must each person deliver?

Rewards. How should people be paid and rewarded for their work?

Right People. Does each person share the right values and have the skills and time for the job?

Right Seats. Is each person in a job where they can do their best work?

The 6D steps: help others take on the work

Design. Make the job, expected result, decision limits and required standard clear.

Do. Do the work yourself when needed so you understand it.

Document. Write down the steps, quality checks, progress measures and decision rules.

Delegate. Give someone responsibility for the result and permission to make the decisions needed.

Develop. Train and support them. Review their work and give useful feedback.

Disengage. Step back from daily work once people can do it well and checks are in place.

Stepping back does not mean ignoring the business. Keep reviewing results and checking that people meet their responsibilities.

How your founder score is worked out

You answer 15 general questions and 15 questions for your suggested stage. Answers are converted to a scale from 20 to 100. The overall score uses 40% from the general questions and 60% from the stage questions.

For questions about relying too much on one person, a lower level of reliance earns a higher score. This adjustment is made once. If required answers are unknown, a final number is not given.

The score bands within each stage are: below 40, Fragile; 40–59.99, Developing; 60–74.99, Established; 75–89.99, Strong; and 90–100, Advanced. These bands show progress within your stage. They do not rank your business against other businesses.

What is needed for the next stage?

The report checks certain answers and facts about how the business runs. These are called transition gates. Every answer used in a gate must currently reach 80. A high overall score cannot make up for a gate that is not met.

The readiness score is the average of the answers used in these checks. The report also shows whether the required checks are met. If information is missing, no readiness score is given.

To confirm the Institutional stage, the report also checks how major decisions are reviewed, whether the business could continue if the founder left for good, whether others are ready to lead, and how the business handles major problems. If a required check is not met, the stage stays unconfirmed.

How answers shape your report

If answers seem to disagree, the report asks for clarification. It does not add an extra score penalty. It chooses what needs attention using your answers, your stage, the likely effect on the business and what needs to be fixed first.

The 15 general questions also help check the suggested stage. You can save answers that do not agree with one another. The report will explain that the stage is uncertain. If new facts suggest a different stage during a reassessment, you will need to answer that stage’s questions.

AI can explain your report. It cannot change your scores, stage or recommended plan.

What “Founder Independence” means

This measure asks how well the business can work without the founder’s daily involvement. It is available for two stages, and each uses different questions. Do not compare the numbers across these stages.

For Founder-Carried businesses, it is the average of five equally weighted questions, B1–B5. These cover daily work, the founder’s absence, decisions, relationships and knowledge. For System-Led businesses, it is the average of three equally weighted questions, D13–D15. These cover daily work, decisions and the founder’s role.

Close founder involvement is expected at the Emerging stage. Leadership-Led and Institutional assessments do not yet have enough direct questions to give a separate Founder Independence score.

System-Led assessments also include six questions about checks on leaders and preparing people to take over. These affect readiness only. They do not change the stage score.

BuiltBeyond is still being tested

We may update how stages, scores, checks and plans are worked out as we learn from testing. The results have not been scientifically proven to predict business success.

How the management review works

Managers and team leaders answer 20 questions about their own experience. These cover responsibilities, decisions, resources, teamwork, support from leaders and how much daily work depends on the founder.

Answer for the area you know and the last 90 days, or your time in the role if shorter. You can say when you do not know enough to answer. This is never treated as a low score.

Your report shows what your answers suggest, how much information they cover and what may need attention. It does not give the business a stage, an overall score, a Founder Independence score or a score comparing the team’s views.

The report needs more than one answer pointing to a problem before making it a priority. If there is too little information, the plan focuses on finding out more. This review is still being tested.

Your report stays in your account. It is not automatically shared or combined with other people’s answers. Anonymous team reports and founder–team comparisons are not available yet.

What you can use now

Founder assessments, questions suited to your stage, reports, 90-day plans, saved assessments, reassessments and individual management reviews. Optional AI explanations are available when the service is connected.

From a completed report, you can track tasks, record weekly progress and use a cashbook, role guide and meeting sheet. “Your business realities” offers practical suggestions for the challenges you select. These tools do not change your assessment scores.

Team comparisons, tools for designing a team structure, company-wide dashboards and comparisons with industry results are not available yet. This pilot does not claim to show how you rank against your industry.