The Keystone journey

From first conversation to capital-ready evidence.

A clear pathway through the Plan A Impact Framework. What we do together at each stage, what changes for your organisation, and what comes next. Designed for mission-driven organisations preparing for capital, corporate procurement, or public-authority partnership.

5
Plan A pillars
156
indicators
4
input modes
14–16
weeks end-to-end
Part 1 · The pathway

From first conversation to capital-ready evidence.

Seven stages, grouped in three arcs. Each stage has a named output, named owners, and a clear sense of what to expect. Most clients move through the full pathway in 14–16 weeks; clients who arrive via the SENIC Impact Diamond may move faster.

Three ways through this roadmap — pick what fits.

Not every client needs every stage. Each stage card below carries a badge showing which product(s) it belongs to.
Diagnostic only
Stages 0 · 1 · 2 · 6

A defensible scored snapshot in time. No Workplan, no Pulse, no Bundle — you walk away with a Diagnostic Report and a recommended next step. Best when you want to know where you stand before committing to a Sprint.

€8–15k 4–6 weeks Founding cohort from €5,500
Sprint only
All 7 stages · with intake eligibility audit

The full pathway through to the Evidence Bundle. Suited to clients with mature artefact bases who can skip a separate Diagnostic — an intake audit at Stage 1 confirms eligibility. Best for organisations with a near-term funding, procurement or partnership decision.

€25–60k 8–14 weeks Founding cohort from €17,500
Diagnostic → Sprint
Diagnostic first · Sprint after

Sequential. The Diagnostic produces the Workplan candidate list the Sprint Baseline then refines and runs. The most common pathway for organisations new to the methodology — and the most defensible because the Sprint Baseline starts from documented Diagnostic findings.

Combined fee ~16–20 weeks total Sequential
1
From conversation to engagement
Days to weeks · the part before the methodology starts
Stage 0 Days · pre-engagement Both products
First conversation & fit

You take the free Readiness Snapshot (10 questions, 5 minutes), book a 30-minute discovery call, and we mutually decide whether a Sprint is the right product for where you are. If you arrived via the Impact Diamond, this stage is shorter because the design intent is already on the table.

You bringAn honest description of the funding, procurement or partnership decision on your horizon, and what would be at stake if you weren't ready for it.
We bringA read on whether a Sprint, a Diagnostic, or something else is the right next step — and a sectoral lens from Diesis Network.
Output
A mutual fit decision & recommended starting product
No commitment yet; no charge. If we're not the right fit we'll tell you, and where useful we'll point to who is.
Stage 1 Week 0 · onboarding Both products
Engagement letter, kickoff & Atlas setup

You receive a Sprint engagement letter using our standard template. On signature, we set up your Sprint project in Atlas (atlas.senic.world), invite your named team members, and run a two-hour kickoff workshop with your Client Lead, your board chair where available, the SENIC Delivery Lead and the Diesis Sector Advisor.

You bringA named Client Lead with authority to sign the Workplan; up to four other named team members; access to your existing impact, finance, governance and operational documents.
We bringSENIC Delivery Lead; Diesis Sector Advisor; SENIC Methodology Steward; appointed Independent Peer Reviewer (RAISE-rotation or steering-committee independent).
Output
Signed engagement letter · Atlas project live · kickoff complete
You'll have a single Atlas workspace where everything — evidence, scoring, dispute mechanism, reports — lives for the duration.
2
Running the methodology
10 to 12 weeks · the heart of the Sprint
Stage 2 Week 1 (Sprint) · 4–6 weeks (Diagnostic) · Baseline Both products · diverge here
Where you actually stand today

All four input modes activate: the quantitative Questionnaire (15 indicators), the structured Interview with your Client Lead (25 indicators), the multi-respondent Surveys distributed to beneficiaries / board / staff (15 indicators), and the Evidence-upload portal for your existing artefacts (100 indicators). Atlas Inspector reads what comes in, drafts scores against the rubric, and surfaces edge cases for human judgement.

Diagnostic vs Sprint at this stage. If you are running the Diagnostic only, this stage expands to 4–6 weeks and produces the Diagnostic Report — a defensible scored snapshot plus a Workplan candidate list. If you are running the Sprint (with or without a preceding Diagnostic), this stage runs in 1 week (or 1–2 days for Diamond-graduates) and feeds directly into the Workplan workshop in Stage 3.
You bringExisting artefacts (strategic plan, board minutes, financial model, ToC, M&E systems, etc.); 60–90 minutes for the Client Lead interview; survey distribution authority for beneficiaries/board/staff.
We bringAtlas Inspector for evidence reading; structured interview workbench; survey design and aggregation; cross-mode validation engine.
Output
Signed Baseline Report (Sprint) or Diagnostic Report (Diagnostic only) — pillar scores, Inclusion check, composite Keystone Readiness Score, recommended next step
You'll see your starting position on each of the five pillars and where the readiness gaps actually sit. You also have 5 working days to dispute one indicator score if you believe evidence was missed.
Diagnostic-only pathway ends here — clients running just the Diagnostic skip Stages 3 · 4 · 5 and go straight to Stage 6 for debrief. Sprint clients continue below.
Stage 3 Week 2 · Workplan Sprint only
Pick the gaps that matter, design the moves

A joint workshop translates the Baseline into a Workplan: 5 to 10 indicators we'll move during the Sprint, ranked by funder-readiness gap (the cost of the gap to your next visible funding or partnership decision). Each Workplan row names the evidence artefact you'll produce, the threshold a funder would accept, the owner on your side, and the due week. Signed by you, by us, and countersigned by the Independent Peer Reviewer for structural compliance.

You bringDecision authority to commit to indicator-level work; named owners on your team for each Workplan item; honesty about what's achievable in 10 weeks.
We bringInspector-recommended candidates ranked by funder-readiness gap; sector-specific calibration; the Diamond Coherence sentence as anchor if you came from the Diamond.
Output
Signed Workplan (4 signatures + reviewer countersignature)
A contract with yourself for the 10 weeks ahead. Not a wish-list — a commitment to specific artefacts, specific owners, specific dates.
Stage 4 Weeks 3–12 · Pulse Sprint only
Do the work; surface drift early

Each Workplan owner posts a five-line update per indicator every Wednesday by 16:00 CET. Status (Green / Amber / Red), one-line blocker, one-line decision needed, evidence collected this week, next step. Atlas Inspector aggregates the stream into a one-page weekly steering brief — the steering committee reads the brief, not the full stream. The reviewer reads the full stream at week 4 and week 8 (course-correct moments) and at Endline.

You bringOwner discipline — five lines per week per Workplan indicator, by Wednesday 16:00. Honest status, not optimistic status.
We bringWeekly steering aggregate; escalation triggers fire automatically (two Ambers → rescope; one Red → steering call); week 4 + week 8 steering check-ins.
Output
Immutable Pulse stream + 10 weekly steering aggregates
The audit trail of how the readiness uplift actually happened — week by week, decision by decision. Every Pulse entry timestamped, indelible.
3
Producing the assessment
2 to 4 weeks · the part that ships to funders
Stage 5 Weeks 13–14 · Bundle Sprint only
Audit-grade evidence, in funder-reading sequence

We re-score every Workplan indicator against the same evidence threshold used at Baseline. The Evidence Bundle assembles in funder-reading sequence: pillar summary → score uplift table → top-three evidence items → independent reviewer statement → index + remainder. The Independent Peer Reviewer reads, judges, and signs the sign-off statement: accept, accept with stated reservations, or return for rework.

You bringFinal-version artefacts for any indicators that produced new evidence during Pulse; availability for any follow-up reviewer questions; readiness to receive the score and the bundle.
We bringEndline scoring; Bundle auto-assembly; reviewer-led sign-off; cross-mode validation re-run; benchmark insight against the anonymised Plan A dataset.
Output
Endline Report · Evidence Bundle · Sprint Outcomes one-pager · reviewer sign-off statement
A pack a funder, corporate buyer or public-authority commissioner can open on a Tuesday morning, read in twenty minutes, and act on with confidence.
Stage 6 Final week · Handover & debrief Both products
Walk through the outcomes, agree the next move

A two-hour debrief with your leadership team. For a Sprint: the score uplift, the per-pillar moves, the benchmark insight on where you now sit relative to peers in your sector and size bracket, the Sprint Outcomes one-pager you can use externally. For a Diagnostic-only engagement: the pillar scores, the peer-benchmark percentile, the recommended Workplan candidates if a Sprint is recommended, the debrief on next-step pathways. Either way: we discuss the recommended next step — Diagnostic refresh in 12 months, the Sprint itself if you ran Diagnostic only, Corporate Bridge, Public Authority Programme, Intelligence Subscription, or Diamond engagement for a new venture.

You bringLeadership team for the debrief; decisions about what to publish externally and what to keep confidential; thinking about what comes next.
We bringOutcomes debrief; benchmark insight; recommended next-step pathway; consent paperwork for any case-study use; Atlas project persisted for ongoing reference.
Output
Debrief complete · external one-pager in your hands · next step agreed
You leave with the Bundle, a one-pager you can share, and a clear sense of what to do next. Your Atlas project remains live for future engagements.
Part 2 · Theory of Change

What changes for your organisation.

The chain from what we bring, through what we do together, to what you'll see in your organisation in 90 days, six months and twelve months. Not aspiration — the actual mechanism by which a Sprint produces readiness, traced step by step.

Inputs
What we bring
The methodology, the platform, the people who run it.
  • Plan A Impact Framework (156 indicators)
  • Atlas platform with Inspector automation
  • SENIC Delivery Lead + Diesis Sector Advisor
  • Independent Peer Reviewer (RAISE rotation)
  • Anonymised benchmark dataset
Activities
What we do together
The four input modes orchestrated across 14–16 weeks.
  • Questionnaire on quantitative indicators
  • Structured interviews on behaviour & process
  • Multi-respondent surveys to beneficiaries / board / staff
  • Evidence-upload of artefacts you already have
  • Joint Workplan workshop · weekly Pulse · Endline review
Outputs
What we produce
Named, dated, signed artefacts that persist in Atlas.
  • Baseline Report — your starting position
  • Workplan — your 10-week contract with yourself
  • Pulse stream — immutable weekly record
  • Evidence Bundle — funder-reading sequence
  • Sprint Outcomes one-pager — your external artefact
Outcomes
What changes in you
Measurable shifts in your organisation, in 90 days to 12 months.
  • Defensible evidence on the pillars that matter most
  • Composite Keystone Score uplift (typical 55 → 75–85)
  • Team alignment around the readiness gap
  • Specific artefacts in funder-acceptable form
  • Peer-benchmark clarity on where you stand
Impact
What that enables
The system-level change a defensible readiness layer makes possible.
  • Capital moves to where impact is real and audit-grade
  • Corporate procurement reaches mission-driven suppliers
  • Public-authority partnerships find credible counterparts
  • The field itself moves toward evidence over narrative
  • Mission-driven organisations are taken seriously, in the rooms that count

Where you should be at each milestone

A realistic expectation of how the change shows up, in your own organisation, over time after the Sprint completes.

At Endline (week 14)
Defensible artefacts on file; team clarity on what shifted; one external one-pager ready to circulate.
The Bundle is signed. The Workplan indicators have moved. Internal alignment is the strongest it's been.
90 days post-Sprint
First external use of the Bundle in a funder, corporate or public-authority conversation.
The first time someone outside the Sprint reads your evidence pack. Their reaction tells you whether the readiness held up under contact.
6 months post-Sprint
First decision in the funding / procurement / partnership process you were preparing for.
Yes / no / not yet — the Sprint set you up to be in that conversation defensibly. The decision itself is yours; the readiness is what you brought.
12 months post-Sprint
Diagnostic refresh option · or Corporate Bridge if the engagement is recurring · or Intelligence Subscription if the readiness work is ongoing.
A clear sense of which of the next-step paths fits where you've landed.
Part 3 · What's next

After the Sprint — six paths that compound the work.

The Sprint is the conversion product. It's also the entry point to the wider Keystone relationship. Below: the six paths most clients take after their first Sprint, when each fits, and what each produces.

Path 1 · 12 months later
Diagnostic refresh
When it fits: you've moved on the Workplan indicators and want to see what shifted across the full 156-indicator framework, plus a new benchmark percentile.
€8–15k 4–6 weeks All segments
Path 2 · annual retainer
Corporate Bridge
When it fits: you're a corporate or foundation with portfolio organisations needing recurring verification; or you're a mission-driven organisation that has graduated to needing ongoing Keystone presence rather than a single Sprint.
€50–250k / yr 12-month term Bronze · Silver · Gold
Path 3 · programme
Public Authority Programme
When it fits: you're a city, region, ministry or EU agency implementing the Social Economy Action Plan and want a turnkey readiness programme across a portfolio of mission-driven organisations in your jurisdiction.
€80k–€1m+ 6–24 months Tender-driven
Path 4 · always on
Intelligence Subscription
When it fits: you want continuous access to EU funding intelligence, regulation watch, benchmark briefings, and methodology updates — without a project engagement.
Free → €10k/yr Annual 4 tiers
Path 5 · upstream
SENIC Impact Diamond
When it fits: you're designing a new venture, proposal or project and want a generative design lens at week 1 — before indicators, ToC or budget. The Diamond pre-populates a future Keystone Baseline.
€295 → €4,950 60–90 minutes Atlas module
Path 6 · with consent
Published case study
When it fits: your Sprint outcome is strong enough to publish (Capital-ready or Ready-with-gaps band) and you choose to share it. Becomes a Keystone reference case under SENIC × Diesis attribution.
No fee Your consent Reputational

Choosing between the paths — quick decision guide

If you're not sure which path fits your post-Sprint situation, these rules of thumb will get you close.

You're still working through what the Bundle exposed; you haven't yet circulated externally
→ Intelligence Subscription (Standard or Pro)
You shipped the Bundle to a foundation; they've come back with follow-up questions
→ Corporate Bridge — Bronze tier
You're a city or ministry watching multiple organisations in your jurisdiction need this
→ Public Authority Programme
You're spinning up a new venture or programme inside or alongside your current organisation
→ SENIC Impact Diamond first; then Keystone when ready
12 months have passed and you want to know what's shifted across the full framework
→ Diagnostic refresh
Your Sprint produced something worth the sector seeing
→ Published case study (your consent · co-branded)

Wherever you are on the pathway — start with a conversation.

Take the free Snapshot in 5 minutes, or book a 30-minute discovery call. Either way, the first step is free, and we'll tell you honestly whether Keystone is the right next move for your organisation.

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