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The Six Dimensions

Deep dive into each dimension of the 6D Foraging Methodology™.

Overview

The six dimensions represent the major impact areas where business problems cascade. Most issues don't stay contained—they spread across these dimensions, creating multiplied costs.

        ┌─────────────┐
        │  CUSTOMER   │  👤 Trust & retention
        └──────┬──────┘
               │
┌──────────────┼──────────────┐
│              │              │
▼              ▼              ▼
┌─────────┐ ┌─────────┐ ┌─────────┐
│EMPLOYEE │ │ REVENUE │ │REGULATORY│
│   👥    │ │   💰    │ │   ⚖️    │
└────┬────┘ └────┬────┘ └────┬────┘
     │           │           │
     └─────┬─────┴─────┬─────┘
           │           │
           ▼           ▼
      ┌─────────┐ ┌─────────┐
      │ QUALITY │ │OPERATION│
      │   ✨    │ │   ⚙️    │
      └─────────┘ └─────────┘

D1: Customer 👤

What it measures: Trust erosion, churn signals, and lifetime value loss.

Observable Signals

Signal Measurement Warning Threshold
NPS Score Survey score Drop of 10+ points
Churn Rate Monthly % leaving >5% monthly
Support Tickets Volume & severity 2× normal volume
Renewal Rate Contract renewals <80% renewal
Social Sentiment Brand mentions >30% negative
Customer Complaints Formal complaints Trending upward

Cascade Patterns

L1 (Direct):

  • Customers leave
  • Word-of-mouth damage
  • Reference loss

L2 (Downstream):

  • Acquisition cost increases
  • Sales cycle lengthens
  • Pricing pressure

L3 (Systemic):

  • Market position erosion
  • Competitive vulnerability
  • Brand devaluation

Cost Components

  • Customer acquisition cost to replace churned customers
  • Lifetime value loss
  • Reputation repair costs
  • Discounting to retain at-risk customers
  • Lost referral revenue

D2: Employee 👥

What it measures: Turnover risk, burnout signals, and knowledge concentration.

Observable Signals

Signal Measurement Warning Threshold
Turnover Rate Annual % leaving >15% annual
Engagement Score Survey results <60% engaged
Overtime Hours Average weekly >10 hours/week
Sick Days Days per employee 2× baseline
Exit Interview Themes Pattern analysis Recurring issues
Bus Factor Knowledge concentration <2 people per critical function

Cascade Patterns

L1 (Direct):

  • Institutional knowledge loss
  • Productivity drop during transition
  • Recruitment costs

L2 (Downstream):

  • Training burden on remaining staff
  • Quality degradation
  • Timeline delays

L3 (Systemic):

  • Cultural erosion
  • Difficulty attracting talent
  • Innovation slowdown

Cost Components

  • Severance packages
  • Recruitment costs (typically 1.5-2× salary)
  • Training and onboarding
  • Productivity loss during ramp-up (3-6 months)
  • Overtime for remaining staff
  • Contractor/consultant coverage

D3: Revenue 💰

What it measures: Payment delays, contract penalties, and opportunity loss.

Observable Signals

Signal Measurement Warning Threshold
Revenue Run Rate Monthly recurring <90% of target
Pipeline Velocity Time to close Slowing trend
Deal Size Average contract Declining
Payment Terms Days outstanding >60 days
Contract Penalties Triggered clauses Any activation
Win Rate Deals won/total <30%

Cascade Patterns

L1 (Direct):

  • Immediate revenue shortfall
  • Cash flow constraints
  • Penalty payments

L2 (Downstream):

  • Investment reduction
  • Headcount pressure
  • Vendor relationship strain

L3 (Systemic):

  • Strategic initiative delays
  • Market opportunity loss
  • Competitive disadvantage

Cost Components

  • Direct revenue loss
  • Contract penalty payments
  • Opportunity cost of delayed deals
  • Interest on cash flow gaps
  • Foregone investments
  • Pricing concessions to retain business

D4: Regulatory ⚖️

What it measures: Compliance gaps, audit findings, and legal exposure.

Observable Signals

Signal Measurement Warning Threshold
Audit Findings Count and severity Any major finding
Compliance Score % requirements met <95%
Legal Actions Active cases Any new filing
Certification Status Current vs. required Any lapse
Incident Reports Required disclosures Trending upward
Regulatory Changes Upcoming requirements Implementation gap

Cascade Patterns

L1 (Direct):

  • Fines and penalties
  • Remediation costs
  • Legal fees

L2 (Downstream):

  • Operational restrictions
  • Customer notification requirements
  • Insurance premium increases

L3 (Systemic):

  • License/certification risk
  • Market access limitations
  • Reputational damage

Cost Components

  • Direct fines and penalties
  • Legal defense costs
  • Compliance remediation
  • Audit and certification costs
  • Insurance increases
  • Operational restrictions impact

D5: Quality ✨

What it measures: Defect rates, rework cycles, and safety incidents.

Observable Signals

Signal Measurement Warning Threshold
Defect Rate Per unit/release >2%
Rework Percentage % requiring redo >5%
Safety Incidents Count and severity Any serious incident
Warranty Claims Volume and cost Trending upward
Customer Complaints Quality-related 2× baseline
Testing Coverage % of requirements <80%

Cascade Patterns

L1 (Direct):

  • Immediate rework costs
  • Warranty claims
  • Returns/refunds

L2 (Downstream):

  • Customer trust erosion
  • Brand reputation damage
  • Increased inspection costs

L3 (Systemic):

  • Market position impact
  • Regulatory scrutiny
  • Long-term quality culture degradation

Cost Components

  • Direct rework labor
  • Material waste
  • Warranty and return costs
  • Additional QA/inspection
  • Customer compensation
  • Recall costs (if applicable)

D6: Operational ⚙️

What it measures: Schedule delays, resource waste, and system downtime.

Observable Signals

Signal Measurement Warning Threshold
Schedule Variance Days behind plan >10% slippage
System Uptime % available <99%
Resource Utilization % capacity <70% or >95%
Incident Frequency Outages/issues Trending upward
Process Cycle Time Time to complete Increasing
Backlog Pending items Growing queue

Cascade Patterns

L1 (Direct):

  • Immediate productivity loss
  • Overtime costs
  • Missed deadlines

L2 (Downstream):

  • Downstream process delays
  • Customer delivery impact
  • Resource reallocation

L3 (Systemic):

  • Chronic inefficiency
  • Strategic initiative delays
  • Competitive response slowdown

Cost Components

  • Labor inefficiency
  • Overtime and expediting
  • Equipment/system costs
  • Opportunity cost of delays
  • Penalty clauses triggered
  • Resource reallocation overhead

Dimension Interdependencies

Dimensions don't exist in isolation. Here are common cascade patterns:

Operational → Quality → Customer

System outage → Defects ship → Customer trust erodes

Employee → Quality → Revenue

Key person leaves → Knowledge gap → Quality drops → Sales lost

Regulatory → Operational → Revenue

Compliance finding → Process changes required → Capacity reduced → Revenue delayed

Customer → Revenue → Employee

Major customer churns → Revenue drops → Layoffs → More churn

Using Dimensions in Analysis

  1. Start with the origin — Which dimension shows the first signal?
  2. Map first-order effects — What dimensions are immediately impacted?
  3. Trace the cascade — Follow the dominoes across dimensions
  4. Quantify each node — Estimate costs at each point
  5. Calculate total impact — Sum across all affected dimensions

Each dimension tells part of the story. The cascade tells the whole story. 🐦