ELM STRATA

Services

Begin with the job in front of you.

Three defined entry engagements. Each can stand alone. The first conversation confirms the fit, the decision owner, the access required, and the written outcome.

Technology strategy Artificial intelligence Enterprise architecture Operating model Transformation governance Vendor and platform decisions

Fractional CIO/CTO is how retained judgment often shows up. It is not a separate product line.

Retained Executive Advisory

Operating Seat

Ongoing

Best for
A CEO, owner, sitting CIO/CTO, or operating team that needs recurring senior judgment without adding a permanent executive role.
What happens
  • Recurring operating and decision review
  • Initiative, portfolio, and vendor triage
  • Architecture and operating-model alignment
  • Transformation governance and escalation
  • Coaching for the accountable technology leader
  • A current decision log and next-action view
You leave with
Decisions recorded, priorities current, architecture matched to reality, and the next 30 days written.
Not designed for
Helpdesk, staff augmentation, 24/7 on-call coverage, or unlimited messaging.

A sitting CIO stays the operator unless a later agreement says otherwise.

Enterprise Diagnostic

Strata Diagnostic

2–3 weeks

Best for
An organization that does not have one trusted picture of its operating model, technology environment, material gaps, risks, and priorities.
What happens
  • Focused interviews with accountable leaders
  • Current-state operating and architecture map
  • Ranked gaps, risks, dependencies, and decision needs
  • A 90-day action agenda with owners
  • Executive readout and working pack
You leave with
A shared fact base, named gaps, and an accountable 90-day agenda.
Not designed for
An exhaustive technical audit, unrestricted discovery, a product bake-off, or a detailed implementation plan unless that is the scoped question.

Decision and Diligence

Decision Sprint

2–4 weeks

Best for
One consequential technology, AI, platform, vendor, investment, architecture, or operating-model decision that needs to be made.
What happens
  • Decision framing and sponsor confirmation
  • Options, criteria, evidence, and tradeoffs
  • Business, operating, architecture, risk, and delivery implications
  • Written recommendation and decision memorandum
  • Executive readout and next action
You leave with
A defensible written call, an owner, and the conditions to proceed, or an explicit decision to defer.
Not designed for
A second unrelated decision, or implementation, inside the same sprint.

From decision to delivery

Advisory does not have to end where implementation begins.

When the accepted decision needs delivery capacity or a specialized skill, ELM STRATA can coordinate the client's team or an aligned delivery partner. Roles stay explicit. ELM STRATA keeps the decision record, the architecture guardrails, and the value and risk governance.

Match the situation to the engagement.

  • Recurring judgment in the cadence: Operating Seat.
  • No shared current-state picture: Strata Diagnostic.
  • One consequential decision stalled: Decision Sprint.
  • Not sure: describe the situation. ELM STRATA will recommend the smallest engagement that can resolve it.
Discuss a situation