How we work
A repeatable framework, applied to your situation.
Every FFS engagement follows the same opening sequence, regardless of whether the work is conflict resolution, coaching, a climate audit, or a workshop. The point is to make sure we are a fit before either side has committed, and to make the framework visible so you know what to expect.
The eight steps below describe the full sequence. Different engagement types emphasize different stages; the common structure is what makes the work portable.
The eight steps
Discovery to close-out, in order.
The same sequence holds across engagement types. Length and emphasis change; the steps and their order do not.
01
Discovery call
A 30-minute conversation. You describe the situation. We ask enough questions to figure out together whether FFS is the right fit. No prep required, not billed. If we are not the right fit, we will usually be able to point you toward someone who is.
02
Written scope
If we are a fit, you receive a one-page scope within 48 hours: the objective, the deliverables, the time horizon, who is involved, and the price. You either sign it as written, ask for changes, or pass. No work begins before the scope is signed.
03
Document and policy review
We read the handbook, the relevant policies, the prior correspondence, and any context the institution has already produced. Most academic situations are at least half-documented before we arrive; finding what is already in writing is the highest-leverage hour in the engagement.
04
Stakeholder identification
We map who is involved, who is affected, who decides, and who needs to know. For conflict and climate work this includes building the interview list collaboratively with the sponsor under an explicit confidentiality protocol.
05
Confidential interviews or working sessions
For climate audits and conflict resolution: confidential interviews with the relevant parties. For coaching engagements: structured one-on-one sessions on a defined cadence. For workshops: pre-engagement scoping conversations with the participants.
06
Synthesis and diagnosis
What is actually happening, what the institution's documents and prior decisions say, and where the workable next step lies. Coaching engagements produce this iteratively across sessions; conflict and climate work produce it as a discrete synthesis stage before delivery.
07
Delivery
Whatever the scope called for. A facilitated conversation between parties. A written recommendation. A climate report. A coaching session series. A workshop. Written summaries when they matter. Email is rare; thinking is the product.
08
Written close-out
A short written summary: what was done, what was agreed, and what next steps the institution may want to take. The engagement closes on the date specified in the original scope, not when the calendar block ends.
What gets adapted
Different engagements emphasize different stages.
Conflict Resolution Program
Weights steps 3 through 5 heavily (document review, stakeholder identification, confidential interviews) and produces a detailed step-7 written recommendation.
Coaching Intensive
Treats step 5 as the primary work, conducted over a defined three- or six-month window. Uses lighter versions of steps 3, 4, and 6, synthesized iteratively across sessions.
Climate Audit
Produces its full value in step 6, the synthesis report. Steps 3, 4, and 5 are scoped to a fixed protocol; step 7 is the delivery of the written report.
Leadership Workshop
Compresses steps 3 through 6 into a pre-engagement scoping phase. Step 7 is the workshop itself; step 8 is a post-session written summary.
What doesn't change
Three through-lines, in every engagement.
01
Confidentiality by default
Nothing said in a coaching session is shared upward without explicit permission. Conflict and climate work is governed by a written confidentiality protocol agreed before interviews begin.
02
Every decision worth keeping is documented
After every meaningful conversation, you receive something written: a summary, a recommendation, a scope adjustment. Written artifacts are how decisions hold over time.
03
Defined end date on the calendar
Every engagement has a written end date in the original scope. We close out when the objective is met, not when the retainer runs.
Have a situation in mind?
A 30-minute discovery call is step one.
No prep required. Bring the situation; we will figure out together whether the framework above is the right fit, and tell you plainly if it is not.