RapidKnowHow

Decision Governance for Industrial Leaders

How capital-intensive organisations improve results by improving decisions

RapidKnowHow | Executive Briefing

THE REAL PROBLEM IN INDUSTRY

Industrial companies rarely fail because of technology.
They fail because of slow, fragmented and politicised decisions.

Typical symptoms:

  • CapEx decisions take months
  • Committees replace accountability
  • Data exists, but decisions are negotiated, not governed
  • Projects start, stop, restart
  • Energy, ESG and supply-chain decisions contradict profitability

Result:
High effort. Low ROICE. Strategic drift.

THE CORE INSIGHT

In capital-intensive industries, decisions are the real profit drivers.

A weak decision system destroys value even with:

  • world-class engineers
  • strong products
  • solid market positions

Improving decisions has a higher ROICE than improving operations.

WHAT DECISION GOVERNANCE MEANS (AND WHAT IT DOES NOT)

Decision Governance is not consulting.
It is the operating system for strategic and investment decisions.

We design and run how critical decisions are:

  • prepared
  • evaluated
  • approved
  • executed
  • reviewed

Focus:
One high-impact decision bottleneck with direct financial relevance.

No strategy decks.
No generic transformation programmes.

WHERE IT APPLIES (INDUSTRIAL CONTEXT)

Typical high-value decision areas:

  • CapEx & capacity expansion
  • Make-or-buy decisions
  • Energy & decarbonisation strategy
  • Plant location & footprint
  • Pricing & long-term contracts
  • Supply-chain resilience

Each of these decisions moves millions, sometimes billions.

HOW IT WORKS (90-DAY DECISION SPRINT)

1. DEFINE (Days 1–30)

  • Identify the critical decision bottleneck
  • Clarify roles, authority, escalation
  • Establish ROICE baseline
    (time, capital, risk, reversals)

2. EXECUTE (Days 31–60)

  • Redesign the decision flow
  • Introduce clear decision rules & KPIs
  • Remove friction, duplication, politics
  • AI used only where it improves clarity

3. ACHIEVE (Days 61–90)

  • Faster decisions
  • Fewer reversals
  • Better capital allocation
  • Measurable ROICE improvement

4. SUSTAIN

  • Governance embedded
  • Decision logic institutionalised
  • Switching costs established

WHY THIS WORKS FOR INDUSTRIAL LEADERS

Traditional ApproachDecision Governance
CommitteesClear authority
OpinionsDecision criteria
SlidesMeasurable outcomes
ProjectsPermanent capability
Hero managersSystem leadership

WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT

Within 90 days:

  • Shorter decision cycles
  • Higher CapEx quality
  • Lower execution risk
  • Clear accountability
  • Measurable ROICE impact

If impact is not visible → we stop.

WHO THIS IS FOR

✔ Industrial CEOs & Boards
✔ Asset-heavy organisations
✔ Regulated environments
✔ Energy & ESG pressure

Not for:

  • Start-ups
  • Organisations avoiding accountability
  • “AI for AI’s sake” initiatives

THE EXECUTIVE QUESTION

Are your margins defined by the market –
or by the way your organisation makes decisions?

POWER STATEMENT

“We don’t advise industrial leaders.
We run the system that governs their decisions.” – Josef David

PERSONAL STRATEGIC ROLE CHARTER

Josef David

RapidKnowHow

Architect & Guardian of Industrial Decision Systems

1. Role Definition (Core Identity)

Josef David acts as the independent Architect and Guardian of Decision Governance systems in capital-intensive industrial businesses, ensuring that strategic decisions on capital, energy, assets, and risk are made with clarity, speed, and measurable ROICE.

2. Mandate (What Josef Is Accountable For)

Josef is accountable for:

  • Designing Decision Governance architectures for value-critical decisions
  • Making decision logic explicit (criteria, authority, escalation, timing)
  • Exposing ROICE leakage before execution begins
  • Establishing measurable before/after decision impact
  • Enforcing discipline, reversibility, and stop rules

Josef’s accountability ends where execution begins.

3. Authority Boundaries (What Josef Do NOT Do)

Josef explicitly does not:

  • Take operational or investment decisions
  • Own execution, delivery, or performance targets
  • Manage teams, projects, or programmes
  • Replace management accountability
  • Provide open-ended consulting or advisory services
  • Negotiate compromises driven by politics or hierarchy

These boundaries are essential to preserve independence and trust.

4. Engagement Triggers (When Josef Steps In)

Josef engages only when at least one of the following is true:

  • Capital decisions are delayed, looped, or repeatedly revised
  • Decision ownership or escalation is unclear
  • Large investments are debated but not decided
  • Energy, ESG, or risk trade-offs remain implicit
  • Boards or executives lack a factual basis to decide

If these triggers are absent, engagement is not justified.

5. Exit Criteria (When Josef Steps Out)

Josef steps out when:

  • A functioning Decision Governance system is in place
  • Decision rules and ownership are institutionalised
  • ROICE improvement is demonstrable
  • Management can operate the system independently

Continuation without proof is explicitly excluded.

6. Non-Negotiable Principles (Discipline Rules)

  • Decisions are governed, not negotiated
  • Scope is narrow, measurable, and reversible
  • ROICE is measured before opinions are discussed
  • Authority is explicit or the decision does not proceed
  • If improvement is not measurable, the work stops

These principles override convenience and tradition.

7. Strategic Positioning (How Josef Is Used)

Josef operates:

  • Between Board, CEO, and CFO
  • Upstream of execution
  • Above functions, outside politics

Josef is engaged for control over decisions, not advice.

8. Legacy Clause

This role is system-based, not person-dependent.
It is designed to be:

  • replicated,
  • licensed,
  • institutionalised,
  • transferred without dilution.

Josef’s contribution is not a project —
it is a permanent upgrade to how value-critical decisions are made.

Power Statement

“I do not optimise operations.
I govern the decisions that define their returns for decades.” – Josef David

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