Operating model
Center of Excellence Blueprint
See which building blocks of a Center of Excellence you already have, and which one to build next — in the order that actually holds.
One page, one CoE — existing or intended. Fill it with whoever would be accountable for the practice. The blocks are in build order for a reason: each one depends on the one above it.
Score each row0 Absent1 Described somewhere2 In use3 Runs without you
| What you are judging | Strong looks like | Weak looks like | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foundation | |||
| MandateWhat is this practice accountable for, and what is it explicitly not? | One sentence a sceptical executive would accept. | A remit broad enough to contain anything. | |
| Capability areasIs the expertise named, and does each area belong to exactly one practice? | Named areas with no overlap and a named owner each. | Skills listed on a slide, shared across three groups. | |
| Making it buyable | |||
| Offering catalogHas expertise been turned into propositions a client can buy? | Each offering has scope, a delivery model and a commercial form. | Capabilities described, priced per person per month. | |
| StandardsIs there one way the work is done, whoever is staffed on it? | A standard exists, and delivery is held to it. | Quality tracks whoever is on the engagement. | |
| Running it | |||
| Ownership and decision rightsWho decides on an offering, on the portfolio, on a standard? | One owner per class of decision, agreed in writing. | Everything escalates, and disputes are about authority. | |
| People modelHow do people enter the practice, grow in it, and get deployed? | Roles, levels, and a path that people can see. | Staffing by availability. | |
| Proving it | |||
| Commercial modelHow does the practice earn, and what does it invest in? | Investment follows commercial evidence, not headcount pressure. | Budget is defended annually with a narrative. | |
| Portfolio managementDoes every offering carry an owner, a state, and performance data? | The portfolio can be read without asking anyone. | Nothing has ever been retired. | |
| Proof and feedbackDoes delivery return evidence and new offerings to the practice? | Finished work makes the next sale easier. | Every engagement ends, and nothing comes back. | |
| Total | |||
How to read it
- Foundation weak
- Stop here. Mandate and capability areas first — everything below inherits their ambiguity.
- Foundation solid, buyable weak
- You have a good team, not a practice. Build the offering catalog next.
- Buyable solid, running weak
- It sells and then strains. Decision rights and the people model are the constraint.
- Running solid, proving weak
- It works and cannot show it. Portfolio data and proof are what make it fundable.
- All 2–3
- A working CoE. The next question is whether capabilities compose across practices.
Build top to bottom. The most common failure is a catalog of offerings on top of an undefined mandate — it sells for a year and then argues with itself. A block scoring 3 is one you could stop attending to and it would keep running.