Unlock Faster Results with
First Principles Thinking
We help healthcare, manufacturing, and startup leaders cultivate the harmony of human spirit, processes, and purpose, to build sustainable high-velocity organizations.
Tailored Solutions for Your Industry
Reimagine healthcare with more joy—put people first, and watch patient outcomes and staff satisfaction soar.
In an era of mergers and cost-cutting, we help hospitals and health systems achieve sustainable success by harmonizing teams, workflows, and purpose. Our approach:
Empower Frontline Teams to solve problems daily, reducing ER wait times by 75% and slashing rates of Left Without Being Seen (LWBS) and psych admissions.
Optimize Patient Flow using Lean design principles—95% of Emergency patients treated in under 20 minutes, or elimination of waiting rooms in ambulatory settings.
Align Leadership to foster collaboration, not blame, creating cultures where staff thrive and costs drop by 30%. Medical staff conduct interdisciplinary rounding at the patient bedside to ensure the best possible medical outcomes, is your senior leadership team structured to
Forget quick fixes. We build resilient organizations where continuous learning drives high-quality, low-cost care—proven in regional health systems and featured by the Lean Enterprise Institute and AME Target Magazine.”
Manufacturing &
Construction
Focus on system improvements so collaboration, not blame, becomes the new norm.
From advanced manufacturing lines to large-scale construction projects, we help manufacturers and construction firms boost agility, cut costs, and synchronize operations.
Empower Production Teams: Encourage daily problem-solving and continuous learning. Clients see up to 80% faster assembly and a 25% reduction in operational costs.
Optimize Workflows with First-Principles & 3P: Streamline production flow, cut lead times by half, and slash assembly from four hours to 20 minutes—saving millions annually.
Align Leadership: Create structures where blame is nearly impossible. By fostering a shared vision of action and collaboration, organizations see both improved financials and happier teams.
Our proven first-principles approach unlocks unlocks sustainable efficiency, helping clients achieve a 95% reduction in assembly time or save millions in shipping costs—all by harmonizing people, processes, and purpose. Let’s build your path to lasting excellence.
Biotech
Streamline operations so scientists can focus on breakthroughs—build processes that elevate both people and innovation.
From biotech incubators to large R&D labs, we help organizations optimize workflows, control costs, and maintain high compliance standards.
Boost Lab Productivity
Implement rapid improvement cycles and robust maintenance strategies (e.g., TPM) to keep critical equipment running 24/7, reducing downtime and frustrations.Enhance Team Collaboration
Use first-principles thinking to align scientists, engineers, and support staff—shortening project lead times and fueling genuine innovation.Navigate Regulatory & Growth Challenges
Establish daily problem-solving routines that mitigate risks, speed up approvals, and keep your organization agile amidst market shifts.
Forget the guesswork. We build resilient biotech ecosystems where collaboration sparks discovery—proven in everything from startup incubators to global instrument manufacturers saving millions while improving lab efficiency and morale.
Startups
Scale without the chaos—embed first principles and Agile mindsets from day one, so growth never undermines your culture.
In a fast-paced startup environment, it’s easy for teams to get overwhelmed by rapid pivots, new hires, and investor demands. We help founders create a structured-yet-flexible framework that keeps everyone aligned, engaged, and innovating.
Lay a Strong Foundation
Establish daily problem-solving habits and transparent feedback loops—preventing “firefighting” and fostering continuous learning.Accelerate Product Development
Combine Lean-Agile approaches with design thinking, accelerating MVP iterations and cutting rework by unifying cross-functional teams.Preserve Culture Amid Growth
Design leadership structures and team norms that scale—so you attract top talent, maintain focus, and keep your mission at the forefront.
Stop playing catch-up. We equip startups to handle exponential growth while staying true to their core vision—enabling you to pivot fast, delight customers, and thrive in a highly competitive landscape.
“Down to the physics” of learning.
“A complex system that works … evolved from a simple system that worked … [and] a complex system designed from scratch never works and cannot be made to work. You have to start over, beginning with a working simple system.” - Gall’s law
Often, the technical change that is implemented is over-complicated. What we will help you do is start with a simple system that works, gently surface organizational issues to learn how your organization would like to support the people encountering the issue, and then begin to scale throughout the rest of your organization.
The tools of successful organizations are remarkably similar and fairly easy to copy. There is little disagreement that they work. The difficulty lies in the human foibles presented along the way.
Introduction to First Principles Leadership.
Interested to learn more? In this video, we present an overview of first principles thinking applied to the practice of leadership, how it differs from how many of us were trained in business administration, and how leading organizations outcompete versus those led by dated, but still all-to-common, leadership norms.
Design Your Learning Organization
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Organizational Transformation
Cultural transformations commonly plateau after a few years, or worse, fail completely as the latest “flavor of the month.” We work with leadership teams to develop people through first principles thinking and joy and scale the desired culture throughout the organization.
We would love to learn about your vision, where you are in your journey, and what challenges you may be facing.
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Process Redesign (3P)
We develop people by solving real problems with your current product or process using first principles design thinking. We have experience with products ranging from analytical instruments to industrial scissor lifts, and work flows ranging from factory work cells to emergency departments, cancer centers, and outpatient medical centers.
Learn more about the process on Mark’s blog here.
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Keynotes, Workshops, Tours
Workshops are highly interactive, frame the “next step” for the participants, and you may elect on-site follow ups for organizational transformations.
We also facilitate executive retreats and lead tours of learning organizations with the goal of understanding the first principles underlying the tools of high-performance teams. See some of the popular topics below or let us know your current condition.
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Individual Coaching
Leadership is hard. We believe it should never be a solo journey. We partner with business owners and senior leaders looking for a collaborative “pair partner” to navigate the next steps of their journey.
If you are a small business owner and costs are a concern, contact us regarding an opportunity to pair up with other small business owners to split the costs and gain an additional “pair partner.”