Phase 00
Frame. A light value-chain quick-scan to identify whether AI candidates exist at all, and where.
Methodology
Value Chain Decomposition.
Map, find, score, sequence.
Category
MethodologyWhen we recommend it
Every Phase 00 engagement gets a quick-scan. Every Phase 01 engagement gets a full decomposition. Without a value-chain anchor, AI strategy floats free of operational reality.
What it is
The framework, what it covers, and the problem it addresses.
A four-step methodology: map (draw the operational value chain end-to-end with the client), find (identify steps where AI plausibly applies), score (assess each candidate against the F×I matrix), sequence (order them into waves). The discipline anchors AI strategy to operational reality rather than to vendor pitches.
Why it matters
The reason this framework exists in the Rubix toolkit, and why omitting it is the wrong shortcut.
Most AI engagements start with a use case in mind. Most fail because the use case is downstream of the actual bottleneck in the value chain. Decomposition is what surfaces the bottleneck and lets the team work upstream from it. The use case picks itself once the value chain is mapped honestly.
In the Kingdom and the GCC
Regional context. PDPL, SDAIA, Vision 2030, Saudization, and the operating realities that shape how this framework lands here.
KSA enterprises often have value chains shaped by regulatory and operating constraints that vendors do not understand. A retail value chain in the Kingdom includes Saudization decisions, ZATCA reporting, and PDPL constraints that change which AI use cases are viable. Mapping the value chain with the client team is what surfaces these.
How Rubix applies it
The phases of the Rubix Way where this framework is operationalized, and what we do with it there.
Phase 01
Strategize. Full decomposition, F×I scoring per candidate step, sequencing into the 12-18 month roadmap.
Common pitfalls
The failure modes we have seen up close, written so the next engagement avoids them.
- 01
Mapping the value chain at too high a level. "Sales" is not a value chain step; "qualification of inbound leads against ICP" is.
- 02
Mapping the value chain Rubix thinks the client has, rather than the one they actually have. We map with the client team, not for them.
- 03
Treating the value chain as static. As Phase 02 ships use cases, the value chain shifts; the map needs to update.
Related frameworks