The Method
A decision framework translated from elite UK command doctrine — six stages in a continuous loop. It is how commanders think under load. It is what we install.
"The STEADY Method ends with a question, because commanders never stop asking one."
A loop, not a line
After the debrief you return to the situation, because the situation has changed.
S
Stage 01
What do we actually know — versus assume?
Ground truth before action. Separate the report from the rumour, the observation from the interpretation. What is confirmed. What is inferred. What is unknown.
In the boardroom
Before responding to the leaked memo, the exec team pauses to establish what has actually been seen, by whom, and what remains speculation.
T
Stage 02
What can hurt us? How likely, how bad, how fast?
Threats are named and rated. Impact and probability, but also velocity — how quickly does this move if left alone.
In the boardroom
The board maps regulatory, reputational and operational exposure before choosing which one to address first.
E
Stage 03
What does success look like? What are we commanding towards?
Define the outcome before the action. Without an endgame, every option looks equally valid.
In the boardroom
In a hostile-bid response, leadership fixes the target state — independence, terms, or exit — before considering tactics.
A
Stage 04
What are the viable options — and the plan for when each goes wrong?
Three routes, not one. And for each, the contingency: what we do when it doesn't go as intended.
In the boardroom
Three response drafts prepared for the analyst call, with pre-decided pivots for each foreseeable question.
D
Stage 05
Commit. Communicate. Move.
Once the decision is made, it is spoken clearly, delegated cleanly, and executed at pace. Ambiguity is the enemy.
In the boardroom
The CEO issues one message, one channel, one deadline — internal alignment before any external statement.
Y
Stage 06
Why did we decide this? Why did it work — or not?
Record the rationale. Debrief without ego. The point is not to be right; the point is to be better next time.
In the boardroom
Ninety minutes after the crisis window closes, the team documents every call — including the ones that turned out wrong.
Stay steady.
Decisions that hold up — in the moment, and under scrutiny afterwards.