When something needs to move, it moves in weeks, not quarters.
Preside Initiatives are scoped, fixed-price engagements that bypass the procurement cycle entirely. No SOW games, no proposal cycle, no ramp-up. We come in with a defined methodology and a clear deliverable, in one to six weeks depending on Initiative type and scope. You see the output on the date you signed up for.
Why this exists
The Proposal Treadmill™ is the silent tax on every IT function.
Every technology problem that exceeds internal capability triggers the same cycle: recognize, scope, solicit proposals, evaluate, negotiate, contract, onboard. 2 to 4 months before the work actually starts. By then the problem has compounded.
- Recognize problem
- Scope it internally
- Solicit 3+ vendor proposals
- Evaluate and compare
- Negotiate terms
- Contract and onboard
- Vendor begins solving
Repeats endlessly. Burns leadership time. The problem the vendor was hired to solve has compounded into two more.
- Identify the problem
- Pick the matching Initiative type
- Initiative begins within the week
- Output delivered on the date you signed up for
Fixed price agreed up front. Defined methodology. Specific deliverable. Most Initiatives land in two to three weeks; the deeper compliance and AI security work runs four to six. Either way, you know the end date before signing.
The methodology
Four stages. Same four every time.
Identify
You describe the problem. We pick the matching Initiative type (or tell you it isn't the right fit and recommend a different engagement). One 30-minute conversation.
Scope
Initiative scope document signed within 48 hours. Fixed price. Defined deliverable. Named owner on our side. Named stakeholder on yours.
Initiative
One to six weeks of working days depending on Initiative type. Daily progress visible. Mid-Initiative check confirms direction before the deliverable lands. We do not disappear and reappear with a deck.
Outcome
Specific output delivered: a finding, a roadmap, a remediation, a quantified risk register, an audit-ready evidence pack, a vendor consolidation plan. Something you can act on the same week.
The Initiative catalog
Each one solves a specific problem.
Ten defined Initiative types, each with a defined methodology and a defined output. Pick the one that matches your situation.
Security Posture Initiative →
NIST CSF v2.0 control-by-control gap analysis mapped to your current environment. Identity posture review. Risk register quantified in financial terms where data permits. Prioritized remediation list with effort and risk-reduction signal.
Output: Security posture report plus board-ready summary deck
Cost Optimization Initiative →
Vendor-by-vendor spend mapped to actual utilization. License rationalization opportunities. Overlap identified. Renewal-timed negotiation leverage. We identify the savings; you (or your procurement function) execute.
Output: Tech P&L plus prioritized savings opportunity map
Board Technology Governance Initiative →
Risk register in board-readable financial terms. Governance framework modeled on audit committee structure. Management reporting cadence with templates. Designed for 20 to 30 minutes of board time.
Output: Board governance framework plus risk register plus deck
Compliance Readiness Initiative →
Control-by-control gap analysis against SOC 2, HIPAA, CMMC, PCI DSS, ISO 27001, NERC CIP, or your chosen framework. Evidence collection map. Remediation prioritized by audit timeline. Output handed to a qualified auditor for certification.
Output: Gap report plus evidence map plus pre-audit posture
Architecture Review Initiative →
As-is architecture documented. Business-alignment review. Gap analysis across scalability, integration, technical debt, vendor concentration, and key-person dependency. Target-state recommendation and prioritized investment roadmap.
Output: Architecture brief plus prioritized investment roadmap
IT Due Diligence Initiative →
Brief covering architecture, security, compliance, vendor risk, key-person, and IP. Sized for mid-market targets (broadly under $100M revenue or fewer than 500 employees). Red flags identified with mitigation cost estimates and deal-impact framing.
Output: IT diligence brief in IC-review format
Vendor Rationalization Initiative →
Vendor portfolio mapped. Overlap analysis (which tools do the same job). Concentration risk surfaced. Per-vendor renegotiate-consolidate-remove playbook keyed to renewal calendar.
Output: Consolidation plan plus per-vendor negotiation playbook
Change Readiness Initiative →
Scoped to one named initiative (ERP, M365 rollout, AI deployment, security tooling, M&A integration). Readiness assessment across leadership alignment, process, roles, training, and communication. Failure pattern analysis from prior initiatives. Playbook for the executive sponsor.
Output: Readiness assessment plus change management playbook
AI Technical Readiness Initiative →
Rapid scorecard across the four foundations that determine whether AI can be deployed safely and usefully: data quality and access, infrastructure and tooling, governance and policy, team capability. Each foundation scored. Shadow AI signal pulled from tenant scans. Prioritized roadmap to production.
Output: AI readiness scorecard plus roadmap to first production use case
AI Security and Compliance Initiative →
Full AI risk posture: model security, data leakage exposure, prompt injection surface, shadow AI inventory, regulatory alignment (NIST AI RMF, EU AI Act, sector-specific). Control architecture integrated with your existing security stack. We design; your team or partners implement.
Output: Posture document plus control architecture, board-ready
How to start
From "we have a problem" to "we have an output" on a date you can plan around.
Today
Email us a description of what you're dealing with. One paragraph is enough. We'll come back within one business day to confirm which Initiative type fits, or tell you it's something else.
Day 2
30-minute scoping call. We confirm scope, pricing, deliverable, and named stakeholders. No proposal cycle. No second meeting.
Day 3
Initiative scope document signed. Kickoff scheduled.
Day 4 onward
Initiative runs. Daily visibility. Mid-Initiative check confirms direction before the deliverable lands. Output delivered on the date you signed up for: one to six weeks from kickoff depending on Initiative type and scope.
An Initiative is the cheapest way to find out if we're the right partner.
Fixed price. Defined output. One to six weeks. If we deliver, the Technology Operating Partner relationship becomes the obvious next conversation.