| Driver | Dependency | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing Models | Most independent | You can re-price or add a tier next quarter, but the ceiling is set by product value and cost structure. |
| Business Processes | Largely independent | Codifying and automating how work gets done can start today, cheaply, with AI tooling. |
| Financing | Independent to raise, purpose-dependent | Capital, including non-dilutive grants, is only as good as the driver you deploy it into. |
| Products | Dependent | Needs process capability to build; AI has lowered the capital it takes, but not the need for real differentiation. |
| Markets | Highly dependent | Expansion multiplies product + process + unit economics; weakness in any one gets magnified (Homejoy). |
| Partnerships | Dependent, with a catch | Channel partners need proven demand before they’ll engage; but community/association partnerships can be pursued early precisely to build the reputation the others require. |
Guidance for Founders
- Pricing and process are the most independent first moves.
- Channel and market expansion should extend an advantage you already have.
- Reputation-building partnerships are the exception you can start early: their whole job is to create the credibility the other dimensions depend on.
Work with Authgnosis
Reading about the six drivers is one thing; diagnosing your own company against them is another.
I’ve turned this entire framework into a working intake tool: a Growth Diagnostic Checklist, a section-by-section guide covering all six drivers plus the talent layer and the honest “fulcrum” assessment. It’s the exact prerequisite information needed to map a company’s current state, growth strategy, and future state, and to name the one or two moves that will actually compound.
If you’d rather me do the work to collect that information and put it into a high-level assessment, let me know.
Get the Authgnosis Growth Diagnostic Checklist
The full section-by-section diagnostic, free.
Citations
Framework foundation: Anthony E. Boardman, Aidan R. Vining & Daniel Shapiro, “A Framework for Comprehensive Strategic Analysis” (2003).
Professional-service-firm lens: Andrew von Nordenflycht, “What Is a Professional Service Firm? Toward a Theory and Taxonomy of Knowledge-Intensive Firms,” Academy of Management Review 35(1), 2010.
Canadian funding figures: SR&ED enhanced expenditure limit per Budget 2025; NRC-IRAP 2025–26 contributions. Real-world examples drawn from public reporting.