The same methodology. Different capability vocabularies.
A2O is industry-agnostic by design — outcomes, capabilities, gaps, target states, and roadmaps are universal. What changes is the capability vocabulary. We maintain industry-specific capability ontologies for the sectors where we work, so the language is right from day one.
Financial Services
Banks, asset managers, insurers, payments. Common outcomes we map: regulatory posture (Basel III/IV, IFRS 17, anti-fraud), digital-first customer experience, real-time treasury, AML/KYC automation, core-system modernisation.
Capability ontology: BIAN-aligned + custom extensions for treasury, claims, AML.
Healthcare & Life Sciences
Providers, payers, life sciences. Common outcomes: interoperability (FHIR, USCDI), payer-provider data exchange, clinical decision support, regulatory submission acceleration, patient-experience modernisation.
Capability ontology: HL7 FHIR R5, ONC interoperability, HIMSS capability frameworks.
Manufacturing & Industrial
Discrete, process, and hybrid manufacturers. Common outcomes: factory digitisation, supply-chain resilience, ESG & carbon reporting, predictive maintenance, IT/OT convergence.
Capability ontology: ISA-95 + Industry-4.0 layered architecture, supply-chain capability map.
Energy & Utilities
Generation, transmission, distribution, integrated. Common outcomes: grid modernisation, renewables integration, DER orchestration, regulatory compliance, customer self-service.
Capability ontology: IEC CIM 61968/61970 + utility business capability map.
Retail & Consumer
Specialty, mass, grocery, restaurant. Common outcomes: omnichannel experience, unified commerce, supply-chain visibility, loyalty modernisation, in-store digitalisation.
Capability ontology: NRF ARTS + custom unified-commerce extensions.
Public Sector & Government
State agencies, municipal governments, public utilities. Common outcomes: citizen-experience modernisation, benefits administration, regulatory programs, legacy-system replacement, cloud transition under public-sector compliance constraints.
Capability ontology: FEA, state-IT capability maps, NIST 800-53 controls overlay.
Two patterns repeat in every sector we touch.
1. The 18-month strategic cycle
Whatever the industry, boards plan in 18-month cycles. A2O is built around that horizon: the outcome-to-capability map is calibrated for the next 18 months; the roadmap covers 6 quarters. Longer-horizon ambitions become discrete A2O cycles, not single mega-programs.
2. The capability-vs-application gap
Every IT estate we walk into has more applications than capabilities. Some capabilities are duplicated across 3–5 applications; others are missing entirely. The first deliverable of every A2O engagement reveals this gap in stark form — and it’s usually the conversation that unlocks the rest of the engagement.