ASCEND™ Methodology
From Business Need to Measurable Result
You don't have to have everything figured out before working with Nelson & Fields.
You may already know exactly what your business needs. You may know the problem but not the right solution. Or you may simply know that something in your business needs to improve.
That's where we start.
Nelson & Fields uses our proprietary ASCEND™ methodology to move your business from its current situation to a defined, measurable outcome.
The Method
Assess → Strategize → Create → Execute → Navigate → Develop
Stage 1 of 6
Assess
What is happening?
Understand the business condition, evidence, context, risks, opportunities, and desired outcome.
We understand what you're dealing with.
We start with what you already know and determine what needs to be validated or understood before moving forward. Depending on your situation, this may be a focused review or a deeper business assessment.
You don't have to start from zero just because you're working with us.
Measure the Outcome
ASCEND™ is not complete without measurement.
- 01
Baseline
Where the business started.
- 02
Target
What the work set out to achieve.
- 03
Actual Result
What actually changed.
- 04
Business Impact
What that change meant for the business.
- 05
Remaining Gap
What still stands between here and the outcome.
- 06
Next Opportunity
What the business should consider next.
Implementation is not the finish line. Nelson & Fields measures what changed, what remains, and what the business should consider next.
How We Work
Three ways businesses begin.
You have a defined need, project, requirement, or desired outcome.
You're here if you're saying
- “I need a new website.”
- “We need an AI solution.”
- “We need operating procedures.”
- “We need to improve our digital presence.”
- “We need a new business process.”
- “We need help implementing a specific initiative.”
The journey
Understand the need, organization, desired outcome, urgency, existing information, and scope.
Review only the information necessary to understand and validate the proposed work.
Establish what needs to be accomplished, what Nelson & Fields will provide, applicable success measures, responsibilities, timing, and boundaries.
Nelson & Fields determines the appropriate engagement structure.
Focused ASCEND™
Assess → Strategize → Create → Execute → Navigate → Develop
Measure the outcome
Baseline → Target → Actual Result → Remaining Gap → Next Opportunity
When the need is already clear, we don’t create unnecessary diagnostic work. We validate what matters, establish the outcome, and move toward implementation.
The methodology is standardized. The journey is customized.
Starting Points
You Can Come to Us at Different Starting Points
- “I know what I need.”
- Tell us what you're trying to accomplish. We'll validate the scope, determine the appropriate engagement, implement the solution, and measure the result.
- “I know the problem, but I don't know the solution.”
- We'll investigate what's causing it, determine the right intervention, help implement it, and measure whether it worked.
- “I know my business needs to improve, but I'm not sure where to start.”
- We'll help assess the business, identify the most important gaps and opportunities, prioritize what should happen next, and build a path forward.
The Path
Where you start. How we work. What it produces.
Your Business Starting Point
- Need
- Problem
- Opportunity
- Risk
- Requirement
- Goal
The Appropriate ASCEND™ Journey
- Focused ASCEND™
- Diagnostic ASCEND™
- Comprehensive ASCEND™
Determined by Nelson & Fields based on your situation — not selected by the client.
ASCEND™
- Assess
- Strategize
- Create
- Execute
- Navigate
- Develop
Result
Measurable Business Outcome
Engagement Journeys
One Method. A Journey Built Around Your Business.
No two businesses come to Nelson & Fields from the same starting point.
Some clients already know exactly what they need. Others know the problem but need help determining what is causing it or what should be done. Some organizations face multiple interconnected challenges that require a broader business transformation.
ASCEND™ provides the structure for every engagement while allowing the depth of the journey to match the work required.
The methodology is standardized. The journey is customized.
Focused ASCEND™
For a defined business need, project, or outcome.
A Focused ASCEND™ engagement concentrates the methodology around the specific business need.
Assessment is targeted. Strategy is directly connected to the desired outcome. Creation and implementation receive the level of attention necessary to complete the work. Performance and results are measured according to the engagement.
The client still moves through Assess → Strategize → Create → Execute → Navigate → Develop. However, the activities inside each phase are right-sized to the engagement.
Examples
- Website and digital transformation
- AI implementation
- Process development or improvement
- Business foundation development
- Digital visibility improvement
- Operational system implementation
- Specific organizational development work
- Defined business projects
The same six phases — right-sized
- Assess
- Strategize
- Create
- Execute
- Navigate
- Develop
Depth is determined by Nelson & Fields based on the business need.
Not sure which path fits your business? You don't need to decide. Start by telling us what you're trying to accomplish or what is happening in your business. We'll help determine the appropriate path forward.
One Method. Different Business Needs. Measurable Outcomes.
ASCEND™ isn't a rigid process that assumes every business has the same problem.
It's the Nelson & Fields method for taking a business need, problem, opportunity, risk, requirement, or goal and systematically moving it toward a measurable result.
You bring us where your business is today. We help you determine where it needs to go—and work with you to get there.
Assess → Strategize → Create → Execute → Navigate → Develop
Nelson & Fields
We Coach. We Implement. We Partner.
From methodology to operating system
ASCEND™ is supported by connected technology environments.
The methodology determines what should happen. The technology environments are where the work is operated and managed — each designed for a different purpose.
Explore ASCEND™ Systems- AOS™
- Operate Your BusinessThe business operating environment used day to day.
- AMS™
- Manage. Implement. Transform.The governed environment for authorized engagement management.
Proprietary Property
Show the experience. Explain the method. Protect the mechanics.
ASCEND™ and applicable Nelson & Fields frameworks, systems, processes, software, tools, templates, methodologies, content, and know-how are proprietary Nelson & Fields intellectual property.
Unless expressly authorized in writing, they may not be sold, resold, licensed, sublicensed, commercialized, copied, reproduced, distributed, reverse engineered, repurposed, transferred, claimed as another party's property, or used outside authorized rights.
Client-specific work product and usage rights are governed by applicable agreements.
ASCEND™ Engagements
Ready to move your business forward?
When the need is clear and the business is ready for structured implementation, Nelson & Fields uses ASCEND™ to move from current state to measurable outcome.
- Assess
- Strategize
- Create
- Execute
- Navigate
- Develop