Scoring Methodology

"The 3D lens makes impact measurable: Sound × Space × Time"

The 6D Impact scoring system quantifies problem severity using three dimensions borrowed from the Cormorant Foraging Framework: Sound (urgency), Space (scope), and Time (trajectory).

The 3D Lens

Every problem is scored across three independent factors:

Lens	What It Measures	Cormorant Integration	Range
Sound (ChirpIQX)	Urgency — How immediate is the signal?	Aggressive tone, trigger keywords, immediate hooks	1-10
Space (PerchIQX)	Scope — How widespread is the impact?	Positioning, strategic framing, affected population	1-10
Time (WakeIQX)	Trajectory — Is it improving or degrading?	Past patterns, memory, trend direction	1-10

Formula

Dimension Score = (Sound × Space × Time) ÷ 10

Why divide by 10? To normalize the score to a more interpretable range (1-100 instead of 1-1000).

Sound (ChirpIQX): Urgency

Question: How immediate is the problem?

Score	Urgency Level	Characteristics	Example
1-3	Future Risk	No immediate impact, theoretical concern	"For future planning...", "Best practice suggests..."
4-6	Current Issue	Active but not critical, manageable	"This is concerning", "We need to address"
7-10	Active Crisis	Immediate action required, severe consequences	"System down", "Legal threat", "Customer canceling"

Trigger Keyword Mapping

High Urgency (Sound = 8-10):

Customer: "canceling", "lawsuit", "unacceptable"
Employee: "I'm done", "burned out", "hostile"
Revenue: "penalty clause", "termination", "write-off"
Regulatory: "violation", "investigation", "subpoena"
Quality: "recall", "safety incident", "injury"
Operational: "system down", "outage", "data loss"

Medium Urgency (Sound = 4-7):

Customer: "disappointed", "reconsidering", "frustrated"
Employee: "overwhelmed", "understaffed", "thankless"
Revenue: "renegotiate", "discount", "delayed payment"
Regulatory: "audit finding", "non-compliance", "remediation required"
Quality: "defect", "rework", "failed inspection"
Operational: "workaround", "bottleneck", "blocked by"

Low Urgency (Sound = 1-3):

Customer: "just wondering", "any updates", "is this normal"
Employee: "just curious", "hypothetically", "work from home policy"
Revenue: "next fiscal year", "budget planning", "exploring options"
Regulatory: "new regulation", "best practice", "voluntary disclosure"
Quality: "workaround", "minor issue", "edge case"
Operational: "inefficient", "nice to have", "process improvement"

Space (PerchIQX): Scope

Question: How widespread is the impact?

Score	Scope Level	Affected Population	Example
1-3	Isolated	One person, one customer, one process	Single user bug, individual complaint
4-6	Department/Segment	One team, customer segment, product line	All enterprise customers, entire support team
7-10	Enterprise-Wide	Cross-functional, market-wide, systemic	All customers, entire company, industry impact

Measurement Guide

Customer:

• 1-3: One customer
• 4-6: Customer segment (e.g., all mid-market)
• 7-10: Market-wide (competitors know, public)

Employee:

• 1-3: One person
• 4-6: One team or department
• 7-10: Cross-functional, company-wide

Revenue:

• 1-3: One deal
• 4-6: Product line or region
• 7-10: Company-wide revenue impact

Regulatory:

• 1-3: One process or location
• 4-6: One department or business unit
• 7-10: Enterprise-wide compliance failure

Quality:

• 1-3: One unit or batch
• 4-6: One product or release
• 7-10: All production, systemic design flaw

Operational:

• 1-3: One process or system
• 4-6: One department's workflows
• 7-10: Cross-functional, business-critical systems

Time (WakeIQX): Trajectory

Question: Is it getting better or worse?

Score	Trajectory	Pattern	Example
1-3	One-Time	First occurrence, isolated incident	New issue, no history
4-6	Recurring	Pattern emerging, repeated occurrences	Happens weekly, multiple reports
7-10	Accelerating	Trend worsening, spreading, compounding	Exponential growth, viral spread

Trend Analysis

Improving Trajectory (Lower Scores):

• Issue occurred once, root cause understood
• Problem contained, not spreading
• Fix in progress, resolution visible

Neutral Trajectory (Middle Scores):

• Recurring at steady rate
• Pattern established but stable
• No acceleration or deceleration

Degrading Trajectory (Higher Scores):

• Frequency increasing
• Severity escalating
• Spreading to new areas/customers

Dimension Score Calculation

Step 1: Score Each Factor (1-10)

Example: Billing Error Discovery

Sound (Urgency):
- System workarounds happening NOW
- Multiple customer complaints
- Score: 8 (active crisis)

Space (Scope):
- 12 customers affected
- Multiple teams involved (billing, support, ops)
- Score: 7 (segment-wide)

Time (Trajectory):
- Started 3 weeks ago
- Frequency increasing
- More customers discovering it each week
- Score: 7 (accelerating)

Step 2: Calculate Dimension Score

Operational Dimension Score = (Sound × Space × Time) ÷ 10
                             = (8 × 7 × 7) ÷ 10
                             = 392 ÷ 10
                             = 39.2

Step 3: Interpret the Score

Score Range	Severity	Action Required
1-10	Low	Monitor, track over time
11-25	Medium	Plan remediation within 2 weeks
26-50	High	Immediate action, escalate to leadership
51-100	Critical	All-hands, executive involvement, crisis mode

Example Interpretation:

• Score 39.2 = High severity
• Requires immediate action
• Expect significant cascade effects
• Leadership visibility essential

Multiplier Calculation

The multiplier represents how much the total impact exceeds the direct cost.

Multiplier Factors

Score each factor (1-5), then calculate weighted average:

Factor	Weight	Score 1	Score 3	Score 5
Number of dimensions affected	30%	1-2 dimensions	3-4 dimensions	5-6 dimensions
Cascade depth (levels)	25%	1 level	2 levels	3+ levels
3D average score	25%	<15 average	15-30 average	>30 average
Reversibility	20%	Easy fix, quick	Moderate effort	Permanent damage

Multiplier Estimate Formula

Weighted Score = Σ (Factor Score × Weight)

Multiplier Estimate:
- Weighted Score 1-2: 1.5-2× multiplier
- Weighted Score 2-3: 2-4× multiplier
- Weighted Score 3-4: 4-6× multiplier
- Weighted Score 4-5: 6-10× multiplier
- Weighted Score 5: 10×+ multiplier

Example Calculation

Aviation Maintenance Facility Scenario:

Factor	Score	Weight	Weighted
Dimensions affected (6 dimensions)	5	30%	1.5
Cascade depth (3 levels)	5	25%	1.25
3D average (28.5 average score)	5	25%	1.25
Reversibility (requires inventory system overhaul)	4	20%	0.8
Total Weighted Score			4.8

Multiplier Estimate: 10×+ (weighted score > 4.5)

Actual Calculation:

Direct Cost: $119,000 annually
Total Impact: $2,200,000
Actual Multiplier: 18.5×

Result: Estimate was accurate (predicted 10×+, actual 18.5×)

Quick Reference Scoring Guide

Rapid Assessment (30 seconds)

1. Is it urgent? (High urgency = +3 to Sound)
2. Is it widespread? (More than one team/customer = +3 to Space)
3. Is it getting worse? (Trend accelerating = +3 to Time)

Quick Score:

• All "No": Score ~10-15 (Low priority)
• One "Yes": Score ~20-30 (Medium priority)
• Two "Yes": Score ~40-60 (High priority)
• Three "Yes": Score ~70-100 (Critical priority)

Detailed Assessment (5 minutes)

Use the full 3D lens with trigger keyword analysis:

1. Sound: Check for trigger keywords in communications
2. Space: Count affected entities (customers, employees, systems)
3. Time: Review historical data for trend direction

Calculate the dimension score and map cascades.

Common Scoring Mistakes

Mistake 1: Confusing Urgency with Importance

❌ Wrong: "This is strategically important" → Sound = 9 ✅ Right: "Is it happening NOW?" → If no, Sound = 1-3

Mistake 2: Over-Scoping

❌ Wrong: "Could eventually affect everyone" → Space = 10 ✅ Right: "Who is affected TODAY?" → Actual count

Mistake 3: Wishful Thinking on Trajectory

❌ Wrong: "We're working on it, so it's improving" → Time = 2 ✅ Right: "Is the PROBLEM improving or degrading?" → Check data

Mistake 4: Ignoring Silent Signals

❌ Wrong: "No complaints this week" → All scores low ✅ Right: Check leading indicators (usage drops, engagement declines)

Integration with Cascade Analysis

Dimension scores predict cascade probability:

Rule of Thumb:

• Score > 30: Expect cascades to 3-4 other dimensions
• Score 15-30: Expect cascades to 1-2 other dimensions
• Score < 15: May remain isolated, monitor

Next Steps

🔄 Cascade Pathways — Map how problems multiply

📖 Observable Properties — Signals that drive scoring

🎯 Six Dimensions — Apply scoring to each dimension

📊 Case Studies — See scoring in action

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Remember: High scores demand immediate attention. The 3D lens prevents surprises. 🪶