A strategic analysis framework for discovering cost multipliers others miss.
"Diving deep across six dimensions to discover the 70-90% traditional analysis leaves behind."
The 6D Foraging Methodology™ is a strategic analysis framework that maps how problems cascade across six business dimensions. Like cormorants diving beneath the surface for fish, this methodology forages deep to find hidden costs that traditional analysis misses.
Most organizations see only 10-30% of their true problem costs. The visible issue—a layoff, a system failure, a market shift—is just the surface. Beneath it lies a cascade of consequences across Customer, Employee, Revenue, Regulatory, Quality, and Operational dimensions.
The 6D framework quantifies this cascade, revealing multipliers of 2-11× between visible costs and total impact.
Author: Michael Shatny
ORCID: 0009-0006-2011-3258
Date: January 2026
License: CC BY 4.0
Trademark: 6D Foraging Methodology™
Traditional business analysis tends to:
- Focus on the visible, immediate problem
- Stop at the first-order effects
- Miss cascading consequences across departments
- Underestimate total cost by 70-90%
Traditional Analysis:
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Problem: Layoffs announced │
│ Cost: $300K severance │
│ Analysis: Complete ✓ │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘
6D Foraging Analysis:
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Visible Cost: $300K │
│ ↓ │
│ Employee cascade: $525K-1.05M │
│ Revenue cascade: $900K-1.4M │
│ Quality cascade: $300K-550K │
│ Customer cascade: $250K-500K │
│ ↓ │
│ Total Impact: $2.1M-3.4M │
│ Multiplier: 7-11× │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘
| Dimension | Symbol | What It Measures |
|---|---|---|
| Customer | 👤 | Trust erosion, churn signals, lifetime value loss |
| Employee | 👥 | Turnover risk, burnout, knowledge concentration |
| Revenue | 💰 | Payment delays, contract penalties, opportunity loss |
| Regulatory | ⚖️ | Compliance gaps, audit findings, legal exposure |
| Quality | ✨ | Defect rates, rework cycles, safety incidents |
| Operational | ⚙️ | Schedule delays, resource waste, system downtime |
Each dimension is analyzed for:
- Observable signals — Concrete, measurable indicators
- Cascade depth — How far the effects propagate (L1, L2, L3)
- Cost quantification — Dollar ranges based on evidence
Each dimension is scored using three lenses, inspired by cormorant foraging behavior:
| Lens | Name | What It Measures | Range |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sound | ChirpIQX | Urgency — How immediate is the signal? | 1-10 |
| Space | PerchIQX | Scope — How widespread is the impact? | 1-10 |
| Time | WakeIQX | Trajectory — Is it improving or degrading? | 1-10 |
Dimension Score = (Sound × Space × Time) ÷ 10
Example:
- Sound (Urgency): 7
- Space (Scope): 8
- Time (Trajectory): 6
- Score: (7 × 8 × 6) ÷ 10 = 33.6
Scores range from 0.1 (minimal concern) to 100 (critical across all lenses).
Problems don't stay isolated—they multiply. The 6D framework maps cascade depth:
L0: Origin
└── L1: First-order effects (direct consequences)
└── L2: Second-order effects (downstream impact)
└── L3: Third-order effects (systemic ripples)
Visible Event: AI coding assistants bypass documentation → Revenue down 80%
| Dimension | Level | Observable Signal | Cascade Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Operational (Origin) | L0 | AI bypass breaks funnel | ~$300K |
| Employee | L1 | 75% layoff, knowledge loss | $525K-1.05M |
| Revenue | L1 | Lifetime license = no recurring | $900K-1.4M |
| Quality | L1 | Skeleton crew for 75M downloads | $300K-550K |
| Customer | L2 | Community trust damaged | $250K-500K |
Total Cascade: $2.1M-3.4M Multiplier: 7-11× Dimensions Affected: 5 of 6
What's the visible problem? This becomes your Operational (L0) starting point.
For each of the 6 dimensions, assess:
- What signals are you observing?
- Score Sound/Space/Time (1-10 each)
- Calculate dimension score
- What are the first-order effects (L1)?
- What downstream effects follow (L2, L3)?
- Which dimensions are affected?
For each affected dimension, estimate cost ranges based on:
- Industry benchmarks
- Historical data
- Comparable situations
Multiplier = Total Cascade Cost ÷ Visible Cost
6d-foraging-methodology/
├── README.md # This file - framework overview
├── DIMENSIONS.md # Deep dive on each dimension
├── 3D-LENS.md # Scoring system details
├── SCORING.md # Formulas and calculations
├── CASCADE-MAPPING.md # How to map cascade effects
├── EXAMPLES.md # Case studies and applications
├── QUICK-REFERENCE.md # Cheat sheet for practitioners
├── CITATION.cff # Machine-readable citation metadata
├── CHANGELOG.md # Version history
├── CONTRIBUTING.md # How to contribute
├── LICENSE # CC BY 4.0 license
└── cases/
├── tailwind-css.md # Tailwind Labs case study
└── aviation-mro.md # Aviation maintenance case study
6D Foraging Methodology is part of the Cormorant Foraging ecosystem:
Cormorant Foraging (Philosophy)
├── 6D Foraging Methodology (Analysis Framework) ← You are here
│ └── StratIQX (Implementation Platform)
└── PACE Pattern (UX Framework)
└── MillPond (Implementation Platform)
Related Projects:
- StratIQX — AI-powered strategic analysis platform
- PACE Pattern — Conversational UX framework (DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.18049371)
- Semantic Intent — Philosophy layer
If you use or reference 6D Foraging Methodology in your work, please cite:
Shatny, M. (2026). 6D Foraging Methodology: Strategic Dimensional Discovery. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18209946
@misc{shatny20266d,
author = {Shatny, Michael},
title = {6D Foraging Methodology: Strategic Dimensional Discovery},
year = {2026},
publisher = {Zenodo},
url = {https://github.com/semanticintent/6d-foraging-methodology},
doi = {10.5281/zenodo.18209946},
note = {ORCID: 0009-0006-2011-3258}
}This work is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0).
You are free to:
- Share — copy and redistribute in any medium or format
- Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon for any purpose
Under the following terms:
- Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made.
6D Foraging Methodology™ is a trademark of Michael Shatny.
Michael Shatny
Ontario, Canada
ORCID: 0009-0006-2011-3258
Part of the Cormorant Foraging ecosystem.
"Most analysis stops at the visible cost. They miss the cascade. Now you can see it." 🐦