EXPERIENCE LEVELS
The 6 keys and your experience level
Each of the 6 keys in this playbook is broken into four maturity levels. These reflect more than just technical capability—they also signal how your organization makes decisions, adapts to change, and moves as one. Like any complex system or game, having the right partner—an experienced guide—can make the difference between stalled progress and strategic advancement.
Identifying your experience level
Beginner
You’ve hit “start.” Your organization is at the beginning of an exciting data and AI journey. The strategy is still taking shape, governance practices are emerging, and capabilities are scattered—but the potential is enormous. At this stage, having the right guide can make all the difference: someone who knows the terrain, helps you sidestep common traps, and accelerates your path forward. With a trusted partner by your side, early uncertainty becomes a launchpad for real momentum
Intermediate
You’ve made real progress. A vision is coming into focus, and key pieces are in place—but they haven’t fully clicked into a system yet. Agility is limited, execution is reactive, and without shared goals or clear accountability, scaling becomes tough. Innovation efforts spark but often lose momentum as competing priorities pull focus. Many teams leap ahead too fast, only to stall and backtrack.
At this stage, success is about smart sequencing—partnering with experts who can help pace decisions, build structure, and keep your momentum strong as complexity grows.
Advanced
You’ve built a strong foundation. Strategy is aligned, systems are integrated, and governance is taking shape. Data is driving smarter decisions, and teams are moving with clarity. Organizational agility is growing—but friction remains when scaling initiatives, coordinating across teams, or responding to change.
This is the moment to turn consistency into acceleration. With the right expertise, you can remove drag, move faster, and scale without stall-outs.
Expert
You’re transformation-ready. Data, systems, and people are fully aligned—secure, scalable, and always improving. Governance is trusted, automation hums in the background, and strategy flows seamlessly into action. Teams adapt fast, and intelligence moves freely across the business. Innovation plugs into an ecosystem built to scale.
The challenge now is sustaining your edge. That takes discipline, visibility, and the right support to stay sharp, spot risks early, and keep momentum strong
To make this journey practical—not theoretical—we’ve also outlined the most common traps (pitfalls) that teams fall into, the business requirements (level requirements) that define real readiness, and the tools (level ups) that can accelerate your progress.
Think of each section as a checkpoint: not just where you are, but what’s holding you back, what it takes to advance, and how Highspring helps you get there.
Ready? Layer one starts here.
