Chapter 1
The One Chain That Reveals Everything
The Invisible System
You know the monthly client performance reporting process at Apex Media Partners is painful. Your three Media Buyers—Sam, Jeremy, and Steven—complain about "data export hell" every beginning of the month. Your Account Managers always seem stressed the first week. Clients sometimes get their reports late.
But could you draw exactly how a performance report flows from start to finish—every person involved, every handoff, every place where work waits or breaks?
Most directors can't. They know it's a problem, but the problem is invisible. Diffuse. "It's just how we work."
This chapter makes it visible.
By the end, you'll have an Outcome Map showing:
The complete chain from trigger (beginning of the month) to delivery (client receives performance report)
Every person involved and what they actually do
The real cost in time, people, and handoffs
What an Outcome Map Shows
An Outcome Map reveals the hidden structure of work.
It's not a task list ("create report, send report"). It's not a flowchart (swimlanes and decision diamonds). It's not documentation for ISO certification.
It's a diagnostic tool that makes weak links visible.
What an Outcome Map Captures:
One critical business outcome
Not "things the team does" but "observable business results delivered to someone."
Examples:
"Approved monthly performance report delivered to client" (not "update spreadsheets")
"At-risk customer list ready for executive meeting" (not "check health scores")
"Approved pay application submitted to client" (not "do billing work")
The outcome has a trigger (what kicks it off) and an end point (delivered to whom).
The complete chain of people and activities
For each step:
Who does it (person or role)
What they do (specific activity)
How long it takes (time estimate)
What they hand off (to whom, in what format)
Stay at the right altitude:
Too high: "Agency prepares client reports" (missing all the detail)
Too low: "Open Google Ads, click Campaigns tab, select date range, click Export..." (too granular)
Just right: "Media Buyer exports Google Ads data for TechVantage (67 campaigns) as CSV" (captures what matters)
The real costs
Four metrics that make invisible work visible:
Total people involved: Count everyone who touches this outcome
Collective time: Sum of everyone's hours (not calendar time)
Calendar time: Trigger to delivery—captures all the waiting
Major handoffs: Count the passes between people
These numbers reveal the hidden tax of weak links.
Cross-Industry Examples
The anatomy of an outcome chain looks the same across industries. Only the specifics differ.
Construction
Outcome: "Approved monthly pay application submitted to client"
Typical chain: PM assesses site progress → Accountant consolidates 15 subcontractor invoices → Principal reviews → signs → submits
Common pain: 3-hour manual consolidation with 15% error rate from copy-paste mistakes
E-commerce
Outcome: "Weekly inventory purchase orders sent to suppliers"
Typical chain: Manager exports inventory levels → exports sales velocity → looks up supplier lead times → calculates reorder points → formats POs per supplier requirements → Director approves → sends
Common pain: 5.5 hours of manual calculation and format conversion, stock-outs from outdated lead time data
SaaS Company
Outcome: "Weekly at-risk customer list ready for executive meeting"
Typical chain: CSMs update touchpoint data → export usage scores → cross-reference support tickets → calculate health scores → Director consolidates → presents to execs
Common pain: 3 hours per CSM extracting and entering data from 3 systems that don't talk to each other
Marketing Agency
Outcome: "Monthly multi-platform ad performance report delivered to client"
Typical chain: Media Buyer exports data from 3 platforms → merges in Excel → Account Manager writes analysis → Client Success Director reviews → presents to client
Common pain: 4 hours of data extraction and merging blocks analysis work
Your outcome will have different specifics. The anatomy is the same: trigger → people → handoffs → breakage → waiting → delivery.
Mapping the Client Performance Report
This section demonstrates mapping one outcome in detail to show how the framework works in practice.
OUTCOME: Monthly Multi-Platform Ad Performance Report Delivered to Client
The questions you ask are identical for any outcome. Apply the same process to your specific situation.
The Three Questions That Build the Map
Question 1: "What triggers this outcome?"
Not "when does it happen" but "what specific event kicks off the chain?"
For your performance report, be specific about the triggering event:
Vague: "Happens monthly"
Specific: "First business day of the month (reporting on previous month's performance)"
Example: For Apex Media Partners' performance report, the trigger is "First business day of the month (reporting on previous month's performance)."
The trigger matters because it shows you where the weak link chain begins.
Question 2: "What actually happens, step by step?"
Walk through the real flow. Not the ideal process from the handbook. Not what you wish happened. What ACTUALLY happens.
Ask:
Who does what first?
What do they hand off, and to whom?
What happens next?
Here's how this unfolded when the Apex team mapped their client reporting:
TRIGGER: 1st business day of the month
The Director asks Sam (Media Buyer): "When the new month starts, what happens first?"
Sam: "I get a calendar reminder. I start pulling data for our biggest clients first. Let me walk you through TechVantage—they're our largest at $10 million in annual ad spend."
Trigger
1st business day of the month
Media Buyer
Media Buyer - Sam
The Director asks: "What do you do first?"
Sam: "I log into Google Ads. I export TechVantage's campaign performance data for last month. They have 67 active campaigns, so it's a lot of rows. I need custom columns—Spend, Conversions, Cost per Acquisition, ROAS. The export takes about 40 minutes because I have to set up the date range, configure the custom report, select the right campaigns, and wait for the download. Google's export can be slow for large accounts."
Captured:
Person: Media Buyer (Sam)
Activity: Export Google Ads data for TechVantage
67 campaigns
~$480K monthly spend on Google Ads
Custom metrics: Spend, Conversions, CPA, ROAS
Time: 40 minutes
Output: CSV file (Google Ads export)
Media Buyer
Export Google Ads data
(67 campaigns, ~$480K monthly spend)
40 Min
The Director asks: "Then what?"
Sam: "Then I do the same for Meta Ads Manager. TechVantage spends about $300K/month there on Facebook and Instagram. Similar process—34 campaigns, export with date range. Takes about 30 minutes."
Captured:
Activity: Export Meta Ads Manager data
34 campaigns
~$300K monthly spend on Meta
Time: 30 minutes
Output: CSV file (Meta export)
Export Meta Ads Manager data
(34 campaigns, ~$300K monthly spend)
30 Min
The Director asks: "Is that it, or are there more platforms?"
Sam: "One more—LinkedIn Campaign Manager. About $53K/month spend there. Only 18 campaigns. Takes about 20 minutes to export."
Captured:
Activity: Export LinkedIn Campaign Manager data
18 campaigns
~$53K monthly spend on LinkedIn
Time: 20 minutes
Output: CSV file (LinkedIn export)
Export LinkedIn Campaign Manager data (18 campaigns, ~$53K monthly spend)
20 Min
The Director asks: "Okay, so you have three CSV files. What happens next?"
Sam: "The merge. I open our master Excel template—the consolidated reporting file we use for all clients. Then I start combining data from all three CSVs. Takes about an hour and a half."
Captured:
Activity: Merge three platform CSVs into master Excel template
Time: 1.5 hours
Output: Consolidated Excel file
Merge three CSVs into master
Excel template
90 Min
The Director asks: "What happens after the merge?"
Sam: "I fix formula errors and validate the data. Even after merging, there are formula errors to clean up. I go through the spreadsheet looking for errors, fix them one at a time. Usually takes 30-45 minutes."
Captured:
Activity: Fix formula errors and validate data
Time: 45 minutes
Output: Consolidated Excel file (clean)
Fix formula errors and validate data
45 Min
The Director asks: "Then what happens?"
Sam: "Once the data is merged and clean, I calculate the aggregate metrics. Total spend across all platforms—should be about $833K for TechVantage. Blended ROAS—that's total revenue divided by total spend across Google, Meta, and LinkedIn. And blended Cost per Acquisition. That takes another 45 minutes because I'm calculating weighted averages across platforms and making sure all the cross-references work correctly."
Captured:
Activity: Calculate aggregate cross-platform metrics
Total spend (sum across Google, Meta, LinkedIn)
Blended ROAS (total revenue ÷ total spend, weighted by platform)
Blended CPA (weighted average across channels)
Time: 45 minutes
Output: Complete consolidated data with aggregate metrics
Calculate aggregate cross-platform
metrics: Total spend, Blended ROAS,
Blended CPA
45 Min
The Director asks: "And then you hand it off?"
Sam: "Yeah, I email the Excel file to Jordan."
Captured:
Handoff: Email consolidated Excel file
To: Account Manager (Jordan)
Total time for Sam (per client): 4.5 hours
Media Buyer
Handoff
Email consolidated Excel file to Account Manager
Account Manager
Account Manager - Jordan
The Director asks Jordan (Account Manager): "What happens when you get Sam's file?"
Jordan: "I review the consolidated data. Make sure nothing looks obviously wrong—like if a campaign that was spending $30K last month suddenly shows $3K, I'd catch that and ask Sam to double-check. Or if the total spend is way off from what I remember approving for the month. Takes about 30 minutes."
Captured:
Activity: Review consolidated data for obvious errors
Time: 30 minutes
Account Manager
Review consolidated data for obvious errors
30 Min
The Director asks: "What do you do next?"
Jordan: "I write the performance narrative for TechVantage. They want to know: Which campaigns are winning? Which are underperforming? What should we do next month? I analyze the data and write the insights. Usually 4-5 paragraphs plus bullet-pointed recommendations. Takes about an hour."
Captured:
Activity: Write performance narrative
Which campaigns delivered highest ROAS (winners)
Which campaigns underperformed (recommend pause/optimize)
Recommendations for next month's budget allocation
Time: 1 hour
Output: Written analysis (Word doc or directly in deck)
Write performance narrative: Winners,
under-performers, recommendations
60 Min
The Director asks: "Then?"
Jordan: "I create the client deck. PowerPoint. I take screenshots from the Excel file—top campaigns table, ROAS trend chart, spend breakdown by platform. Format it to match our agency template. Add the narrative I wrote. Usually takes another hour because I'm manually formatting charts, adjusting colors, making sure everything looks polished."
Captured:
Activity: Create client presentation deck (PowerPoint)
Screenshots from consolidated Excel
Charts (manually formatted to agency brand)
Add written narrative
Time: 1 hour
Output: PowerPoint deck
Create client presentation deck: Screenshots from Excel, charts, add narrative
60 Min
The Director asks: "Do you send it directly to the client?"
Jordan: "No, Morgan (Client Success Director) reviews it first. She oversees all our major client relationships. I email the deck to Morgan for approval."
Captured:
Handoff: Email PowerPoint deck
To: Client Success Director (Morgan)
Total time for Jordan (per client): 2.5 hours
Account Manager
Handoff
Email deck to Client Success Director
Client Success Director
Client Success Director - Morgan
The Director asks Morgan (Client Success Director): "What do you do when you get Jordan's deck?"
Morgan: "I review it - checking that the narrative makes sense for TechVantage specifically, that the recommendations align with what I know about their goals from my conversations with their CMO. Takes about 30 minutes per deck. Once it looks good, I approve it and Jordan schedules the client presentation."
Captured:
Activity: Review deck for narrative quality/strategic alignment and approve
Time: 30 minutes
The Director asks: "Once approved?"
Morgan: "Jordan schedules the client presentation call. The deck gets sent to TechVantage, and Jordan presents it in their monthly strategy review."
Captured:
Activity: Approve deck
Handoff: Deck ready for client presentation
End of chain
Total time for Morgan (per client): 30 minutes
Client Success Director
Review deck for narrative quality/strategic alignment and approve
30 Min
Question 3: "What are the real costs?"
Here's what this Outcome Map reveals:
For one client report:
7-8 hours of collective work
3 people involved (Sam, Jordan, Morgan)
4-5 days of calendar time
2 major handoffs
Scaled across Apex Media Partners' 15 clients:
112.5 hours monthly on client reporting (approximately 14 full workdays)
67.5 hours from Media Buyers alone on data extraction and merging
The Complete Outcome Map
Trigger
1st business day of the month
Media Buyer
Export Google Ads data
(67 campaigns, ~$480K monthly spend)
40 Min
Export Meta Ads Manager data
(34 campaigns, ~$300K monthly spend)
30 Min
Export LinkedIn Campaign Manager data
(18 campaigns, ~$53K monthly spend)
20 Min
Merge three CSVs into master Excel template
90 Min
Fix formula errors and validate data
45 Min
Calculate aggregate cross-platform metrics:
Total spend, Blended ROAS, Blended CPA
45 Min
Handoff
Email consolidated Excel file to Account Manager
Account Manager
Review consolidated data
for obvious errors
30 Min
Write performance narrative: Winners,
under-performers, recommendations
60 Min
Create client presentation deck:
Screenshots from Excel, charts,
add narrative
60 Min
Handoff
Email deck to Client Success Director
Client Success Director
Review deck for narrative
quality/strategic alignment
and approve
30 Min
Outcome Delivered
Client - TechVantage receives deck, Jordan presents in monthly review call
Metrics
People involved
Collective Time
Calendar time
Handoffs
3
7.5 hours
4-5 days
2
Scaled Impact
Frequency
Monthly Collective Time
15
112.5 hours
Insight
Agency structure:
3 Media Buyers: Sam, Jeremy, Steven
Each handles ~5 clients
15 total clients (ranging $6-12M annual spend, averaging $8M)
$120M total managed spend annually
$9.6M annual agency revenue (8% of spend)
Monthly reporting workload:
15 clients × 7.5 hours average = 112.5 collective hours monthly
Across 3 Media Buyers + Account Managers + Morgan
Media Buyer time breakdown (per Media Buyer handling 5 clients):
Sam's monthly workload: 5 clients × 4.5 hrs = 22.5 hours
Same for Jeremy and Steven
Agency-wide Media Buyer time:
3 Media Buyers × 22.5 hrs each = 67.5 hours/month on data extraction and merging
Agency-wide reality:
First week of every month: "Data export hell"
Media Buyers often working evenings to complete merges
Account Managers' analysis time compressed (can't start until Wednesday)
Client presentations sometimes delayed to 2nd week of month
Sam, Jeremy, and Steven all complain about Monday mornings
The structure is now visible
How to gather this information
Option 1 Team Offsite
Best for: Complex outcomes with multiple handoffs (4+ people involved)
What it looks like:
Half-day session away from office (or dedicated conference room)
Bring everyone who touches this outcome
Uninterrupted time—no Slack, no email, no "I need to jump on a quick call"
Facilitator guides the mapping (can be internal leader or external)
Why this works:
Forces focus: Can't map an outcome chain in 30-minute increments between meetings
Surfaces handoff issues: "Wait, I thought YOU were checking that?"
Builds shared understanding: Everyone sees the full picture, not just their part
Signals executive commitment: "We're investing time to fix this properly"
When to choose this:
→ First outcome map (set the pattern right)
→ Outcome involves 4+ people across departments
→ Lots of handoffs and waiting points
→ Team hasn't mapped processes together before
Option 2 Working Session
Best for: Simpler chains with 2-3 people, clear boundaries
What it looks like:
90-minute block with core team
Can be done in-office IF truly uninterrupted
Collaborative whiteboard or digital tool (Miro, Figma)
One person facilitates, others contribute
Why this works:
Faster: Less time commitment than offsite
Flexible: Easier to schedule
Sufficient for straightforward chains
When to choose this:
→ Fewer handoffs (2-3 max)
→ Team already knows the process well
→ Outcome is relatively linear (not many dependencies)
Option 3 1-on-1 Interviews
Best for: When you're very familiar with the work, just need to validate details
What it looks like:
30-minute interviews with each person in the chain
You map the outcome based on interviews
Bring the team together for 45-minute validation session
Correct gaps and confirm accuracy
Why this works:
Fastest: Least total time commitment for the team
Works across time zones: Can interview people asynchronously
Good for documenting existing knowledge
When to choose this:
→ You're intimately familiar with the process already
→ Outcome is linear (not many handoffs or dependencies)
→ Team is distributed or hard to gather simultaneously
Risk: You might miss handoff issues that only surface in group discussion
What Format To Use For The Map
Don't overthink this. Use whatever's easiest:
Whiteboard sketch → phone photo
Miro board or Figma
Google Doc with bullet points
Excel table
Hand-drawn on paper
The format doesn't matter. What matters:
→ You can see the complete chain
→ You know where time goes
→ You can identify the weak links
→ The team agrees "yes, this is how it actually works"
Tip: Start analog (whiteboard, sticky notes), then digitize later only if needed for reference. Messy accurate beats beautiful wrong.
Examples Across Industries
Before diving deeper, here are mapped outcomes from different contexts showing the universal pattern:
Construction Pay App
OUTCOME: Approved Monthly Pay Application Submitted to Client
TRIGGER: Calendar reminder on 25th of month
QUICK VIEW:
18 people involved (PM, Tiffany, Principal, 15 subs)
22-24 collective hours
8-10 calendar days
Major weak link: Tiffany manually consolidates 15 sub invoices (3 hrs, 15% copy-paste error rate)
E-commerce Inventory Reorder
OUTCOME: Purchase Orders Sent to Suppliers for Restocking
TRIGGER: Monday morning weekly cycle
QUICK VIEW:
2 people involved (Inventory Manager, Ops Director)
5.5 hours weekly
Major weak link: Manual reorder calculations using outdated lead times → stock-outs
SaaS Customer Health Score
OUTCOME: At-Risk Customer List Ready for Executive Meeting
TRIGGER: Friday afternoon (prepare for Monday meeting)
QUICK VIEW:
9 people involved (8 CSMs + Director)
26 collective hours weekly
Major weak link: Each CSM manually aggregates data from 3 systems (3 hrs each, account name mismatches across Salesforce/Zendesk)
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Mistake 1: Mapping the ideal process instead of actual reality
Wrong "According to our SOP document from 2019, reports should be completed in 3 hours"
Right "In reality, it takes Sam 4.5 hours because campaigns have grown from 40 to 67 per client, and platform export formats keep changing"
Always map what ACTUALLY happens today, not what's supposed to happen.
Mistake 2: Going too granular (clicks and keystrokes)
Wrong "Sam opens Google Ads, clicks the hamburger menu, selects Reports, clicks Campaigns, sets date range to last 30 days from dropdown, clicks custom columns..."
Right "Sam exports Google Ads campaign data as CSV with Spend, Conversions, CPA, ROAS columns (40 min)"
Capture what matters for automation decisions, not every mouse click.
Mistake 3: Staying too high-level (missing the painful specifics)
Wrong "Team prepares monthly client reports"
Right "Sam exports from 3 platforms (1.5 hrs), manually merges with VLOOKUP failures requiring manual matching (1.5 hrs), fixes errors (45 min), Jordan writes analysis (1 hr), creates deck (1 hr)"
The specifics are where automation opportunities live.
Your Action Plan
Create your Outcome Map using the three-part process.
Process:
Pick your critical outcome
Gather the information using one of the three methods:
Team Offsite (recommended for first map, complex outcomes)
Working Session (simpler outcomes, 2-3 people)
1-on-1 Interviews (if you know the process well)
Capture for each link:
Role and activity
Time estimates (realistic, not aspirational)
Handoffs (what gets passed, to whom)
What you’ll have:
One mapped outcome (trigger → chain → delivery)
Four metrics (people, collective time, calendar time, handoffs)
What this gives you:
Directors get:
"I can finally show the CFO where 112.5 hours actually goes each month. Not vague 'overhead'—specific weak links: 67.5 hours of Media Buyer time on data extraction because three ad platforms don't talk to each other. At $120M in managed spend, we can't afford this inefficiency."
Team members get:
"Leadership finally sees why I'm underwater the first week of every month. It's not that I'm slow—it's that I'm manually doing what three API integrations should handle."
Everyone gets:
A shared language. A visible map. No more vague "reporting is broken"—now it's "Sam spends 4.5 hours per client (1.5 hrs export, 1.5 hrs merge, 0.75 hrs error fixing, 0.75 hrs aggregates), Jordan spends 2.5 hours, total 7.5 hours collective time."
You can see the chain now. Next: find which links are rattling loudest.
