Define
Finding Your Why
Vision turns interest into a defensible, board-ready case. A 90-minute workshop, a use case catalogue, a strategic alignment template, and a full briefing pack — together they answer "why are we doing this, and what does success look like?"
1–2 weeks
"We know what we want to solve."
Strategic priorities mapped to use cases
Why Starting with 'Why' Matters
Most failed data and AI projects share a common origin: they started with technology, not problems. Someone saw a demo, bought a platform, and then went looking for a use case. The result is expensive shelfware and deep organisational scepticism about the next initiative.
The school groups that succeed take a different path. They start with the problems they want to solve — the things that keep leaders awake at night. What if you could spot persistent absence before it becomes entrenched? What if SEND identification happened a term earlier? What if your middle leaders got a day back every half-term?
This phase is about turning inspiration into a concrete plan. A facilitated SLT workshop helps you identify strategic priorities and map them to specific data use cases — so that every investment in data and analytics is anchored to something that genuinely matters.
Strategic Priority Mapping
These are the priorities we see most often when SLTs run the Finding Your Why workshop. Which ones resonate with your organisation?
Attendance & persistent absence
Fragmented attendance data across schools makes it impossible to intervene early enough.
SEND identification & provision
Late identification and provision mapping gaps mean some children wait too long for the support they need.
Reporting burden on leaders
Hours spent compiling reports, responding to data requests, and reconciling inconsistent formats.
Safeguarding oversight
Behaviour, attendance, and concern logs sit in separate systems — nobody has the full picture.
Financial sustainability
Connecting educational outcomes to spending decisions to demonstrate value and target resources.
The Define Process
Phase 1 follows a structured but flexible process. Each step builds on the last, and the whole phase can be completed in one to two weeks.
Run the Finding Your Why workshop with SLT
A half-day facilitated session that helps your senior leadership team articulate the specific challenges they want data to address. No jargon, no technology talk — just honest conversation about what keeps you awake at night and what would make the biggest difference to children.
Map priorities to the Use Case Catalogue
The Edequity framework includes 8 proven use cases spanning attendance, SEND, safeguarding, assessment, finance, HR, governance, and reporting. The workshop output is mapped to specific use cases so that every priority has a concrete, deliverable solution attached to it.
Build the business case with the Strategic Alignment Template
Using real numbers from your own systems — staff time spent on reporting, PA rates, SEND identification timelines — you build a business case that speaks in the language your board understands. Not technology promises, but operational improvements with measurable impact.
Prepare tailored briefings using the Making the Case pack
Different audiences need different messages. The Making the Case pack provides tailored briefing templates for governors, staff, and parents — ensuring everyone understands not just what you are doing, but why it matters for their context.
Is Your Organisation Ready to Define?
Click each question to reveal the insight. These will help you assess whether your organisation is ready for this phase.
In Practice: Kaizen Academy Trust
Kaizen Academy Trust is a composite case study, synthesised from real implementations across the Open Education AI ecosystem. The characters and scenarios are illustrative, but the challenges and outcomes reflect genuine experiences.
“Sarah convenes her SLT for a half-day workshop. The team identifies three strategic priorities: persistent absence, SEND provision, and reporting burden.”
Ready for Phase 2?
Phase 1 is complete when your organisation has moved from inspiration to intention — when you can articulate not just that data matters, but specifically what you want it to solve. You're ready when:
When this happens, you're ready for Phase 2: Assess — Readiness & Landscape.
Phase 1 Resources
Tools to help your leadership team find and articulate your "why".