NEXA
Decide on new technology without guessing.
NEXA scores a vendor, a product or an unmet need across six dimensions — then measures the result against the size of what you are being asked to commit. You get one of four verdicts, the reasoning behind it, and the single thing that would change it.
It checks what you already run before it ever suggests buying something, because the most expensive mistake in technology selection is paying twice for a capability you own. Everything stays in your browser. There is no account, no server and nothing to sign up for.
The six dimensions
Capability gap
How much of this need is unmet by what you already run?
The cheapest capability is the one you have already bought. Nothing else matters until this is answered honestly.
Differentiation
How hard would an established vendor find it to replicate this within twelve months?
Most "innovation" is a feature your incumbent will ship next year. Paying for it twice is the most common avoidable mistake.
Estate overlap
How much would this duplicate something you already own?
Duplication is paid for twice — in licence and in the integration tax of running two things that do one job.
Strategic alignment
How closely does this serve a priority you have actually stated?
A technology with no sponsor and no stated priority behind it will stall after the pilot, however good it is.
Time to value
How quickly can this prove or disprove itself?
Speed to evidence is a risk control. Anything that takes a year to fail teaches you nothing you can afford.
Reversibility
If this turns out to be wrong, how cleanly can you walk away?
Reversible decisions deserve a fast yes. Irreversible ones deserve a slow one. This dimension decides which conversation you are having.
The four verdicts
- Run a proof of concept
- The case clears the bar for what is being asked, and the decision is cheap to reverse. Prove it quickly rather than debate it slowly.
- Scope a pilot
- The case is strong, but the commitment is large enough or slow enough that it needs structure — a named sponsor, a scope and an exit.
- Explore later
- Real potential, but something is not yet true — the gap is thin, the differentiation is unproven, or the timing is wrong. Keep it in view.
- Park it
- Either you already own this capability, or it is not differentiated enough to justify the disruption. Saying no here buys attention for something better.
The bar scales with the ask
- Low — A few weeks of someone’s time. No procurement. Must clear 45 out of 100.
- Moderate — A funded pilot. One team, one budget line. Must clear 55 out of 100.
- Significant — Multi-team, contract negotiation, a real line in the plan. Must clear 65 out of 100.
- Major — Platform-level. Hard to reverse once started. Must clear 75 out of 100.
NEXA checks your estate against the 150 technologies on the Emerging Technology & Innovation Radar. The full scoring method is published on the framework page.
Common questions
- What is NEXA?
- NEXA is a free decision framework for emerging technology. It scores a vendor, product or capability gap across six dimensions — capability gap, differentiation, estate overlap, strategic alignment, time to value and reversibility — and returns one of four verdicts: run a proof of concept, scope a pilot, explore later, or park it.
- How does NEXA decide the verdict?
- Each dimension is scored zero to four against published anchors. The scores are weighted into a composite out of one hundred, which is then compared against a bar set by the size of the commitment being asked for. A small, reversible ask clears at forty-five; a platform-level commitment has to clear seventy-five. The arithmetic is published and reproducible — there is no hidden model.
- Does NEXA use AI to make the assessment?
- No. Every judgement is yours; NEXA supplies the structure, the scoring and the consistency. That is deliberate. A framework you can audit, defend in a steering committee and reproduce six months later is worth more than an opinion from a model you cannot inspect.
- Why does it ask what I already own?
- Because the most common and most expensive mistake in technology selection is buying something you already have. Estate overlap is weighted heavily, and an assessment that finds a direct equivalent already in place is parked regardless of how good the new option looks.
- Is my data sent anywhere?
- No. Every assessment stays in your own browser. There is no account, no server and no telemetry on the content of what you assess. You can export your assessments as CSV or JSON, or share one as a link that encodes the scores in the URL itself.
- Can I use this framework in my own organisation?
- Yes, with attribution. The dimensions, anchors, weights and verdict bands are published in full so they can be adopted, adapted or argued with. The entire framework — including the composite formula and the ordered verdict rules — is also available as machine-readable JSON at /nexa/data.json.