Approach
Every engagement starts from a decision someone has to make.
The work is to make that decision well, see the ones coming, then carry it through: to know what is true about the technology, what is true about the organization, and what follows from both.
At the frontierOn the P&L
Decide
- The situation
- A specific decision is on the table: a platform commitment, a build-or-buy choice, a model or vendor contract, a program that has stalled, or the order of an entire AI agenda. The people closest to it often have a stake in the answer.
- What R5 does
- We look at the decision from both sides: what the technology can really do today, and what the organization can take on. We build the cost model behind it. Then we say what we would do.
- What you have at the end
- A recommendation you can act on, with the reasoning laid out so your team can challenge it. An account of what could go wrong, and how you would know early.
Look ahead
R5 keeps a small research desk, drawn from its bench, that sets the aperture wide and the horizon long, three to five years out, and works back to what you should do this year.
- The situation
- The decisions in front of you are shaped by the ones coming. A new agent ships and someone has to say what it means. The technology moves on one clock; people, organizations and habits move on another. An investor needs to know whether a technology holds up before committing to it.
- What R5 does
- We frame a perspective on the long-term, technology-driven trends that matter to you: how the technology is likely to evolve, and how people and organizations are likely to respond. Then we work back to what that means for the decisions you are making now. For investors and corporate development teams evaluating a startup, a technology bet or a new market, we work out what’s real, what’s defensible, and what would change the thesis.
- What you have at the end
- A long view tied to a near-term move: the next decisions to make, the bets worth funding, and the signals that would change your mind.
Build
- The situation
- The decision is made: the company will stand up an AI capability, product line or division. The hard part now is the agenda, the partners and the people. Hiring a full team before the agenda is set is expensive and hard to undo.
- What R5 does
- R5 sets the agenda and the sequence, selects and directs the partners who deliver, and holds them to one plan. We lead and orchestrate; specialist partners do the engineering.
- What you have at the end
- A capability that is running, an agenda the organization owns, and a clear view of which roles to hire permanently, and when.
From the work
On a recent agent build, we underestimated how fast a senior-led team could ship with AI-enabled development, as models and coding tools kept improving. The launch date moved up sharply. The structured buy-versus-build we planned is still on the table, but it now gets weighed against the sunk cost of what’s built and how close launch is. When the tools move this fast, the sequence of decisions has to move with them.
Lead
- The situation
- AI activity is spread across the company and no one senior owns the whole of it. A permanent Chief AI Officer may be the right answer eventually. It is rarely the right first move. Meanwhile, boards are being asked to oversee commitments they have had little chance to examine.
- What R5 does
- R5 takes the seat for a defined period as a member of the leadership team. We hold the agenda, decide what comes first, and answer for progress. We work with directors directly on governance, and carry the case to leadership, the board and, where it matters, the market.
- What you have at the end
- One agenda, in an order the organization can execute. A board that can tell a pilot from a commitment, with oversight in proportion to the risk. A clear view of whether, and when, to hire for the role permanently.
How an engagement runs
- Strategic advisoryA defined decision, a clear recommendation.Decide
- Long-range perspectiveWhere the technology and the people around it are heading, and what to do now.Look ahead
- Frontier diligenceA view on a startup, a technology bet or a market.Look ahead
- Embedded executive leadershipR5 in the seat, for a defined period.Lead
- Governance and board counselWorking directly with directors and committees.Lead
The partner model
The senior people you want in the room don’t sit in a staffing pyramid.
So R5 brings them in directly. R5 is a founder-led practice with a bench of senior partners: engineering, data, design, organizational change, communications and narrative, and research. They are people we have worked with before. Each engagement gets the people it needs, accountable to one plan.
Working together
It starts with a conversation.
We talk through the decision in front of you. If R5 isn’t the right firm for it, we’ll say so.
The founder leads every engagement.
R5 takes on a limited number of engagements so that Philip Rothaus can lead each one. The partners around him are chosen for the work.
R5 is independent.
R5 doesn’t resell software or take referral fees from vendors. Our founder holds equity in and advises AI companies; if any interest bears on your decision, we disclose it before we begin.
You hear what we think.
That includes when the right answer is to wait, to stop, or to do less.