Hello.

The best work rarely begins with a polished answer.

It usually starts with a question, an uncomfortable observation, or an idea that does not quite fit the brief.

I met Fahad while leading the delivery of a large retail platform. He was an engineer on the team. I was focused on the service, the users and the problem we were trying to solve.

We approached things differently — and that became the point.

a building with trees and plants
Grain texture.

Los Angeles
5 November 2022

Stray Theory sits between those two questions.

We want to understand before we prescribe. Test before we over-invest. And leave teams stronger, not more dependent on us.

I ask, "Should we?"

  • Service design, user needs, organisational complexity and the questions worth answering before anything gets built.

Phase 2

Design & Validation

  • Prototype possibilities, test assumptions and quantify where value and risk sit.

Phase 3

Delivery & Enablement

  • Turn the evidence into a practical roadmap while building capability inside your team.

Phase 1

Discovery & Framing

  • Define the real problem, constraints, stakeholders and evidence needed to move forward.

Phase 2

Design & Validation

  • Prototype possibilities, test assumptions and quantify where value and risk sit.

Phase 3

Delivery & Enablement

  • Turn the evidence into a practical roadmap while building capability inside your team.

Phase 1

Discovery & Framing

  • Define the real problem, constraints, stakeholders and evidence needed to move forward.

Phase 2

Design & Validation

  • Prototype possibilities, test assumptions and quantify where value and risk sit.

Phase 3

Delivery & Enablement

  • Turn the evidence into a practical roadmap while building capability inside your team.

That is the company we are trying to build.

Sometimes the best idea starts as a stray theory.

Z. Ali
Co-Founder, Stray Theory