A phased implementation plan for rolling out Aptly: baseline setup in 30 days, pilot workflows in 60, and integration with operating cadence by 90.
Definition: A 30-60-90 day authority management implementation plan is a phased rollout approach that moves an organization from scattered authority artifacts (spreadsheets, PDFs, email approvals) to a governed, searchable, and enforceable authority system — with defined milestones, deliverables, and success criteria at each stage.
Authority management improvements tend to stall when they're treated as big governance. The fastest implementations start small, get real usage, and then expand. The EY/Society for Corporate Governance study found that 90 percent of companies have DOA policies but struggle with training, enforcement, and keeping them current — and implementations that try to cover everything at once are a primary reason programs stall. West Monroe's 2026 research confirms this: 73 percent of C-suite executives believe cutting decision time in half would unlock 5–25 percent of revenue, making phased speed-to-value the right strategy.
This 30-60-90 day plan is a practical way to roll out Aptly without disrupting operations.
| Phase | Timeline | Primary Outcome | Key Milestones |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foundation | Days 1–30 | Clean, searchable authority baseline | Phase-one scope defined, authority rules imported, draft governance workflow |
| Pilot | Days 31–60 | Teams using Aptly for day-to-day authority questions | Role-based delegations issued, initial reconciliation, exception path documented |
| Operationalize | Days 61–90 | Authority as a living system with cadence | Integrations live, operating cadence established, scope expansion roadmap |
Primary outcome: a clean, searchable authority baseline that reflects how decisions are made today.
Recommended actions
Deliverables
Our recommendation: Start with the decision domain that causes the most operational pain — usually contracts, procurement, or payments. Organizations that try to cover all decision domains in phase one typically stall in committee review. A focused launch that covers one domain well and is adopted by real users within 30 days is worth more than a comprehensive design that takes six months to approve.
Primary outcome: teams can use Aptly to answer "who can approve/sign what" in day-to-day work.
Recommended actions
Deliverables
McKinsey's research on organizational decision-making found that the most effective organizations delegate decisions with explicit clarity — and that clarity requires tested workflows, not just documented policies. The pilot phase is where policy meets reality.
Primary outcome: authority becomes a living system with a cadence, not a one-time project.
Recommended actions
Deliverables
According to Azvizory research, organizations with distributed authority models drive 25 percent higher innovation and 20 percent better retention — but only when the distribution is intentional and governed. The 30-60-90 approach ensures governance is in place before authority is distributed.
Next: For governance and roles, read Operating Model for Authority Management (Q&A).
Pick the decision domain with the highest combination of operational pain and visibility. Contract approvals, procurement commitments, and payment authorizations are the most common starting points because they touch multiple teams, have clear thresholds, and create audit evidence that leadership cares about. Avoid starting with low-risk, low-visibility domains — early wins need organizational attention to build momentum.
That's actually a common starting condition. The first 30 days include documenting how decisions are actually made today — even if those rules exist only informally in people's heads or in scattered emails. Aptly becomes the place where those rules are formalized for the first time. Organizations without a formal matrix often see the fastest time to value because they're solving a visible pain point rather than migrating from one tool to another.
Typically 10–25 users spanning approvers, process owners, and one system owner. The group should be large enough to test real workflows but small enough to iterate quickly. Include at least one frequent approver from each decision domain in scope, one finance or risk stakeholder, and one person responsible for system enforcement — they'll surface the gaps between policy and reality.
Committee review. When organizations try to get every stakeholder to approve the full authority matrix before launching, the project enters an indefinite review cycle. The fix is scoping phase one narrowly enough that it can be approved by the matrix owner and one business sponsor — then expanding scope after demonstrating value with real usage data.
Connect with our team for a discovery session to learn more about how Aptly can help within your organization. If you are already a client and need support, contact us here.
