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The four dimensions

Your Friction Score combines four independently calculated dimensions of operational friction. Each captures a different way time leaks from structure.

Tool Fragmentation (TFI)

How spread across applications a given class of work is. Many apps touched for one workflow usually means more context recovery and coordination overhead. Lower: A tight toolset per workflow. Higher: Constant hopping across many apps.

Sequence Consistency (SCI)

How repeatable your workflow sequences are. Stable A → B → C patterns are easier to execute reliably than ad-hoc ordering every time. Lower: High variance run-to-run. Higher: Predictable, repeatable sequences.

Context Switch Density (CSD)

How often you change focus in rapid succession. Rapid back-and-forth usually reads as coordination cost, interruption load, or cross-app copy-paste overhead. Lower: Meaningful dwell time per app. Higher: Rapid, frequent switching.

Workflow Duration Anomaly (WDA)

Sessions that run materially longer than your established baseline for comparable work. Duration spikes often flag blockage, rework, or handoffs that didn’t complete. Lower: Stable, predictable session durations. Higher: Frequent unexplained spikes.

Score bands

RangeBandWhat to do
0–29LowNo urgent action needed. Monitor for drift.
30–59ModerateReview the top one or two contributing patterns.
60–79HighPrioritise the highest-scoring dimension this week.
80–100CriticalTreat as urgent. The top pattern is costing material time.

The confidence gate

Vantic IQ does not surface a Friction Score until the Pattern Engine has sufficient confidence. That means:
  • A minimum number of workflow instances observed — repetition, not a single unusual day
  • Enough dimensions crossing a reliability threshold independently
  • Signal quality high enough that a published score is not misleading
If confidence is not met, you see nothing — not a partial score, not a “low” estimate. Early in the observation window you will see Friction Pulse observations instead: single factual signals that assert what was directly observed, with no pattern claim attached.

Why waiting is a feature

A score built from thin or non-representative data would be worse than no score. If your first week was unusually busy, unusually quiet, or atypical in any way, the Pattern Engine will wait for a clearer picture. This is by design.

Optional benchmarking

If sector benchmarking is enabled on your account, your Friction Score is displayed alongside a contextual range for your industry vertical. This is opt-in and can be disabled at any time. See Sector benchmarking.

The Diagnostic

How the Friction Score becomes a 30-day operational report.

Sector benchmarking

How your score is contextualised against patterns in businesses like yours.