Governance Coordination Index (GCI)
A composite metric that measures governance effectiveness across five dimensions: authority clarity, escalation efficiency, documentation proportionality, coordination velocity, and structural stability.
The Governance Coordination Index (GCI) is a quantitative measure of governance health. Unlike compliance scores (which measure whether rules are followed), GCI measures whether governance actually works — whether the institution can govern itself effectively.
The five dimensions are: 1. **Authority Clarity**: How well-defined are authority boundaries? Do people know who can decide what? 2. **Escalation Efficiency**: When exceptions occur, how quickly and consistently are they resolved? 3. **Documentation Proportionality**: Is documentation a byproduct of governance or a burden? Is it proportional to the decision's significance? 4. **Coordination Velocity**: How fast can the organisation make and implement governed decisions? 5. **Structural Stability**: How robust is governance against personnel changes, crises, and growth?
Each dimension is scored, and the composite GCI provides a single number representing overall governance health. This enables tracking over time and comparison across organisations.
How Constellation handles this
Constellation calculates GCI automatically from governance traces. Organisations can track their governance health over time and identify which dimensions need attention.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is GCI different from a compliance score?
Compliance scores measure whether rules are being followed. GCI measures whether governance is working — whether authority is clear, exceptions are handled efficiently, and the organisation can govern itself. You can have perfect compliance scores with terrible governance.