The CORE™ model, explained
The CORE™ model explained: one primary outcome, three strategic priorities and five measurable indicators that connect company ambition to measurable execution.
- By
- Joe Birkedale, Founder & CMO
- For
- Founders and managing directors
- Published
- 1 Jun 2026
- Read
- 2 min
- Source
- project36.io
Short answer
- The CORE™ model puts one primary outcome at the centre. Three strategic priorities sit beneath it, and five measurable indicators tell you whether execution is on track.
Key takeaways
- Five indicators keep measurement focused on work the team can deliver against in a quarter.
- Each indicator has a named owner, each priority owner owns its indicator set, and leadership owns the primary outcome.
- The agreed CORE™ model becomes the specification for HubSpot architecture, with indicators reflected in pipelines, lifecycle stages, workflows or dashboards.
- Priorities are reviewed against indicators weekly, leadership reviews the model monthly against the primary outcome, and indicators are updated as evidence changes.
Strategy documents fail at the point they meet a Monday morning. The CORE™ model exists to close that gap: it forces the company ambition to be translated into work that is specific enough to schedule, own and report on.
The structure
One primary outcome sits at the centre. Three strategic priorities define how the business will achieve it. Five measurable indicators tell you whether execution is on track.
- 1 primary outcome at the centre: the single commercial ambition the business is organised around.
- 3 strategic priorities that translate ambition into clear departmental focus.
- 5 measurable indicators that establish how progress and performance will be judged.
Why five indicators, not more
Five is deliberate. It is enough to make the strategy's contribution to the outcome real, and few enough that the team can genuinely deliver against them in a quarter without silently deprioritising most of the list.
When we see 20-item metric lists in businesses, we usually see zero completion. Five indicators with clear owners get used.
How it connects to HubSpot
Each indicator has a natural home in HubSpot. Some sit in pipelines, some in lifecycle stages, some in workflows, some in dashboards. When the CORE™ model is agreed, we use it as the specification for the HubSpot architecture.
This is why HubSpot rebuilds under the CORE™ model are quick and boring in the good sense; the platform reflects a decision that has already been made.
How it operates weekly
- Each priority is reviewed against its indicators weekly.
- Leadership reviews the model monthly against the primary outcome.
- The model is versioned in Flow, the Project36 client portal.
- Indicators are updated as evidence changes.
- The primary outcome changes rarely, and only by design.
Frequently asked
Most businesses do not, once you look carefully. Priorities that sit outside the three usually turn out to be tactics or enablers for one of them. If a fourth is truly required, we adapt the model.
No. The point of the model is to make trade-offs visible. You will sequence priorities and indicators. What matters is that every indicator is tied to a priority, and every priority to the primary outcome.
Each indicator has a named owner. The priority owner owns the set. Leadership owns the primary outcome. Nothing is unowned.
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