Sensing Layer
The continuous lower half of the two-layer architecture. It runs all the time and contains four streams of continuous observation — Machine Heartbeat, Human Heartbeat, Radar, and Metrics — that deposit into the same structured layer. Observations are routed by scope rather than by calendar, dispositioned at the point of origin wherever possible, and escalated to the coherence layer only when their scope exceeds local resolution. The sensing layer is where decisions happen. (Strategy as Infrastructure, Chs 10, 15)
Why it matters
The sensing layer is the most important architectural innovation in the two-layer model. It inverts the traditional assumption that decisions need meetings. Instead, most decisions happen at the point of signal — an expert sees a threshold breach, dispositions it, and logs the result. Only observations whose scope exceeds the expert’s resolution travel upward as coherence questions. This is what makes velocity possible without chaos: the sensing layer handles volume, the coherence layer handles scope.
Related terms
Learn more
Ready to turn these concepts into real infrastructure?
See how Stratafy makes every term on this page operational — from machine-readable strategy to continuous alignment.