Design Pattern · September 2026
The Zero Neo reference architecture
Systems of record at the bottom, platform capabilities above them, AI orchestration above that, then workflows, then the mixed workforce, with observable outcomes at the top and purchased software entering only from the side.
Under the pillar Zero Neo
The layers
The architecture is deliberately plain. Its job is to make one thing obvious: where to start.
Reading it
At the bottom sit the systems of record and the owned platform: identity, mail, calendar, documents, and data. Above them, the platform capabilities: forms, lists and tables, workflow, messaging, meetings, search, files, approvals, and automation.
Above that sits the AI configuration and orchestration layer, which assembles those capabilities and keeps the assembly working. Above that, the business workflows themselves, then the mixed workforce of people, conventional automation, and AI. At the top, the only thing the business actually wanted: observable outcomes.
Specialized software enters from the side, at whatever layer it is genuinely needed, once a capability gap has been demonstrated. It is a legitimate part of the architecture. It is just not the starting point.
The two questions
Do not start with which application to buy. Start with what outcome is needed and what is already owned that could produce it.
Everything else in this pillar is an attempt to find out how often the second question has a good answer, and how quickly that is changing.