1The Strategic Frame
Pipeline has the data, the reach, and the relationships. FFH has the activation engine, the outcomes layer, and a path to equity. Together we close two gaps Arizona cannot close on its own: workforce readiness and population health.
What Pipeline brings
- 300K+ active learners on platform (170K HS, 30K adult, 30K job-seekers)
- ECAP — the statewide Education & Career Action Plan distribution channel
- 6 active white-labels generating recurring revenue (Maricopa, Chandler, Mesa, My Futures + 2 sub-domains)
- Burning Glass Institute Skills First Fellowship inside track
- Trusted brand across 15 Arizona counties + 22 Tribal Nations
- Rural Community Specialist (Nogales) — already hired
What Force for Health brings
- 360° Health Academy — 1,800+ lessons, 11 body systems, bilingual, NHES/NGSS/CASEL aligned
- Reality Health Games — engagement engine that retains learners after the assessment
- PHIT Score & Data Hub — 141 panels, 107 API connections, county-level outcomes
- Chamber of Health Systems — convening table at the state and regional level
- Owned tech stack (Vercel + Supabase + custom) — white-label clone in <30 min
- Foundation + for-profit structure — accepts both grant and equity capital cleanly
2Why Now — The Two Clocks We're Racing
Pipeline has 6 months of runway. FFH has a market window in front of TRIF, ABOR, RHT, ACE, and the Arizona Healthcare Workforce Action Group. The same partnership solves both problems.
Pipeline's clock
$16M total funding since 2015 — $7M PEI/Maricopa Industrial Authority, $1M ACCHHS, $5M K-12 (DOE), $3M DOL. Most was development pass-through, not sustaining operating revenue.
$1.5M annual to sustain — $35K/month tech platform + 6.5 FTE (incl. new Rural Community Specialist).
Funding dries up Nov 2026. Pipeline's founder is now Chief of Staff in the Governor's Office. Amber is "saving the ship" and was told she'd be better positioned as a vendor inside a broader solution.
FFH / Arizona's clock
TRIF FY27 ABOR priorities are open — AMPLA ($30M), Arizona Promise ($50M), AFESF ($10M), Excellence Scholarship ($20M). Chair-Elect explicitly invited innovative public-private partnerships.
Arizona ACE Initiative + Chamber of Health Directors Table + Rural Health Tour (RHT) are forming the convening layer — FFH already has a seat; Amber should sit there too, with us. Front-facing AZ Chamber of Health page is live.
OEO ($M-scale grant authority) is actively seeking solutions — but Pipeline can't lead because of perceived conflict of interest. We can.
3The Three-Layer Stack — How We Don't Squash Pipeline's Product
Pipeline isn't competing with FFH. Pipeline is the middle layer. We're building a stack where each partner does what they do best, and every layer below it gets stronger.
Force for Health Network
Pipeline Connects
Lightcast OR FFH-Owned Graph
4The COI Mitigation Architecture
The conflict of interest is real and it's not Amber's fault. We solve it by changing who holds the prime, not by hiding the relationships. Katie Belous (OEO Director) has explicitly encouraged us to find a way — this is the way.
The relationships, on the table
The play
- FFH is the prime applicant on every Arizona public-sector pursuit (RHT, ACE, ABOR, OEO, USCCF re-applications).
- Pipeline is a named subcontractor / data & catalog vendor with defined deliverables and a fixed budget line — not a co-equal applicant.
- Burning Glass Institute / Lightcast (if used) sit one layer below as data and framework providers. This adds national legitimacy.
- Amber sits at the AZ Chamber of Health Directors Table with Lucy — not as a Pipeline rep alone, but as a certified Force for Health Director representing the joint solution. This is the bridge Katie Belous can defend publicly.
- Communications discipline: Pipeline's role is described in deliverables ("data integration, ECAP route-through, 300K-learner distribution"), not in dollars-to-Pipeline. The dollars route through FFH and the work product is contracted out under standard subgrant terms.
5The $1/Head Model — Where Pipeline Folds In
$1 per Arizonan × 7M residents = $7M annual baseline revenue. The print magazine to every AZ family is the universal touchpoint. STEAM TEAMS at $2,500 per high school is the depth activation. Pipeline's catalog becomes the "what comes next" route in every magazine, every classroom, every dashboard.
| Revenue Line | Volume | Unit | Year-1 AZ Revenue |
|---|---|---|---|
| $1/Head Statewide License Annual print magazine to every AZ family + platform access |
~7M residents | $1.00 | $7,000,000 |
| STEAM TEAMS Activation Per-high-school activation across AZ (~280 HS public + private) |
~280 schools | $2,500 | $700,000 |
| Pipeline White-Label Continuity Maricopa $8K/mo + Chandler/Mesa $1.2K/mo each + My Futures + sub-domains — kept whole and grown under co-brand |
6+ instances | varies | ~$140,000 |
| Chamber of Health Directors fees County-level director seats co-branded FFH + Pipeline |
15 counties | varies | TBD |
| Combined AZ Year-1 Revenue Target | ~$7.84M | ||
How the dollars flow to Pipeline
- Subcontract line, fixed annual: ~$1.0M – $1.5M to Pipeline = full cost of their current operation ($1.5M sustain). This fully funds Pipeline through the cliff.
- Whitelabel revenue stays with Pipeline on existing accounts. New whitelabels co-sold under FFH × Pipeline brand split 60/40 in FFH's favor (FFH carries the platform cost).
- STEAM TEAMS revenue share: Pipeline gets a per-school referral fee for any high school where Pipeline's ECAP/sub-domain is the entry point (~$300/school, target).
- Equity upside: Pipeline gets a warrant or stock-grant participation in My Healthy Globe, Inc. tied to AZ pilot success (see §7). This is the conversion from grant-dependent nonprofit to equity-bearing partner.
6Cross-Train the Pipeline Team — Dual-Cert Force for Health Directors
Pipeline's 6.5 employees become the deepest bench of certified Force for Health Directors in the state. They keep their Pipeline scope. They add an FFH scope. Same people, two credentials, double the surface area.
Proposed seat assignments
Certification path
- 30-day onboarding: All 6.5 complete the FFH Director Foundations course + 360° Academy walkthrough.
- 60-day field activation: Each Pipeline employee identifies a "home county" and convenes one local Chamber of Health Directors table.
- 90-day deliverable: Joint AZ Chamber of Health Directors meeting, co-hosted by Lucy & Amber, with Katie Belous (OEO) and one ABOR rep invited.
7My Healthy Arizona — The Co-Commercialization Vehicle
My Healthy Arizona is the consumer-facing brand for the joint solution. Underneath it: Pipeline's pathway catalog, FFH's health citizenship platform, and the AZ Healthcare Workforce Action Group's employer demand signal. The pilot proves the model. The equity sleeve makes it portable to every other state.
The architecture
- Brand: "My Healthy Arizona" — owned by My Healthy Globe, Inc. (FFH for-profit parent). State-level instance in front; FFH's white-label engine behind it.
- Anchor mission: $1/head statewide solution to prevent disease, lower costs, improve health and wealth outcomes for all Arizonans.
- Three-way co-commercialization:
- Force for Health Network — platform, content, outcomes layer, Foundation scholarship distribution
- Pipeline Connects — pathway catalog, ECAP, 300K-learner reach, BGI Skills First alignment
- AZ Healthcare Workforce Action Group — employer/payer demand signal, Banner / AHCCCS / health plan endorsements, post-credential placement commitments
- Equity model: Pipeline and Action Group anchor partners receive warrants in My Healthy Globe, Inc. tied to AZ milestones (e.g., 1M certified learners, X% PHIT improvement, Y workforce placements). When the model exits to other states, anchor partners participate in the upside.
Why this works for Pipeline specifically
Pipeline converts from a perpetually-grant-dependent nonprofit into an equity-bearing partner in a scalable for-profit platform without losing its mission. Pipeline's 300K-learner data set becomes the proof point that My Healthy Arizona can move from pilot to standard. When we replicate "My Healthy [State]" elsewhere, Pipeline rides along — they don't get left behind.
8Funding Roadmap — Bridge → Anchor → Scale
Three phases, three different funding vehicles, each unblocking the next. The total $7M+/yr AZ revenue target is reached by month 18. Pipeline is fully funded by month 6.
Stop the cliff
- RHT (Rural Health Tour) sponsorship — joint AZ rural activation with Nogales specialist as anchor; FFH prime, Pipeline catalog routing
- Arizona ACE Initiative slot — joint pilot proposal targeting 3 counties Q3-Q4 2026
- USCCF Pathways with Purpose re-application — refile with FFH as prime and Pipeline as named subcontractor (clears the BGI co-app issue cleanly); $295K–$365K already drafted
- OEO directed solution — Katie Belous indicated openness; FFH applies, Pipeline is the workforce data sleeve
Lock in the state
- ABOR / TRIF Tier 2 — Statewide PHIT for Arizona ($3M–$7M / 24 mo). Pipeline is the workforce-pipeline activation sleeve across ASU, NAU, UA
- AMPLA alignment ($30M FY27 priority) — health-careers Pathway tools co-built by FFH Academy + Pipeline catalog
- AFESF alignment ($10M) — STEAM TEAMS pipeline; Pipeline routes ECAP students into STEAM TEAMS activations
- FFH Foundation STO — establish the FFH STO to capture $1M–$3M of AZ tax-credit-directed dollars; routes scholarships to Pipeline learners
Equity & multi-state
- ABOR Tier 3 — PHIT National + Equity Sleeve ($10M+ / 36–60 mo). State takes equity-style position in My Healthy Globe Inc
- $1M FFH SAFE raise closes; Pipeline anchor partners receive warrants in My Healthy Globe, Inc.
- "My Healthy [State]" replication — TX, NV, NM, CO targets; Pipeline rides along as the workforce data partner
- Acquisition / IPO path — Year-3 exit window opens; returns flow back to TRIF, AZ universities, and anchor partners
9Two Paths Forward — With Lightcast vs. Without
The labor-market data layer is a real budget decision. Path A licenses Lightcast (industry standard, fast credibility, recurring fee). Path B builds an FFH-owned skills + occupation graph from public sources (slower, but zero licensing and we own the IP). Below: pricing, pros, cons, and a recommended hybrid sequencing.
Lightcast pricing reality (what we know)
Lightcast does not publish enterprise/API pricing. Sales are quote-only. The one published price list we found (EDCC 2022) covers only the Analyst desktop tool:
| Lightcast Analyst — Population Tier | Seats | 1-Year Annual | 2-Year Annual |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 – 50K population | 3 | $5,000 | $4,000 |
| 50K – 200K population | 3 | $8,000 | $7,000 |
| 200K+ population (Arizona = 7M) | 3 | $12,000 | $10,000 |
Add-ons (National Data, Profile Analytics, Business Listings) are priced separately. Enterprise API access, the Open Skills commercial license, and white-label integrations are quote-only — based on industry comps, expect $50K–$150K/yr for an enterprise API + skills taxonomy package at our scale. Skills Taxonomy commercial license alone typically lands $25K–$75K/yr.
With Lightcast — Licensed Industry-Standard Layer
Architecture: Lightcast Open Skills Taxonomy + Analyst tool + Enterprise API → Pipeline ECAP → FFH PHIT & Credentialing → My Healthy Arizona consumer brand. Burning Glass Institute Skills First Fellowship fully unlocked.
Pros
- Industry-standard taxonomy: 2,000 occupations, 30,000 skills, 18B+ data points
- Used by 44 of Fortune 50 + 67 of Fortune 100 — instant employer-side credibility
- BGI Skills First Fellowship alignment is automatic (BGI uses Lightcast data)
- Faster credentialing recognition with state and federal workforce systems
- Real-time job postings + compensation data refreshed by Lightcast
- Less platform dev work; license-and-go in <90 days
Cons
- Recurring annual cost — never goes away, scales with usage
- Vendor lock-in: same data many other partners can buy
- No proprietary moat; can't be the differentiator we sell to investors
- Multi-state replication compounds the cost (each new state = new license)
- Pricing not transparent; renewals can spike
Without Lightcast — FFH-Owned Skills & Occupation Graph
Architecture: O*NET (free, federal) + BLS OEWS & QCEW + AZ DES feeds + Pipeline ECAP catalog data + FFH proprietary "skills-to-health-outcome" graph → unique credentialing layer → My Healthy Arizona. BGI alignment via framework/research participation only, not data licensing.
Pros
- Zero ongoing data licensing cost — Year 2+ COGS drops to maintenance only
- FFH owns the IP — proprietary "skills-to-health-outcome" graph is a real moat
- Multi-state replication is free at the data layer (TX, NV, NM, CO ride for nothing)
- Stronger investor story: "we own the graph" drives valuation
- Foundation can fund the build as workforce-equity research (grant-eligible)
- No vendor renewal exposure
Cons
- 6 – 9 months to build before credentialing is production-ready
- Less industry-standard vocabulary; some employer/state systems prefer Lightcast tags
- BGI Skills First Fellowship alignment requires negotiation (framework participation, not data integration)
- Real-time job-posting freshness depends on what we scrape/license; not as deep as Lightcast's 18B data points
- Higher Year-1 spend than Path A's low end ($190K vs $85K), though the curve crosses by Year 2
Stage it. Year 1 with Lightcast, Year 2 owned graph, Year 3 independent.
Year 1 (Bridge phase): License the Lightcast Analyst seats only (~$12K) to unlock BGI Skills First alignment and accelerate the first proof point with Pipeline. Skip the enterprise API and Skills Taxonomy commercial license at this stage — too expensive for what we'd do with them on a 12-month pilot.
Year 2 (Anchor phase): Use ABOR/TRIF Tier 2 dollars + SAFE raise proceeds to fund the FFH-owned skills graph build (~$200K, in-house). Run both stacks in parallel. By end of Year 2, our owned graph is primary; Lightcast becomes augmentation only.
Year 3 (Scale phase): Drop Lightcast entirely if our owned graph is performing. If still useful, keep Analyst seats at ~$12K/yr for benchmarking only. Replicate "My Healthy [State]" with zero incremental data-licensing cost.
Why this is the answer: We get Lightcast's credibility for the first proof point without the long-term lock-in or six-figure recurring fee. We bake the moat (FFH-owned graph) into the SAFE raise story. By the time we exit, we own the IP that makes us acquireable.
10Decisions for the Working Session
Walk through these with Amber line-by-line. Each decision unlocks the next phase. Use the Notes panel on the right to capture answers as you go.
Working session checklist
- Confirm the prime/sub structure. FFH leads every public-sector AZ pursuit. Pipeline is named subcontractor with defined scope. Yes / No / Modify
- Confirm the $1.0M–$1.5M annual subcontract floor for Pipeline once Phase 1 funding lands, conditioned on agreed deliverables and dual-certification of staff. Yes / No / Modify
- Approve cross-training all 6.5 Pipeline employees as FFH Directors within 90 days. Yes / No / Modify
- Approve "My Healthy Arizona" as the joint consumer brand with Pipeline as a named anchor partner (and warrant-eligible) in My Healthy Globe, Inc. Yes / No / Modify
- Approve Amber's seat at the AZ Chamber of Health Directors Table as Co-Director with Lucy. Yes / No / Modify
- Pick a Lightcast path: Path A (license Year 1), Path B (own from Day 1), or Hybrid (recommended — Lightcast Analyst Y1 + FFH-owned graph Y2). Choose
- Confirm BGI Skills First Fellowship terms — is Pipeline's participation data-license-bound or framework-only? Determines Lightcast scope and budget. Confirm
- Phase 1 fundraising priority order — which to pursue first: RHT? ACE? OEO directed solution? USCCF re-application? Set the order today. Decide
- Joint AZ Chamber of Health Directors meeting date — set within 60 days. Invite Katie Belous + 1 ABOR rep. Set date
- Decision on Pipeline whitelabel co-branding — do existing Maricopa / Chandler / Mesa / My Futures instances get co-branded under FFH × Pipeline immediately, or after Phase 1? Decide
- Communications protocol re: COI — agree on language: "Pipeline is a named data and catalog vendor inside FFH-led Arizona initiatives." Lucy + Amber both use the same line. Approve