Questions
What happens first?
A short call. Twenty minutes, free, no deck. We work out whether a Current State Assessment is the right first step, and if it isn't, I'll say so.
Rather not book a call? Send me three sentences about the part of the business on your mind. I will write back within two business days with what I would measure first, and whether I am the right person to do it.
What does it cost to start?
A consultation is free. If you find me and want to pick my brain for 20 minutes, I can extend the same offer regardless of your location. I can produce a recap of our conversation and some high-level guidance around next steps. Anything more in depth has to have a cost.
If you run a firm of up to 40 people in San Francisco, start with "Find the friction. Fix it." It's twenty minutes, in person, no charge. An in-person visit always yields greater results than a Zoom. We can look at things together and get a better sense of the friction. I sit with the owner or the office manager and we name one leak. If we cannot name it, I leave.
If the firm is bigger, or the system is the business, there is a paid option: start with the Current State Assessment instead. Fixed fee. Read-only. One to two weeks.
Who is this for?
Owners who know AI matters and want it working in their own company. Owner-run businesses, from founders working alone to companies of about 200, that already have customers and cash coming in.
The free twenty minutes is open to anyone who finds me, regardless of location. Firms up to 40 people in San Francisco also get it in person: property managers, boutique law, CPA firms and independent practices. A paid option is available for larger organizations: the Current State Assessment.
When am I not the right call?
I'm not the right call if you're pre-revenue or looking for a co-founder, or if the next ninety days are about survival. Then you need a turnaround person, not a measurement. The same goes if you want hands, not a method, or want it bought and installed this week. I measure first, and that takes one to two weeks.
If the job is bigger than me, I'll say so and tell you who to call.
What do I get?
From the Current State Assessment, three things, yours to keep whatever happens next:
- A findings report. Where the work flows, where it waits and where it leaks, with a ranked list of what to fix.
- A dashboard. The three to six numbers that say whether this is getting better or worse, on your own tools.
- A one-page summary. You can hand it to a partner, a board or a lender.
Fixed fee. Read-only. One to two weeks. Small businesses and nonprofits can start with an abbreviated Current State Assessment.
How long does it take?
The first check is twenty minutes. The Current State Assessment takes one to two weeks: two or three conversations of 45 minutes each, with you and the people who do the work, then a week in your systems, read-only. On the last day I walk you through it for an hour.
Your side comes to about four hours.
Will you change anything in my systems?
Not while I'm measuring. Not a setting, not a record, not a workflow. Read-only means read-only: no admin rights, no write access, nothing installed. Your data stays in your systems, not on my machine, not in a model. I will sign your NDA first.
What happens after the assessment?
You decide. Some engagements end after the assessment, and that is a normal ending.
If you go on, the build is scoped from what the assessment found, not from a guess. Fixed price when the scope is clear enough to price. I can also install the working practice in your business, so the capability stays after I leave, or stay on as a second opinion: Advisory, a monthly retainer. Everything I build runs on your accounts, not mine.