Process — Three phases. One artifact. One team.
Every engagement we run has the same shape. We listen, we do the work, we hand off a written deliverable. Every engagement is finite, scoped, and bounded.
Phase 01 — Listen
Listen first. Pitch nothing.
The first conversation is a call with you and one of us. We ask what has been tried, what is currently spending money, what is currently in production, and what your board is going to ask next.
We do not pitch in this call. We will tell you, in plain language, whether one of our engagements is a fit. If it is not, we will say so and — when we can — point you to a firm that is a better match.
Artifact
A one-page scoping note. You see it before you sign anything.
Phase 02 — Execute
Do the work. In writing.
The engagement runs in fixed scope, against a written plan. We are the people doing the work.
The engagement runs against a written plan. At each milestone, you get a short written update — what we did, what we found, what is next. If the scope needs to change, we tell you in writing and you decide before any billable time is spent.
Artifact
A regular memo. Two pages or fewer. Honest.
Phase 03 — Hand off
Hand off something usable.
Every engagement ends with a written deliverable. Depending on the engagement, that is a buyer recommendation, a renewal memo, or a board deck with one page per pilot. None of them ends with “we recommend further study.”
We present it on a final call, walk through every line, and answer follow-ups in writing at no cost for a defined window after handoff. Then we are done — though post-launch monitoring, measurement, and model updates are available if you want them. We do not have a steering committee.
Artifact
A memo or deck a non-technical executive can read end to end.
Principles — The way we work is the product.
The deliverable matters, but so does the experience of getting it. A few things we hold to, on every engagement.
- Senior on the keyboardThe team that scopes the engagement is the team that builds it. No handoffs.
- Memos over decksSlides hide thinking. We default to written memos because they force the work to be coherent.
- Scope agreed in writingWe agree the scope and the deliverable before we start. Scope creep is handled in writing or it does not happen.
- Bounded by designEvery engagement has an end. If you want us back, we will scope a new engagement or optional post-launch support. We will not invent reasons to stay.
- The right answer winsIf the right answer is to cancel the contract, kill the pilot, or walk away from a vendor we like personally, we will write that memo.
Contact
We know where artificial intelligence belongs in your business — and how to make it run.
Talk to us and we will show you exactly where the gaps are and what we would build. Founder to founder.