Field notes from real engagements. Frameworks, postmortems, and the unglamorous discipline of shipping AI in production.
Showing 1–9 of 15 essays
Most AI tools demo beautifully and break in production. After evaluating vendors across 100+ implementations, here's the framework I use — including the five questions that end most sales conversations early.
Read essayA full-time Chief AI Officer runs $300K+ a year all-in. A fractional one is a fraction of that. Here's an honest breakdown of both — plus the math for working out which one pays for itself at your size.
Read essayThere are three real ways to get senior AI leadership into a company, and they solve genuinely different problems. Here's an honest comparison of what each one costs, what it gets you, and how to tell which one you actually need.
Read essayA Fractional Chief AI Officer is a senior AI executive who joins your leadership team part-time to own AI strategy, evaluate vendors, and make sure every automation dollar produces a return. Here's what the role actually involves, what it costs, and how to know when you need one.
Read essayThe back office isn't glamorous, which is exactly why it's where AI pays back fastest. Repetitive, high-volume, rule-based operational work is AI's sweet spot. Here's where to apply it, what to automate first, and what to leave to people.
Read essayMost companies spending money on AI can't say whether it paid off — and the ones who claim it did are often counting vanity metrics. Here's an honest framework for measuring AI ROI, including the traps that make bad investments look good.
Read essayProfessional services firms sell expertise and time — which makes AI both a huge opportunity and a genuine risk. Here's where AI creates real leverage for consultancies, agencies, and firms, and where it quietly undermines the trust you sell.
Read essayMost companies buy AI tools before they're ready to use them — which is why the tools become shelfware. Here's an honest readiness assessment across five dimensions, including the signs you should fix something else first.
Read essayYou can buy the best AI tool on the market and watch your team quietly ignore it. Adoption — not technology — is where most AI investments die. Here's how to get real, lasting use out of the tools you're paying for.
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