Pick the kind of consultant first, then the person. Most bad AI hires are a good builder hired to fix a training problem, or a good trainer hired to run a build.
How do I choose an AI consultant?
The four kinds, and what each one is for:
- Trainer. Gets your people using the tools they already have. Fits when the tools are bought and nobody uses them. With me: $450 for 90 minutes, $1,500 for a half day of AI 101.
- Strategist. Finds where the hours go and ranks what to do first. Fits when you do not know where to start. With me: the one-day applied workshop, $3,500, or two days with maps and a plan, $6,500.
- Builder. Makes the automation or the software. Fits when you know exactly which process to fix. With me: fixed scope, or $150 an hour.
- Fractional executive. Owns the plan, the vendors, and the budget for months. Fits when money is moving and nobody answers for it. With me: $3,500, $6,500, or $11,000 a month.
Many consultants are good at one or two of these. Ask which one they would be for you.
How do I know which kind I need?
Finish this sentence: "The problem is that..."
- "...we bought it and nobody uses it." You need a trainer.
- "...everybody has an idea and nobody agrees." You need a strategist.
- "...this one process eats somebody's whole week." You need a builder.
- "...we are spending money on AI and I cannot tell if it is working." You need a fractional executive.
If it is the last one, what a fractional exec does in the first 90 days shows what to expect from the seat.
If you cannot finish the sentence, start with the strategist. A day spent ranking the problems costs less than a month spent building the wrong fix.
How do I check the person once I know the kind?
Ask for one example of that kind of work, for a business about your size, that is still in use. My examples: at Quartz Importers MN, where I hold a fractional CTO seat, a small sales team runs on 49 automated workflows. At U.S. Asset Appraisals, another fractional CTO seat, I run the marketing technology and AI rollout for a firm working in 35+ states.
For the questions that separate real experience from a good pitch, how to tell if an AI consultant is full of it has the tells, and questions to ask before hiring a consultant has the contract questions.
Does the consultant need to know my industry?
It helps less than people think. Knowing how your business moves work around matters more than knowing your trade's vocabulary. A consultant who has done this for several kinds of business will ask better questions than one who only knows yours. The exception is regulated work, where you want someone who has read the rules before.
What should I not do?
Do not hire a big strategy engagement when the problem is training. Do not hire a builder before you know what to build. And do not hire anyone who cannot tell you which of the four they are.
If the problem is getting your people to use the tools, the adoption page covers how I work on that. If you are not sure which kind you need, finish the sentence on the start form and I will tell you.
Answered by Jared Lukes, Minneapolis. Twenty-five years in brand, UX, and technology, currently holding fractional AI and technology seats at three companies. About Jared.