01
Starting question
Which workflow should we improve first, and is AI the right intervention?
How should AI change priorities, capabilities, governance, and investment across the organization?
Book a strategy call Engagement comparison / 03
AI Workflow Audit or broad AI strategy?
Choose the decision you need next.
A practical comparison for leaders deciding between a focused operational assessment and a broader enterprise AI strategy engagement.
Decision guide • built for growing Microsoft 365 businessesThe short answer
Choose a Workflow Audit when you need to identify and justify the best first build. Choose broader AI strategy when leadership must align an organization-wide portfolio, operating model, investment posture, and governance direction.
Decision areaAI Workflow AuditBroad AI strategy engagementWhat matters
02
Evidence base
Observed work, handoffs, volumes, time, errors, systems, exceptions, and adoption constraints.
Executive priorities, market context, capability maturity, risk posture, and portfolio-level opportunities.
03
Primary output
A quantified opportunity, feasibility and risk assessment, and first-build recommendation.
A strategic direction, portfolio priorities, operating model, governance principles, and investment roadmap.
04
Speed to action
Designed to produce a bounded next move quickly.
Usually requires broader stakeholder alignment before execution begins.
05
Best fit
Small and midsize businesses seeking a low-risk place to begin.
Organizations coordinating multiple business units, investments, policies, or transformation programs.
AI Workflow Audit
- You know operational friction exists but not where AI will create the most value.
- Leadership wants evidence before funding a pilot.
- The business needs one practical recommendation rather than an idea backlog.
- A specific workflow owner can participate in discovery and validation.
Broad AI strategy engagement
- Multiple business units need a shared direction and investment logic.
- Executive alignment, governance, and operating-model decisions are unresolved.
- AI affects a material portfolio of products, processes, or workforce plans.
- The organization is prepared to fund planning and the execution that follows.
Michael’s recommendation
If you are a 5 to 60 person business asking where to start, the Workflow Audit is usually the more proportionate first move. It can supply grounded evidence for a broader strategy later without delaying a useful result now.
See how the Workflow Audit worksFrequently asked
Questions behind the comparison.
Is a Workflow Audit just a smaller strategy project?+
No. It is operational and decision-focused: understand one or more real workflows, quantify friction, assess feasibility and risk, and recommend the best first build.
Can we do strategy after the audit?+
Yes. A grounded audit can improve later strategy by replacing assumptions with evidence about workflow value, system constraints, governance needs, and adoption behavior.
What should we receive at the end of an audit?+
You should receive a current-workflow breakdown, quantified time or cost analysis, risk and feasibility assessment, and a defined pilot recommendation with ownership and success measures.
Still deciding where to begin?