Practical writing for people running the work, not selling it.
A weekly piece on automation, AI, and the small unglamorous changes that save UK businesses time.
Audit the Process Before You Automate It
Automation does not fix a process, it scales whatever shape it already has, and you pay to build and run every step. Here is why the audit comes first, from someone whose background is auditing them.
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Automate or Hire? They Don't Do the Same Job
Hiring and automating are not two ways to solve the same problem. Here is what each one actually does, where a human still has to sign off, and how to decide which your business needs first.
Your Onboarding Checklist Should Run Itself
A client onboarding checklist lists everything that needs doing to bring someone on board. It still leaves a person to do every step by hand. Here is how to turn that same checklist into an automation that does the work for you.
Excel Isn't the Problem. What You Built Around It Is.
Most small businesses don't need to replace Excel. They need to fix everything around it. Here's the difference, and what to build instead.
They've Sold You an AI Agent. How Do You Know It's Doing What You Asked?
'AI agents deployed in your business' is the pitch of the year. Often it is an automation with an AI step on top. Five questions to ask before you sign.
The Three Places HR Consultants Still Type the Same Thing Twice
Drafting with ChatGPT was never the expensive part of HR consulting. The same data typed into three systems that do not talk to each other is. Here is where it hides.
Why Most AI Tools for Small Business Are Just Wrappers
How to tell which AI tools for small business are worth paying for, and which ones you could replicate yourself in an afternoon with the underlying AI.
Stop asking which AI model is best
For two years the only question about AI was which model is best. That is quietly becoming the wrong question, and the answer changes what you pay each month and how much of your setup you actually control.
Claude Co-work Changed How I Build
Claude co-work gives small businesses a useful AI workspace. What it does, what it costs, and whether it's worth it for an owner-led business.
What Happens When Your Competitor Uses AI
Only 16% of UK businesses use AI today. When your competitor joins them, their costs drop and their client experience improves. Here is what that means for you.
The AI You Bought Has Amnesia
Most AI tools forget everything the moment you close the tab. Here is what learning actually means, and how a small business can start building an assistant that remembers.
Judges: The AI Review Layer That Stops Mistakes Reaching Your Clients
If an apprentice was emailing your top client, you would check the email before it went out. Judges are the same idea, built into AI workflows.
Agentic AI Explained for Business Owners
Everyone is talking about agentic AI. Here is what automation, AI, agents, and agentic actually mean for UK businesses, without the jargon.