Ask eight questions before you hire one: will they audit before they recommend, is the price fixed, who owns what gets built, can they show something running, who maintains it, what will they need from your team, how will you know it worked, and are they tied to a vendor. Below is what a good answer looks like, the red flag to watch for, and how rev.B answers each.
A good answer: Yes. They interview the people doing the work and look at real processes first.
A red flag: They open with a tool, a demo, or an "AI strategy" deck that never names one of your processes.
How rev.B answers: Every engagement starts with an audit: interviews, an opportunity map and a costed roadmap before anything is built.
A good answer: A fixed fee or a capped scope, in writing, for each stage.
A red flag: Open-ended day rates, or scope that grows as the work runs.
How rev.B answers: The audit is a fixed fee agreed up front. A build is a separate, scoped quote. You can stop after any stage.
A good answer: You do, outright.
A red flag: Licence fees to keep using your own automations, or lock-in to the consultant's platform.
How rev.B answers: You own anything built for your business, with no ongoing licence fee.
A good answer: Real systems, described honestly, including what is live and what isn't.
A red flag: Slides, generic case studies with no detail, or numbers you can't check.
How rev.B answers: Our What we've built section describes systems we run ourselves and says where each one stands.
A good answer: A named maintenance arrangement, agreed before the build starts.
A red flag: Handover and disappear. AI tooling changes fast, so unmaintained systems tend to break.
How rev.B answers: Support is a monthly retainer with no lock-in, and we recommend it alongside any build.
A good answer: A specific ask: named people, a set number of minutes, listed documents.
A red flag: Vague requests for "full access", or weeks of workshops before any findings.
How rev.B answers: 30–45 minute interviews with leadership and the people doing the work, plus existing process documents. Nothing sensitive is needed for the audit.
A good answer: A measure agreed beforehand, such as hours saved or error rates, and checked afterwards.
A red flag: A guaranteed ROI, or no measure at all.
How rev.B answers: Each opportunity gets an ROI estimate built from your own figures, with the assumptions shown. We don't guarantee results.
A good answer: Honest about their preferences, and choosing tools to fit your existing stack.
A red flag: Reseller incentives, or one platform proposed for every problem.
How rev.B answers: Tools are chosen to fit the problem. Most of our builds lean on Claude/Anthropic tooling, standard automation platforms, and custom software where nothing off-the-shelf fits.
Book a free 30-minute call and ask any of the eight questions. You'll get a straight answer to each.