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AI consultancy selection

How to shortlist a UK AI consultancy for a governed pilot

Compare UK AI consultancy proposals on the same job. Use a worked example to assess evidence, human approval, costs and handover before choosing a pilot.

By AI Venture X

Start with a brief every consultancy can price

Write down one recurring job, the person who owns it, the current effort and the output that person must accept. Give every supplier the same representative examples, including incomplete or conflicting inputs. Ask what they would test first and what they would leave to a simpler workflow.

Illustrative brief: a weekly programme risk report

A programme office wants a draft risk report built from approved workstream updates. The PMO lead checks each proposed change against its source and approves the report. Use one normal week, one week with conflicting updates and one with a missing update. Agree how to measure reviewer time, unsupported claims and missed high-priority risks.

Compare two proposals on the same job

These fictional proposals show how to compare different offers. Both start with a read-only pilot on the same test material.

Proposal A: a draft for human review

The supplier shows source links in the draft and flags a conflicting update for review. Its fixed quote covers setup and a handover session. Ongoing usage, support and access revocation still need evidence.

Shortlist decision: Advance to a bounded pilot if the supplier can demonstrate revocation and agree a cost ceiling and handover deliverables.

Proposal B: a managed workflow

The supplier offers source ingestion, draft reports and a later option to update the risk register. The managed fee includes support. The demo used complete inputs and the proposal leaves the approval and recovery steps unspecified.

Shortlist decision: Ask for evidence on the same test set and a separately priced read-only scope. Revisit register updates once approval and recovery have been demonstrated.

Decide what has to be true before anyone starts

Before the pilot

Agree access, the named reviewer, prohibited actions, a cost ceiling and who can pause the work. Ask to see how access is revoked.

During the pilot

Compare accepted reports, reviewer effort and exceptions against the current process. Record which claims the test actually supports.

At handover

Name who will run and pay for the service. Agree what the team receives, how it can export records and how to stop the workflow.

If a supplier cannot show a required control, record that gap and what evidence would close it. A lower price or a stronger demo does not settle a missing access, approval or recovery requirement.

Use the same brief and worksheet with every supplier

AI Venture X provides AI consultancy and may be a supplier you assess. Apply the same evidence requirements to us.

Supplier checklist and buyer assessment kit → How to evaluate an AI pilot → AI strategy and opportunity assessment →

Further reading

The UK Government’s guidance on defining requirements, testing suppliers’ claims and planning for handover is written for public-sector teams. These principles can also inform a commercial shortlist. Read the UK Government AI Playbook.