A day rate pays for time and leaves the risk of overrun with the buyer. A fixed price pays for an outcome and moves the risk to the supplier, which is only fair, and only safe, when both sides know what the outcome is. The right answer for AI work is therefore not one or the other; it is a short piece of scoped work first, then a fixed price for the thing that was scoped, then a different arrangement for running it.
Consultancy: fixed, after a conversation
A leadership session, a discovery programme, a governance model: the scope of each is well understood, the variables are few, how many functions, how many workshops, and a fixed price can be set from a conversation. A consultancy that cannot fix the price of its own method does not have a method.
Builds: scope first, then fixed
An AI build has more unknowns: the state of the data, the systems to integrate, the escalation rules, what counts as a good answer. Fixing the price before those are known forces the supplier to pad it or the buyer to absorb the overrun. So the honest arrangement is two steps: a scoping engagement of one to two weeks, itself fixed, that produces the knowledge sources, the integrations, the evaluation set and the success measures; then a fixed price for the build to production, including the pilot. If the scoping shows the data is not ready, the buyer has spent little and learned a lot.
Running a system: retainer or managed service
Once a system is live it needs monitoring, re-evaluation on every change, model updates and improvement from the escalations. That is ongoing work, and it is priced monthly: a managed service with defined responsibilities, or a retainer of days. It should be quoted alongside the build, not discovered afterwards, so the total cost of the system is known before the decision.
What to insist is in the quote
| Item | Why |
|---|---|
| The scope, in writing, with what is excluded | So “fixed” means something |
| The evaluation set and the success measures | So “done” means something |
| The production pilot | So the quote is for a system, not a demo |
| The handover or managed-service cost | So the total cost is known |
| What you own at the end | Code, evaluation set, documentation, with no licence |
| Licence costs, separately, at vendor price | So there is no hidden margin |
When a day rate is right
Advisory work with no defined deliverable: a standing hour with the board, a review of a supplier’s proposal, help with a decision. Honest day-rate work is for judgement on demand, and it should be a small part of any AI programme.
Our position
Everything we do is scoped first and its price fixed before it starts; builds are scoped in a fortnight and then fixed to production, with the pilot and the handover or managed service in the quote; and we take no margin on licences. The engagements are described under services.