Where Your AI Budget Is Leaking
AI spending can be difficult to assess when each department is buying tools, testing ideas, and measuring results differently. Start by looking at where employees are running into problems.
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Shadow AI Spend
Different teams are paying for tools that do similar things, while employees find their own workarounds. Without a clear view of what people use and why, it is hard to decide what to keep, combine, or stop buying.
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Pilots That Never Scale
A pilot works for a small group but stalls when more people need to use it. Unclear ownership, missing data, or a poor fit with existing processes can keep it from becoming part of everyday work.
- 03
Phantom Productivity
A tool produces a first draft faster, but employees spend the saved time checking, correcting, or redoing it. Measure the full task to see whether the work is actually improving.
The employees doing the work can help explain why these problems persist. We involve them in reviewing the tools, processes, and support they need before recommending changes.
How We Help
An AI project may need changes in more than one part of the organization. We work with you to determine what your people need, how the process should work, and where technology can help.
People
We assess what employees and leaders need to understand and do in their roles. From there, we develop learning and support around the work they are responsible for.
- Workforce needs assessment
- Role-based learning
- Leadership development
- Employee engagement and adoption support
Process & Governance
We help you decide which problems to address, who is responsible, and how decisions will be reviewed. That includes examining workflows, prioritizing use cases, and setting practical rules for AI use.
- Strategy and roadmapping
- Use case prioritization (download our free framework)
- Workflow review
- Data and AI governance
- Measurement planning
Technology
We review the data and systems needed for the work you want to improve. Where a custom solution is appropriate, we use human-centered design to build around the people who will use it.
- Data readiness
- Data access and integration planning
- Custom AI solutions
- Human review and oversight requirements
We agree on the services and deliverables with you before work begins. Depending on the engagement, that may include advisory support, workforce development, or custom solution development.
Make the Changes Part of Everyday Work
Employees need opportunities to ask questions, practice, and help improve how AI is used. Managers need to know what is expected of their teams and how to support them.
We plan employee engagement, learning, and ongoing support across your people, processes, and technology.
How We Work With Your Team
We call our approach Plan Your Work, Work Your Plan, and Keep It Going. Your employees contribute throughout, from identifying the problem to reviewing what changes once a solution is in use.
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Plan Your Work
We start with the work you want to improve and the employees responsible for it. Together, we review the process, available data, tools, and skills, then agree on priorities, responsibilities, and how to measure progress.
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Work Your Plan
We help put the agreed changes into practice. Depending on the scope, that may include developing training, establishing governance responsibilities, improving a workflow, or building a solution.
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Keep It Going
Once people start using a new process or solution, they find questions that did not come up during planning. We help your team review feedback and results, address problems, and decide what to improve next.
What we learn in Keep It Going feeds the next round of Plan Your Work.
Why Organizations Choose Data Society for AI Advisory
Data Society is a boutique AI and data advisory firm. We bring workforce development, process and governance, and technology into one plan, so you don’t have to coordinate separate vendors for strategy, training, and solutions.
Practitioner-led
Our advisors are working practitioners who solve AI and data problems inside organizations like yours. Their guidance comes from real projects, not textbook cases.
Vendor-neutral
We don’t push platforms or prepackaged solutions. Recommendations are based on your work, your data, and your goals.
Employee-led
The employees doing the work help identify problems, review tools and processes, and judge whether changes are working.
Right-sized
We scope work for lean teams and real budgets, and we agree on services and deliverables with you before work begins.
See our work with HHS, the U.S. Department of State, the City of Dallas, and Discover, or browse all case studies.
Wherever you are with AI, from early experiments to proven results, we can help.
AI Advisory: AI Execution Simplified – Applying the Rule of Three
This brief gives leadership teams a structured way to rank AI use cases by business impact, data readiness, and organizational capacity before committing time or budget.
AI Advisory: The Grocery AI Execution Gap Simplified
93% of retail executives are investing in AI, but only 25% see the ROI they expected. This brief shows where grocery AI initiatives stall (misalignment, fragmentation, and inconsistent execution) and how to turn strategy into operational results.
AI Advisory Resources
Articles on AI strategy, execution, and leadership from the Data Society advisory team.
Built to Support Business and Public Sector Leaders
Data Society works with organizations across industries, including businesses and public sector teams, to clarify AI strategy, strengthen data foundations, and build AI-capable workforces.
Our advisory services are often paired with:
Data and AI upskilling programs
AI literacy and fluency initiatives
Custom AI solutions designed for specific business needs
AI Advisory FAQs
Answers to common questions about working with Data Society’s AI and data advisors.
What do Data Society’s AI advisory services include?
Our AI advisory work covers three areas. People: workforce needs assessment, role-based learning, leadership development, and employee engagement and adoption support. Process and governance: strategy and roadmapping, use case prioritization, workflow review, data and AI governance, and measurement planning. Technology: data readiness, data access and integration planning, custom AI solutions, and human review and oversight requirements.
How is Data Society different from a large consulting firm?
Data Society is a boutique firm. Our advisors are working practitioners, we are vendor-neutral, and we involve the employees doing the work in reviewing tools and processes before we recommend changes. Because workforce development, governance, and technology sit in one plan, you work with one partner instead of several.
Why do most AI pilots fail to scale?
Only about a third of AI pilots reach production. A pilot that works for a small group often stalls when more people need to use it, usually because of unclear ownership, missing data, or a poor fit with existing processes. We review those factors with the people responsible for the work before deciding how to scale.
How do you measure whether AI is improving the work?
We measure the full task, not only the step AI speeds up. If a tool drafts something faster but employees spend the saved time checking or correcting it, the work has not improved. We agree on how to measure progress during planning and review results after the change is in use.
Do you recommend specific AI tools or vendors?
No. We are vendor-neutral and don’t push platforms or prepackaged solutions. We review the data and systems you already have, and where a custom solution makes sense, we use human-centered design to build around the people who will use it.
How does an AI advisory engagement work?
We follow three stages. Plan Your Work: review the process, data, tools, and skills, and agree on priorities, responsibilities, and measures. Work Your Plan: put the agreed changes into practice, such as training, governance responsibilities, workflow changes, or a custom solution. Keep It Going: review feedback and results, address problems, and decide what to improve next.
What happens in the first conversation?
The first conversation is complimentary. We talk about what your team is trying to improve and where you need help. If we work together, we agree on the services and deliverables with you before work begins.
Who does Data Society work with?
We work with organizations in government, healthcare, financial services, and the private sector, including HHS, the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Air Force, the City of Dallas, Optum Health, and Discover. We right-size our work for lean teams and real budgets.
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