AI consultant UK: what they do, what it costs, how to choose

I won't quote market rates, because they vary too much to be useful and I haven't seen a reliable UK source for them. What I can tell you is the shapes fees come in, so you can compare like with like:

• Day rate. You pay for time. Flexible, but the total is open-ended unless the scope is tight.
• Fixed-price diagnosis or audit. A set fee for a defined review and a written report. Good for knowing where you stand before committing to a build.
• Fixed-price project. A set fee for a defined build. Check exactly what's included, especially testing and changes.
• Retainer. A monthly fee for ongoing support. Useful when you genuinely need it; a warning sign when it's a condition of the work.

Whatever the model, ask what the running costs will be afterwards: software subscriptions, AI usage charges and any support. Those are often bigger over a year than the build.

For transparency, here's how we price at Oduro. Every engagement starts with a Business Audit, from £1,000. The fee depends on the size of the business and what the audit has to cover. It usually starts within 7 days of payment and takes about 10 business days: interviews, a review of your systems, process mapping and a gap analysis. You get a report and at least three implementation plans, each fully costed. If you accept one and pay within 30 days of the report, the audit fee is credited against it. If you don't, you keep the report with no obligation. We don't build anything before the audit, and there's only a retainer afterwards if you ask for one.

Use these with anyone, including us:

1. What happens before you build anything? You want to hear about understanding your processes, not a demo of their favourite tool.
2. What will I have at the end of each stage? A report, a design, a working build, documentation. Get it in writing.
3. Whose accounts will it run in? Yours. If they leave, it should keep running and you should be able to change it.
4. Where does a person stay in the loop? Ask which decisions they'd never automate. If the answer is "none", walk away. My list of decisions you shouldn't hand over to AI is a good benchmark.
5. How will you test it before customers see it? Look for a real plan, like the one in how to test an AI agent before it talks to a customer.
6. What happens to our customer data? They should talk about lawful basis, supplier terms and whether your data is used to train models. The ICO's guidance on AI and data protection is the reference point.
7. What will it cost to run each month? Software, usage and support, not just the build.
8. Can I see examples of your work? Ask, and ask how they'd measure success for you.

On that last one, I'll be straight: Oduro is a young practice and we don't have a shelf of case studies yet. So judge us the way I'd tell you to judge anyone: on the clarity of the process, what you get at each step, and whether we're willing to tell you to wait. I've spent over five years in business analysis, and the most valuable advice I've given has often been "not yet".

• They lead with a tool or a platform before asking how your business works.
• They promise specific savings or results before they've seen your processes.
• Everything is built in their accounts, or the handover is "just call us".
• They can't explain, in plain English, what the AI will and won't do.
• They're vague about data, or about what happens when something goes wrong.

If you haven't written down your main processes, or your customer data lives in several places, you'll get more from doing that first. Our guide to whether your business is ready for AI walks through the signs. And if you just want to try a chat tool for drafting emails, a short AI use policy may be all the outside help you need.

For more on where AI fits, see all our guides.