Fractional AI Director - UK SMEs and Councils
Fractional AI Director Services for UK SMEs and Local Councils
The UK market rate for a full-time CAIO runs to £150K–£300K annually, plus a four-month search. I cover the same ground on a monthly retainer - no recruitment lag, no annual-package negotiation. Three models from £3,500.
I have been on boards for 35 years, and in that time I have watched the same governance failures play out across every sector I have worked in - manufacturing, legal, public sector, professional services. I come in at director level, run the work personally, and stay accountable for the outcome.
How every AI engagement runs
All of my engagements run through the same five phases, starting with an honest look at where the organisation actually is with AI before anything is bought or deployed. The last phase is a clean exit, timed for when internal capability is built and my involvement is no longer needed. I am accountable at every stage in between.
AI Readiness Audit
I look at what AI tools are currently in use, how the data is structured, where the governance gaps sit, and what regulatory exposure the current setup creates. The output is a board-ready AI readiness report, usually completed within two to four weeks. Nothing gets deployed until the gaps are mapped.
Quick Wins
I pick Phase 2 pilots by one test: can the return be measured in sixty days? If not, it's the wrong project for this stage. I pick two or three that meet that test. The board gets something real to report - a number that came from your operation, not a projection built from vendor benchmarks.
Scale
Departments that weren't part of the original pilot usually ask to get involved at this point - when the Phase 2 numbers are real and visible. That's when the wider implementation begins, not on a fixed timeline. I take on the vendor selection, manage the integration work, and handle process redesign alongside the client team. Governance doesn't get bolted on here; it's already in place from Phase 1.
Governance and Sustainability
Phase four is when the governance structure goes in. ISO 42001-aligned policies and acceptable-use documentation get written at this stage, along with training for the staff who'll act as AI champions in their own departments. Policy written after the deployment is done - once I know how the tools are actually being used - gets followed in practice. Policy written at week one, before anything is deployed, tends to get filed.
Exit or Transition
You choose whether to transition to an ongoing retainer or hand over to your internal team. Everything built belongs to you. The 30-day exit clause is in every contract from the first day.
The six AI services I am most commonly retained to deliver
Most clients start with the AI Readiness Audit. Once that's done and the actual gaps are visible, the next steps tend to follow from the evidence rather than a prior sales conversation. All six services are available standalone or as part of the monthly retainer.
AI Strategy Development for UK SMEs and Councils
Who it's for
CEOs, FDs, and council directors who need to take a position on AI investment but do not have a senior person internally who can separate the credible opportunities from the vendor noise.
Problem it solves
What happens without a strategy: one team buys a tool, a second team buys a different one three months later, and eighteen months in, the FD is looking at four AI subscriptions with no clear picture of what any of them delivered. That's not a technology problem. It's a sequencing problem - and it's avoidable.
What's included
- • Board-level roadmap tied to business objectives
- • Use-case prioritisation by ROI and risk
- • 12-month implementation sequencing
- • Budget envelope and quick-win timetable
Outcome
By the end of this engagement, you have a 12-month roadmap with the first quarter costed and ready for the board to approve. Not a presentation that needs someone to talk around it - a document the finance director can read and interrogate on their own.
AI Governance Framework and Risk Management
Who it's for
Boards and senior leadership in regulated UK SMEs, local councils, and public-sector bodies where AI deployment without governance creates regulatory and reputational exposure.
Problem it solves
If your organisation is deploying AI tools without a governance framework, you are carrying live regulatory risk today. UK GDPR Article 22, EU AI Act fines of up to 7% of global turnover, and PSED obligations for councils are none of them future considerations - the ICO has published AI enforcement guidance and the EU AI Act general-purpose provisions have been in force since August 2025.
What's included
- • ISO 42001-aligned policy
- • UK GDPR / ICO-aligned data handling
- • Algorithmic bias audit framework
- • Vendor contract review and risk register
Outcome
You end up with a governance framework your auditors can assess, your insurer can accept, and your board can sign. ISO 42001 alignment and GDPR compliance are part of the standard scope - not extras negotiated later. The algorithmic bias audit and vendor contract review come as standard. Note: ISO 42001-aligned work refers to working knowledge of the standard. AI-Si.com is not third-party certified against ISO 42001.
AI Staff Training and Internal Champion Certification
Who it's for
Leadership teams and front-line staff who are already using AI tools informally. The training makes that use safe, consistent, and productive rather than attempting to prohibit it through policy alone.
Problem it solves
Staff are already using AI whether a policy exists or not. Without structured training, that creates data leakage risk and inconsistent outputs with no accountability trail. Procurement controls govern the tools. Training governs the behaviour.
What's included
- • Executive AI literacy session
- • Hands-on staff training (prompting, automation, security)
- • Internal AI champion identification and certification
- • Acceptable-use and prompt-safety policy
Outcome
By the end of training, your team knows what they can use AI for, what they can't, and why the distinction matters. There's a documented standard they can point to. An internal champion comes out of every engagement - someone who can field the next AI question from a colleague without calling a consultant.
AI Vendor Selection and Contract Management
Who it's for
Organisations being pitched AI tools who do not have a senior person internally who can evaluate the claims, interrogate the contract terms, or identify lock-in clauses before they sign.
Problem it solves
AI vendor contracts are drafted by the vendor's legal team. Data training rights, lock-in provisions, uncapped annual price increases, and intellectual property clauses appear in standard terms. Most buyers sign them without scrutiny. See the board-level supplier audit checklist to understand what to look for.
What's included
- • Use-case-led shortlist
- • Live tool evaluation and demo grilling
- • Contract review with red-flag report
- • Negotiation support and ongoing supplier management
Outcome
You get a shortlist of tools that actually match what you're trying to do - not what a vendor says you should want. I go through the contract line by line before you sign: the data-use clauses, uncapped price-increase provisions, IP assignment terms. No surprises in year two.
AI Implementation Oversight
Who it's for
Teams with a funded AI initiative and a board-approved strategy but no senior person internally who is accountable for making the implementation deliver the business case.
Problem it solves
Most AI projects don't fail at the strategy stage - they fail three months later, when the data pipeline doesn't connect, the vendor API underperforms, and nobody has a plan for staff who aren't using the tools. These are all solvable problems. But only if someone technical is still in the room when they happen.
What's included
- • Day-to-day delivery oversight
- • Vendor and internal team coordination
- • Risk and blocker management
- • Working prototypes inside meetings, not after them
Outcome
The project goes live and the numbers in the business case get tested against what actually happened. I report to the board monthly in plain commercial terms - what's working, what isn't, what it cost. Not a status update. A result.
AI Board Reporting and Executive Advisory
Who it's for
Boards and audit committees that approve AI spend but receive structured reporting only through vendor presentations, with no independent senior voice challenging the numbers.
Problem it solves
If your board's only source of AI information is the vendors delivering the work, you are not governing the risk. You are receiving a sales update with a governance label on it.
What's included
- • Quarterly board AI report
- • Risk and compliance dashboard
- • Spend and ROI tracking
- • Executive Q&A and pre-board briefings
Outcome
Each quarter, the board receives an AI report written by someone whose job is to challenge the vendors - not by the vendors themselves. The governance documentation exists and can be handed to an auditor when asked. Budget decisions are based on independent numbers.
Why not a Big 4 AI consultancy?
Big 4 AI consultancy produces strategy documents. AI-Si.com produces working systems and evidenced outcomes.
A Big 4 AI consultancy engagement typically concludes at strategy stage - junior consultants handle what comes after, not the senior person who sold the work. I stay through implementation personally, manage the vendor relationship, train the team, and report to the board directly. Big 4 rates for that level of engagement start at £2,000 per day per consultant. AI-Si.com's full fractional engagement starts at £8,500 per month.
Why not hire a full-time Chief AI Officer?
A full-time Chief AI Officer costs £150,000 to £300,000 per year before on-costs. Most UK SMEs and local councils do not have that budget and do not need that level of permanent commitment.
A Fractional AI Director delivers the same board-level AI leadership at a fraction of the cost. When the internal capability is built, the engagement exits cleanly on 30 days' notice - no redundancy process, no long notice period, no permanent headcount addition to justify.
Resources tailored to your organisation
For UK SMEs
Free AI tools and frameworks for UK SME boards
ROI calculator, 30-day quick-win guide, and AI business case template. Built for finance directors who need numbers and a defensible board paper, not theory.
See SME ROI resourcesFor councils & public sector
AI governance and policy resources for UK local councils
Policy templates, AI risk registers, and acceptable-use frameworks built for local government. Aligned to PSED, UK GDPR, ICO guidance, and the EU AI Act public sector provisions.
See council governance resourcesPricing
Three ways to retain a Fractional AI Director
Every retainer includes AI strategy guidance and quarterly board reporting. What changes across the three tiers is how much hands-on implementation work I'm doing alongside your team.
Strategic AI Advisory
2 to 4 hours monthly · monthly rolling, 30-day exit
A single vendor contract review at this level has returned more than 12 months of fees in avoided lock-in.
Board-level AI oversight without active implementation. I provide quarterly AI governance reviews, strategic input on vendor proposals, and board reporting. I am available for questions between sessions and give you a senior second opinion on every significant AI decision your organisation takes.
- Ideal buyer
- CEO, FD, or council director who needs a senior AI sounding board without the cost of active delivery involvement.
- Typical use case
- Setting AI direction, reviewing vendor proposals, and sense-checking AI pilots before budget is committed.
- Involvement
- Advisory. Your team executes. I guide, challenge, and provide governance oversight.
- Rhythm
- Monthly board call plus ad-hoc questions answered by email or Slack within one working day.
- Board-level advisory
- Strategy guidance
- Quarterly reviews
- Governance framework input
- Vendor recommendations
Operational AI Implementation
8 to 12 hours monthly · monthly rolling, 30-day exit
The Midlands council engagement at this level delivered 780 hours of recovered staff time in the first 90 days.
For UK SMEs and councils actively deploying AI. I run the implementation alongside your team: vendor selection and management, staff training, AI governance documentation, and monthly progress reporting to the board. The first live system is deployed within 30 days of engagement start.
- Ideal buyer
- UK SME or council with a funded AI initiative and no senior person internally accountable for making the implementation deliver its business case.
- Typical use case
- Running a three to six month AI implementation covering governance framework, vendor management, staff training, and board-level ROI tracking.
- Involvement
- Hands-on. I am the senior person accountable for delivery. Not an account manager. Not a junior consultant.
- Rhythm
- Weekly working sessions, fortnightly steering committee, and same-day Slack response.
- Active implementation
- Vendor management
- Team coordination
- Problem-solving
- Progress tracking
Full Fractional AI Director
16 to 20 hours monthly · monthly rolling, 30-day exit
A manufacturing client at this level avoided a £400,000 AI vendor contract renewal by switching to an open model with equivalent capability.
A full Fractional AI Director engagement. I sit on your leadership team, represent AI at board level, and run parallel workstreams across strategy, governance, ISO 42001 implementation, staff training, and delivery. Two days per week, same-hour response. Suited to mid-market SMEs and councils running multiple AI programmes or preparing for regulated deployment under the EU AI Act.
- Ideal buyer
- Mid-market UK SME or local council that needs a Chief AI Officer but cannot justify a £150,000 to £300,000 permanent salary.
- Typical use case
- Running parallel AI workstreams across strategy, AI governance framework, ISO 42001 readiness, staff training, and hands-on delivery simultaneously.
- Involvement
- Embedded executive. I sit on your leadership team and represent AI to the board in person.
- Rhythm
- Two days per week on-site or remote, standing board slot, and same-hour Slack response.
- Full AI leadership
- Day-to-day delivery
- Team building
- Advanced training
- Strategic planning
Project-based AI consultancy is also available at a day rate. AI audits, one-off governance reviews, and training days are available at £1,750/day (minimum 2 days). Fixed-scope, fixed-fee. No retainer required. Contact me to scope the work →
Proven outcomes from these services
Saved for a Midlands council
+£480K new funding identified, zero GDPR incidents. Read the case study →
Manufacturing SME cost reduction
£180K annualised savings inside 90 days, no redundancies. Read the case study →
New revenue identified - UK law firm
60% faster document review, COLP-approved governance. Read the case study →
Every figure on this page links to an anonymised case study with a full methodology. Named references and underlying calculations are available on request during engagement discussions.
35 years of board experience. Fractional AI Director cost.
I have held Tech Director, Managing Director, and Non-Exec roles across digital storage, digital forensics, and professional services. I have been in the room when AI projects were approved, when they stalled under poor governance, and when they were quietly written off. That experience is what you are retaining when you engage a Fractional AI Director rather than a consultancy firm.
I do not separate AI strategy from delivery. Both happen at the same time, with me accountable throughout. That is the practical difference between a Fractional AI Director and a consultancy engagement that hands over a report and moves on.
No generic AI methodology. Your situation is assessed on its own terms and the engagement is built around it.
AI consultancy pricing: the questions I hear most often
Is project-based AI consultancy available?
Yes. Day-rate consultancy at £1,750 per day covers standalone projects - an AI readiness audit, an ISO 42001 gap assessment, a governance framework review, or a staff training day. Two-day minimum, fixed scope and fixed fee. No retainer required.
What is the minimum commitment for a Fractional AI Director retainer?
Monthly rolling with a 30-day exit clause - that is the only commitment. No minimum number of months, no lock-in period. If you want to start with a standalone project rather than a retainer, the minimum there is two days.
Can I start with a project before committing to a monthly retainer?
Yes, and most clients do. The normal starting point is an AI readiness audit or a governance review. If that work makes the case for a retainer, the audit becomes the foundation - you are not starting again from scratch. If it does not make the case, you have still got a useful output and there is no obligation to continue.