Fractional AI Director — UK SMEs and Councils
Fractional AI Director Services for UK SMEs and Local Councils
AI governance, strategy, and implementation at a fraction of a full-time Chief AI Officer. Three engagement models. From £3,500 per month.
Simon Steggles has been on boards for 35 years. He knows which AI projects will fail before they start, because he has seen the same governance failures play out across manufacturing, legal, public sector, and professional services. He comes in at director level, runs the work, and stays accountable for the outcome.
How every AI engagement runs
Five structured phases from AI readiness audit to full deployment. Simon is accountable for delivery at every stage.
AI Readiness Audit
Simon audits your current AI position, data quality, governance gaps, and regulatory exposure. This produces a board-ready AI readiness report within two to four weeks. Nothing is deployed until this phase is complete.
Quick Wins
Simon identifies two or three high-confidence, low-risk AI pilot deployments that can deliver measurable results within 90 days. These give the board something real to report and build internal confidence before larger budgets are committed.
Scale
Once quick-win results are evidenced, Simon expands the AI implementation across departments. Vendor selection, system integration, and process redesign all happen here, under board-level governance from day one.
Governance and Sustainability
Simon puts the AI governance framework, ISO 42001-aligned policies, acceptable-use documentation, and trained AI champions in place. The organisation can run this independently when the engagement ends.
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
Each service addresses a specific problem. Most clients start with one and add others as the engagement develops. All are available as standalone project work or as part of a 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
Without a board-level AI strategy, spend fragments. Vendors get in early, budgets are committed to the wrong things, and pilots never connect back to the business case that funded them. This is the most common pattern in UK SME and council AI projects.
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
A 12-month AI strategy tied to your business objectives, with the first 90 days scoped, costed, and board-ready. Delivered as a working document, not a slide deck.
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. UK GDPR Article 22, EU AI Act fines of up to 7% of global turnover, and Public Sector Equality Duty obligations for councils are not future considerations. The ICO has published enforcement guidance. The EU AI Act general-purpose AI provisions applied from 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
An AI governance framework your board can sign off, your auditor can review, and your insurer can assess. Built to ISO 42001 alignment and UK GDPR requirements, with algorithmic bias audit and vendor contract review included.
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 using AI whether a policy exists or not. Without structured training, that creates data leakage risk, inconsistent outputs, and no accountability. Procurement controls address the tools. Training addresses 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
Staff who can use AI confidently, safely, and to a documented standard. Internal champions who can answer questions after the engagement ends. A usage policy built around real workflows, not generic templates.
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
A shortlisted AI tool that fits your actual use case, on contract terms that have been reviewed and negotiated. No data-use surprises. No price shock 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
The majority of UK AI implementations that miss their business case do so because no single senior person is accountable for delivery. The technology is rarely the cause. Governance gaps, poor data quality, and inadequate change management are.
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
An AI project that reaches live deployment, delivers the savings it was funded to achieve, and does not stall six weeks after kick-off. Progress reported to the board monthly in commercial language.
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
Boards that receive AI updates only from the vendors delivering the work are not in a position to govern the risk, challenge the spend, or explain their oversight approach to a regulator.
What's included
- • Quarterly board AI report
- • Risk and compliance dashboard
- • Spend and ROI tracking
- • Executive Q&A and pre-board briefings
Outcome
A board that receives independent, structured AI reporting every quarter and can challenge spend decisions, sign off deployments with documented governance, and demonstrate that oversight to auditors and regulators.
Why not a Big 4 AI consultancy?
Big 4 AI consultancy produces strategy documents. AI-Si.com produces working systems and evidenced outcomes.
Big 4 AI consultancy engagements typically conclude at strategy stage. Junior consultants handle delivery. Simon stays through implementation personally, manages the vendor relationship, trains the team, and reports to the board on outcomes. Big 4 rates for this 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 internal capability is built, the engagement exits cleanly. No redundancy process. No long notice period. No 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
All three models include AI strategy guidance, governance framework input, and quarterly board reporting. The difference is the level of hands-on implementation involvement.
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. Simon provides quarterly AI governance reviews, strategic input on vendor proposals, and board reporting. He is available for questions between sessions and gives 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. Simon guides, challenges, and provides 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. Simon runs 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. Simon is 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. Simon sits on your leadership team, represents AI at board level, and runs 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. Simon sits on your leadership team and represents 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.
Simon Steggles has held FD, Non-Exec, and Chairman roles across manufacturing, technology, and professional services. He has 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.
Simon does not separate AI strategy from delivery. Both happen at the same time, with the same person 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 AI consultancy at £1,750 per day with a minimum of two days is available for standalone work: AI readiness audits, ISO 42001 gap assessments, AI governance framework reviews, and staff training days. All project work is fixed-scope and fixed-fee. No retainer required. Contact Simon to scope the work.
What is the minimum commitment for a Fractional AI Director retainer?
Retainer engagements run on a monthly rolling basis with a 30-day exit clause. There is no minimum number of months. Project-based AI consultancy requires a two-day minimum.
Can I start with a project before committing to a monthly retainer?
Yes. Most clients start with an AI readiness audit or an AI governance review. If that work makes the case for ongoing fractional AI Director support, the project output becomes the baseline for the retainer. There is no obligation to continue.
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