Small Business AI Pros buyer guide
Guide 2: Write a useful AI project brief
Give candidates enough operating context to think clearly without disclosing private information too early.
Describe the current work
Name the trigger, participants, source material, handoffs, delays, review, and final destination for one recurring workflow. Use counts or ranges only when they are known and safe to share. Explain what makes the current process difficult in plain language.
Do not begin with a preferred product unless the business has already made that decision for documented reasons. A good professional should be able to discuss the problem before prescribing a tool.
Define the protected edges
State which information can be used for discovery and which categories remain out of scope. Identify the system of record and any business policy, contract, or approval that affects access. Early examples can be public, redacted, or fictional.
Also name what the solution must not do. It may not send customer messages without review, update the accounting record, make an employment decision, or create a public claim. Negative requirements make the boundary visible.
Ask for a decision-ready response
Request assumptions, open questions, proposed stages, deliverables, responsibilities, dependencies, acceptance evidence, risks, and a stop or rollback approach. Ask candidates to separate discovery from build work and known fees from optional or third-party costs.
A project brief is not a contract. It is a shared starting point that lets the business compare reasoning and exposes questions that need deeper review.