Start with a person and a task
“Add AI” is too broad to guide a useful project. Start with a task someone performs, the information they need and the decision or output they produce. Identify where time is spent and which errors would matter.
A document assistant, for example, may need to find the right source, distinguish current information from old versions and make uncertainty visible. Producing fluent text is only part of that workflow.
Give the system appropriate information
Identify the sources the system should use and the access boundaries around them. A team knowledge base may contain information that different people are allowed to see. Those boundaries should remain meaningful when an AI interface is introduced.
Data preparation can include ownership, source dates, document structure and the process for keeping information current. Decide how the system will reference evidence and what it should do when the available information is insufficient.
Evaluate the whole workflow
Build a set of representative tasks before judging a prototype. Include routine examples, incomplete information and cases where the system should ask for clarification or hand work back to a person.
Assess the output alongside the experience: how long it takes, how much review it needs, whether people can inspect the sources and how the cost changes with usage. Compare that with the current way of doing the task.
- Representative inputs and expected behaviour.
- Relevant source information and access boundaries.
- Review points for actions with consequences.
- A way to capture failures and improve the evaluation set.
Plan for change
Models, documents and connected applications all change. Assign responsibility for checking whether the system still performs the task well. Preserve enough context to investigate failures and compare changes against the evaluation set.
The path to production is therefore an integration and operating problem as much as a model choice. We connect those pieces through software, applied AI and technical integration work.