PIPELINEGuide
AI Advisory: Ongoing Costs and Operations
The project price is only part of the calculation. What actually arises in effort and costs after going live — and which item is most often forgotten.
After going live, AI advisory typically requires a few hours of maintenance per quarter, plus hosting, licenses, and usage-based third-party fees. The most frequently forgotten item isn't the money, but the responsibility: systems become outdated because no one is assigned, not because maintenance is demanding.
01 — Operation
What ongoing operation means
After settling in, the effort is low, but not zero. For AI advisory, it's typically a few hours per quarter: additions when something changes in your offering, a review of the conversation logs, occasional corrections.
More important than the scope is the responsibility. Systems don't become outdated because maintenance is demanding, but because no one is assigned. One person with a recurring calendar appointment solves this problem completely.
What additionally arises on an ongoing basis depends on the setup — hosting, licenses and third-party usage-based fees belong in the same calculation as the implementation. We show this separately in the quote instead of hiding it in the project price.
02 — Factors
What drives the price
- Scope and number of integrations. Every additional system that needs to participate costs effort — regardless of how simple the core is.
- State of your starting point. Clean data, existing content and documented processes significantly reduce effort. Chaos is the most expensive cost factor.
- How much new material needs to be created. What you can contribute doesn't need to be invented by anyone. This is the biggest lever you have in your own hands.
- Requirements for design and customization. A solid standard system costs a fraction of a custom solution — and is sufficient more often than vendors admit.
- Operating model. One-time project costs or ongoing support: calculated over three years, this often gives a different picture than the quote comparison.
03 — Contract
What needs to be clarified in writing
- Ownership of data and access. They belong to the client. If a provider won't clearly confirm this, that's the most important information from the conversation.
- Handover upon termination. In what format, within what timeframe, at what cost.
- No minimum term without consideration. Lock-in is justifiable if something is delivered in return — otherwise not.
- What a later change costs. The total cost isn't determined by the project price, but by the hourly rate in year three.
- Documentation as a deliverable. Not as a promise, but as a line item in the proposal.
04 — Questions
Frequently asked questions
How does this differ from consulting by the Chamber of Commerce?
The Chamber offerings provide a good overview of funding options and basics. We go a step further and look at your specific processes and systems — with effort estimates that we ourselves would have to meet.
Do we also get recommendations for providers other than you?
Yes, where it makes sense. Some use cases are better suited to standard software or a specialized provider — that's stated in the document, not hidden.
What does it cost us if nothing comes of it in the end?
Only the agreed price for the workshop and document — there's no success fee and no hidden follow-up obligation. The preliminary conversation is free and is meant to catch exactly these kinds of mismatched inquiries beforehand.
Isn't a conversation with management enough?
No, that's the most common reason for a list that doesn't work later. The people who do the processes daily know the exceptions that an outside perspective never sees.
Isn't this just a disguised sales event?
The recommendation regularly includes items you can implement yourselves or with your existing service provider, as well as cases we advise against. The document is yours and works without us too.
Who should be at the workshop?
At least one person from management and two to three who do the affected processes daily. Without the second group, you get a list that doesn't work in practice.
What funding is available in Austria?
Options include KMU.DIGITAL and aws digitalization funding — current terms at kmudigital.at and aws.at. Both require the application to be approved before awarding the contract — that's why we bring it up early and not at the end.
05 — Next
Related pages
- AI consulting — Overview
- AI consulting — Costs
- AI consulting — Where to start
- AI consulting — requirements
- AI consulting — Funding
- AI consulting — Practical examples
- AI consulting — introduction
- AI consulting — Provider comparison
- AI automation
- Process automation
- AI training
- All guides
AI consulting by region
Next step
We'll look at your starting position.
Tell us what's eating up time today. That becomes an assessment with effort and benefit — and only then an offer.