Secure AI

AI Consulting & Strategy

Independent advice on which AI use cases are worth your time, scored on value and risk, and a sequenced plan to deliver them.

Your AI readiness viewSample view
  • Sensitive dataClient records location mappedManaged
  • Access controlsOvershared folder flaggedContained
  • Ticket triageUse case shortlistedManaged
  • Automated credit decisionsParked until governance is in placeNot yet
  • Vendor proposalData handling terms to reviewDecision needed
  • AI usage policyUsage policy approvedManaged
Illustration · not live data

01Who it's for

Is this service right for you?

It suits organisations that want a clear, independent view of where AI fits, with data and security checked before any tool is chosen.

Built for

  • Owners and managers of businesses with 5 or more staff
  • Leadership teams and boards
  • Government, education and not-for-profit organisations that need advice aligned to Australian guidance

You probably need it if…

  • Leadership or the board wants an AI plan that covers value as well as risk
  • Staff are already using AI informally
  • Vendors keep pitching AI features you can't easily judge
  • You want advice that isn't tied to selling one platform

02What's included

What you get

Assess readiness

AI readiness assessment

A structured look at your data, systems, skills and policies, with a short report that shows how ready each area is for AI.

Data and security review

Before any use case is chosen, we check where your sensitive data lives, who can reach it and how it would flow into AI tools. This is step one in every engagement, because it decides what is safe to do.

Ongoing advice

Ongoing AI advisory

Regular sessions with a subject-matter expert to review new tools, vendor proposals and staff requests, so AI decisions keep going through a consistent, security-aware process.

Plan & prioritise

Use-case workshop

A facilitated session with your team to list the tasks where AI could help, then score each one on value, effort, data sensitivity and risk. You leave with a shortlist worth pursuing.

Build, buy or partner advice

For each shortlisted use case, we compare using AI already in your software, buying a dedicated product or building something custom, including the cost, effort and data trade-offs of each option.

AI roadmap

A sequenced plan covering quick wins, larger projects, the governance you need in place and the skills your staff will need, written so leadership can approve it and IT can deliver it.

Presenter at a screen and flipchart in a bright modern office while colleagues listen, representing a strategy workshop

Secure AI

Starting with the task, not the tool

We ask your team which repetitive work slows them down before discussing any product. That keeps the conversation on outcomes you can measure and away from buying licences nobody uses.

03In detail

AI consulting & strategy, in depth

What does an AI consultant do?

An AI consultant helps you work out where AI can save time or improve a service, which tools to use and how to adopt them without creating new risks. We focus on use cases you can act on, not a long list of ideas.

Which AI use cases suit a business like yours?

Good starting points are tasks that are repetitive, text-heavy and currently take someone real time. Typical examples by function:

  • Finance: reading supplier invoices, matching them to purchase orders and preparing accounts payable entries for approval.
  • Client intake: summarising enquiry emails and forms, and drafting a first response or file note.
  • Customer support: sorting and routing tickets by topic and urgency, and drafting standard replies.
  • Compliance: collecting evidence for your information security management system (ISMS), such as access reviews and policy acknowledgements.
  • Knowledge: answering staff questions from your own policies and procedures.

In the use-case workshop, we score each idea on four factors so the shortlist is based on more than enthusiasm. For example:

Use caseValueEffortData sensitivityVerdict
Ticket triage and draft repliesHighLowLowStart here
Invoice processingHighMediumMediumSecond wave
Automated credit decisionsMediumHighHighNot yet

Why do we review data and security first?

Almost every AI use case depends on data: documents, emails, customer records or financial information. If that data is poorly organised, overshared or stored in the wrong place, AI makes those problems more visible and more costly. That is why the review decides which use cases are safe to shortlist.

We align your plan with the National AI Centre’s Guidance for AI Adoption, the current Australian guidance, which supersedes its predecessor, Australia’s Voluntary AI Safety Standard. Our AI security and governance page explains how it fits with the other AI frameworks.

Should you build, buy or partner for AI?

There are three broad paths, and the right one depends on the task.

OptionSuitsMain question to ask
Use AI in software you already haveCommon office tasks, drafting, summarisingAre your permissions and data settings ready?
Buy a dedicated AI productA specific function, such as customer supportWhere does the vendor store and use your data?
Build a custom solutionUnique workflows or sensitive dataWho maintains it, and has it been tested?

If you use Microsoft 365, Copilot readiness is often a practical first step. For custom workflows, our AI automation team builds and secures them. If your data must stay on your own systems, local AI runs models privately.

04The process

How it works

  1. Review readiness and data

    We interview key staff, review your systems and data, and report what is ready, what isn't and what must be fixed first.

  2. Run the workshop

    We run the workshop with your team and score each idea on value, effort and risk.

  3. Agree the roadmap

    We turn the shortlist into a sequenced roadmap with build or buy advice, governance steps and cost drivers.

  4. Support delivery

    We help you deliver the first projects, either directly through our automation, Copilot or local AI services, or by overseeing your chosen vendor.

05Frameworks

How this maps to the frameworks

Useful for your auditor, board or procurement team. The mapping shows where this service supports each framework. It doesn't replace a formal assessment.

AI Consulting & Strategy: framework mapping
ControlASD EssentialsISO/IEC 27001NIST CSFISO/IEC 42001
AI readiness and data reviewGovernance and cultureA.5.9, A.5.12Identify (ID.AM-07)A.7.4
Use-case value and risk scoringExecutive artificial intelligence accountabilityNot applicableIdentify (ID.RA-05)A.5.2
Build, buy or partner assessmentNot applicableA.5.19, A.5.20Govern (GV.SC-06)A.10.3

06Pricing

Pricing and how to start

Pricing

Scoped after a strategy call

What changes the price

Price depends on the number of business units involved, the systems in scope and whether you want a full roadmap or ongoing advisory.

  • Readiness interviews and a data and security review
  • A facilitated use-case workshop with your team
  • A scored shortlist of AI use cases
  • A written readiness report and next steps

Not included: AI policy, risk registers and security testing. Those sit in our AI security and governance service.

07FAQ

AI consulting & strategy, answered.

Can't see your question? Ask a specialist and get a straight answer.

Ask a specialist
How is AI consulting priced?

AI consulting is quoted after a short strategy call, and you get a written quote before any work starts. Most clients begin with an AI readiness assessment. The price depends on the number of teams and systems involved, how sensitive your data is and whether you want a roadmap, a use-case workshop or ongoing advisory as well.

Where should a small business start with AI?

Start by finding out how staff already use AI, then write a short acceptable use policy and pick approved tools. After that, choose one task that takes real time each week and uses low-sensitivity data, and try AI on it properly. Starting small builds confidence, shows real benefits and avoids the risk of putting sensitive data into a tool nobody has checked.

Why does a cyber security company offer AI consulting?

Because many of the hardest questions about AI are data and security questions: what is safe to put into a tool, who can see the results and whether a vendor handles your data properly. Those questions are our security team's everyday work. We help you use AI where it makes sense, with the safeguards built in from the start.

Do you recommend specific AI products?

We recommend what fits your situation, and we tell you why. Often the most practical option is AI already included in software you pay for, such as Microsoft 365 Copilot. Sometimes a dedicated product or a custom build is the better fit. We compare options on usefulness, cost, data handling and security, and we say so when a tool isn't worth it.

What is an AI readiness assessment?

An AI readiness assessment checks whether your organisation is in a position to use AI safely and usefully. It looks at your data quality and location, your access controls, your policies, your systems and your staff skills. The result is a readiness rating for each area and a list of what to fix first, so your first AI project doesn't stall on avoidable problems.

Talk to our team

Talk to us about AI consulting & strategy.

No obligation. You talk to the people who do the work. Enquiries usually get a reply within 3 business days.