If your AI project can't fit in a box—with clear rules, a starting point, and a way to win—it's too complex to ship.
$ ask "Can your team draw the board?"
> If they can draw it, they can build it.
> If not, no amount of AI will save them._
You're being pitched AI solutions by people who've never shipped production software.
The vendor demos look incredible. Your team is excited. The board wants innovation. So you sign.
Six months later: a proof of concept that doesn't work with your actual data, an integration that's "almost ready," and a team burned out from chasing a moving target.
The project quietly gets shelved. The budget is gone. And everyone's a little more skeptical about the next initiative.
I've watched this happen with cloud, mobile, big data, and now AI. The technology changes every few years. The failure patterns don't.
Can your team turn this process into a board game?
Not a metaphor. Actually sketch it. Where does it start? What are the rules? How do you know you've won?
If they can draw the board, they're ready to build.
If it's all hand-waving and "it depends" and "the senior person just knows"—they're not ready. And no amount of AI is going to save them.
The Board Game Test takes 90 minutes.
It will save you six months of building the wrong thing.
$ check start_state
Where does the process begin?
$ check rules
What decisions get made? By whom?
$ check win_condition
How do you know you've succeeded?
$ check edge_cases
What happens when things go wrong?
→ If you can answer these, you can build it.
→ If you can't, you're not ready yet.
30 minutes. You tell me what you're planning. I'll tell you if I can help—or if you should talk to someone else.
The Board Game Test with your team. Then a full assessment of your data, your vendors, and the failure points nobody's talking about.
Proceed, modify, or stop. Not a 50-page report. A decision you can act on.
I've been shipping software since 1998. Systems that made companies millions. Projects that actually made it to production.
I've also watched technology investments fail for the same reasons, over and over. Bad requirements. Unrealistic timelines. Teams building what's exciting instead of what's needed.
Most consultants get paid whether your project works or not. I'd rather tell you you're not ready than watch you spend $200k on something that won't ship.
$ whoami
Scott Pierce
$ cat experience.txt
25+ years shipping software
10+ years in production AI
4 technology hype cycles survived
$ cat philosophy.txt
"The best AI strategy is often
knowing when NOT to use AI."
$_
12-18 months of momentum while competitors figure it out
Your team's confidence in future technology investments
Your credibility when you pitch the next initiative
The opportunity cost of what you could have built instead
The budget is the obvious loss. It's not the biggest one.
No pitch. No pressure. Just a conversation about what you're planning and whether I can help.
If you're not ready yet, take the test first. It'll give us something concrete to discuss.
Or email me: hey@askscottpierce.com