Advisory

Advisory, diagnostic, and economic modelling support that turns AI investment into AI performance.

How I can help you

Much of the discussion around AI still centres on technical adoption.

AI literacy courses can help leaders build familiarity with the technology.

A strong data infrastructure gives that technology something reliable to work with.

Both matter. But they are starting points, not the full picture.

If you pause and reflect on your experience as a leader, the thorniest problems you face with AI are rarely technical.

In fact, they stem from people-related issues such as how to balance the concerns of your board and your employees, how to redesign incentives to align with AI adoption, and how to align with your C-suite peers on the value of AI.

That is why my work focuses not on what AI can do as a technology, but on what leaders do with it.

The advisory, diagnostic, and economic modelling support that I offer to corporate leaders is aimed at deploying the findings from my research into high AI-Q leaders, helping you close the gap between AI investment and AI performance.

Who I work with

I partner with boards, C-suite teams, and senior leaders across sectors, as the common thread is an organisation that has moved past “should we use AI” and is now confronting the harder question of how to build the Mindsets, Abilities, and Practices that make AI adoption stick.

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Services

AI-Q audits

Your problem and how I can help:

AI readiness rarely gets measured, and hence rarely gets the investment it needs. Measuring your AI-Quotient addresses this disconnect. Data from the AI-Q diagnostic shows that more than three quarters of leaders had never assessed their own AI readiness. Measurement gives you a starting point and direction.

What it is:

A structured assessment of your leadership team’s AI-Q, benchmarked against the research behind the book, with a full audit across the leadership group, a written report including benchmarks and a session to walk through the findings.

Who it’s for:

Leaders who need to target investment in the right capability gaps, or to establish a baseline before a bigger change programme.

What you gain:

High AI-Q leaders are more than three times as likely to say their team delivered a measurable business outcome from an AI initiative in the past year, and to be able to quantify it. An audit tells you where your team sits against that line, and how to close the gap.

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Strategic advisory

Your problem and how I can help:

Despite AI vendor promises you are stuck in ‘pilot purgatory’ or failing to see measurable ROI. My advisory approach is research-backed and based on tried and tested approaches from emerging best practices. I help you boost the Mindsets, Abilities and Practices that can enable you get measurable returns. 

What it is:

Ongoing, embedded support alongside you and your leadership team. Not a single workshop — sustained work at an agreed cadence, typically monthly or fortnightly, with direct access in between for time-sensitive decisions.

Who it’s for:

Leaders who already know AI performance is a people-readiness problem and want a strategic partner to help them address it.

What you gain:

A trusted, independent voice that will bring an outside perspective, help you make faster, more confident decisions, and give you the clarity to know what’s actually driving your AI investment forward.

Book a discovery call

Economic modelling

Your problem and how I can help:

As AI spreads across your teams, the more consequential question is what it does to your business model or your industry over the next several years. Without a considered view of that, investment decisions get made against today’s competitive position, not the one that’s coming.

What it is:

Economic modelling explores the impact of AI on your business or industry: where value shifts and what that means for your workforce plans. This gives you a robust and forward-looking view you can put in front of a board or strategy committee.

Who it’s for:

Leaders who need to understand, and to quantify, how AI could reshape their business model and workforce planning decisions.

What you gain:

Better capital and workforce decisions, now. Investment, hiring, restructuring, and reskilling decisions all get made against a clearer picture of where value and risk are shifting.

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“Athena is a forward thinker, who is able to translate complex ideas into accessible and relevant insights for business.”

Jess Majekodunmi

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Consulting FAQs

How is this different from hiring a traditional AI consultancy?

Most AI consultancies are commissioned through IT and measured against tool adoption. This work starts from AI-Q: a research-backed view of how to boost the leadership team ‘s Mindsets, Abilities and Practices, to make your AI investments pay off. It sits with you and your leadership team directly, not with the project delivering the tools.

Which of the three services should I start with?

It depends on whether you need evidence, an ongoing partner, or a view of what’s coming. If you’re not sure, book a discovery call and we’ll work it out together, or take the AI-Q Diagnostic first for a quick read on where your team stands.

Is this tailored to us, or a standard programme?

The AI-Q model — the mindsets, abilities, and practices — is consistent across engagements, because it’s the model the research is built on. What’s tailored is everything on top of it: which practices you focus on, how audit findings map to your team, and what the modelling tests for your business.

What size of organisation do you work with?

Primarily leaders running a function or department in organisations of 250 or more employees, since that’s where AI adoption is furthest along and where the readiness gap shows up most clearly. Smaller organisations are considered case by case.

Have you worked in my sector before?

My work spans financial services, professional services, technology, manufacturing, retail, and healthcare, plus over a decade at Accenture across automotive, insurance, consumer goods, energy, and government. If your sector isn’t listed, raise it on the discovery call.

How long does an engagement take?

It varies by service. Strategic advisory typically runs at a monthly or fortnightly cadence, agreed with you at the start. AI-Q audits and economic modelling are scoped as defined pieces of work with a clear end point. Exact timelines are set once I understand what you’re solving for.

What does this cost?

Pricing is scoped to the engagement. Audits and economic modelling are quoted as a fixed price once I understand what you need; advisory work is set at an agreed rate for the cadence we agree. You’ll have a clear number before anything starts.

Do you work remotely, in person, or both?

Both. Sessions are typically remote for regular-cadence work, with in-person sessions for audit findings, board presentations, and kickoff, depending on what suits you.

Are you affiliated with any AI vendors or tools?

No. I’m not paid by, or reselling for, any AI tool or platform provider. My other roles are Director of Futures at Beacon Thought Leadership and Head of AI Research at BossUp.AI, a startup building benchmarks for AI readiness rather than selling AI tools. That’s deliberate: the advice needs to be about your readiness, not about which product you buy next.

Will you present findings directly to my board?

Yes, as part of an audit or modelling engagement. It’s often the most useful session for the leadership team, since it puts an independent voice behind the case rather than leaving you to defend your own investment.

How is confidential information handled?

Any organisational, workforce, or performance data shared as part of an audit or modelling engagement is used only for that engagement, discussed under terms agreed before the work begins.