Most private companies are acting on AI without a strategic point of view
Curiosity and anxiety, in roughly equal measure. That's where most leadership teams sit right now. The questions Dave works through with clients: where AI changes the game for your specific business, how fast to move, what bets to place, and how to build organizational capability without chasing every new tool or falling behind.
AI advice from a business strategist
Dave has spent 20 years advising private company owners on strategy. His pay comes from solving client problems and building great strategy, not software or systems. His AI strategy work starts from the same place all his work starts: what does this company need to do to compete and grow, and how does AI change the answer?
The question worth answering is where AI gives you leverage, and what you have to change to capture it. In the past year, Dave has driven AI strategy, governance, and adoption work at multiple private companies, from initial leadership orientation to active implementation.
Private companies where the work is personal.
Dave's clientsare owners and leaders of private companies: family businesses, closely-held companies,and founder-led firms where decisions carry real weight and relationshipsmatter. Not publicly traded. Not on a venture capital timeline. Running on thefounder's conviction, the leadership team's trust, and years of built equity.
These are $1M to$20M companies. Thirty employees or a hundred. Services businesses,manufacturers, professional firms. What they share: a leader who takes the workseriously, cares about the culture they've built, and needs a thinking partnerwho can hold up in the room.
Three things private company leaders need from AI strategy work
Orientation and prioritization
Leadership teams need an accurate read on what AI can and can't do for their specific business, and where the leverage sits versus the noise. Dave facilitates that conversation and helps the team build a shared point of view.
Strategy and governance
Where to invest, how fast to move, what policies and guardrails the organization needs, and how to approach AI in ways that serve the business without creating new risks. Skipping this planning work usually leads to regret.
Adoption and capability building
Getting an organization to use AI well requires leadership. Dave helps companies move from "we have some AI subscriptions" to genuine capability that shows up in how the business operates.
Private company owners who know AI matters but aren't sure what to do about it
Dave's AI strategy work is for the same clients as his broader practice: private company owners and leadership teams at Second Stage companies, family businesses, and closely-held firms. Leaders who take the question seriously, know their industry well, and need a thinking partner who can connect AI to their strategy.
This work is for leadership teams looking for someone to help them navigate the leading edge of AI, and advise on how their organizations can best use it.
The full AI strategy practice is at fractionalaidirector.com
Dave's dedicated AI strategy practice, including Fractional AI Director engagements, advisory work, and detailed service descriptions, lives at fractionalaidirector.com. The work is integrated with his broader practice at Phimation. For companies that need both business strategy and AI strategy, the two practices work together.
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