Ops & Compliance 360° Health Check for SMEs

Before you spend a pound on automation or compliance work, you should know exactly where the return is and where the risk sits. The Ops & Compliance 360° Health Check is a structured, bilingual assessment of your operations and your AI compliance position — a systems map, a cost-benefit audit and a prioritised roadmap you can act on with or without us. And if you go on to implement, the fee is credited against that work, so the diagnosis is effectively free to committed clients.

What is the Ops & Compliance 360° Health Check?

It is a fixed-scope assessment that maps how your business operates, identifies the highest-payback automation opportunities, and reviews your EU AI Act compliance position. You receive a systems map, a cost-benefit audit and a prioritised action roadmap — a clear plan, not a sales pitch.

Most SMEs approach AI either by buying tools they hope will help, or by worrying about compliance without knowing what actually applies. The Health Check replaces both guesses with evidence. We look at your real workflows, find where automation would pay back fastest, and assess where you stand against the AI Act's live obligations — then hand you a plan ranked by value and urgency.

What do you get from the Health Check?

Three deliverables: a systems map of how work and data flow through your business, a cost-benefit audit ranking automation opportunities by payback, and a prioritised roadmap covering both automation and AI Act compliance. All delivered bilingually in English or German as needed.

The three deliverables

• Systems map — a clear picture of your key processes, the tools involved, and where the friction and manual hours concentrate.
• Cost-benefit audit — the automation opportunities ranked by realistic payback, so you invest where it counts.
• Prioritised roadmap — a sequenced plan across automation and compliance, with quick wins first and heavier work staged sensibly.

How much does the Health Check cost?

The Health Check is £1,250, delivered bilingually. If you commission implementation with us afterwards, the full fee is credited against that work — so for clients who proceed, the assessment effectively costs nothing beyond the value it delivers upfront.

The fixed fee keeps it accessible and the credit removes the risk: you get an independent, actionable assessment for £1,250, and if you decide to build with us, that amount comes straight off your implementation. Even if you take the roadmap and act on it entirely in-house, you leave with a plan worth far more than the fee.

Why does the Health Check cover both operations and compliance?

Because for any SME using AI, the two are inseparable. Every automation you build sits within the EU AI Act's scope, so assessing opportunity without assessing obligation leaves you exposed. Covering both at once means your roadmap grows revenue and protects it in a single, coherent plan.

This is the core of our "accountable growth" approach: automation that generates return, paired with compliance that stops you losing it. Treating them separately is how businesses end up with efficient automations that quietly breach the Act, or airtight compliance with none of the productivity upside. The 360° view is what keeps both in balance — and it is why the assessment is genuinely bilingual, which matters especially for businesses operating into German-speaking markets. Our full guidance on the regulation is in the EU AI Act Compliance for SMEs guide, and on the opportunity side, the AI Automation for SMEs playbook.

What happens after the Health Check?

You decide. Take the roadmap and act in-house, or have us implement it — with the fee credited. Common next steps are an implementation engagement, ongoing Automation Care to maintain what we build, or Compliance Guard to keep your AI Act governance current.

There is no obligation to proceed. If you do, the roadmap flows naturally into implementation, and from there into Automation Care for ongoing upkeep or Compliance Guard for maintained governance. The Health Check is deliberately the front door to a long-term relationship — but it stands on its own as a deliverable you own outright.

How does the Health Check process work?

It runs in three phases: a discovery conversation about how your business operates and where the pain is, a structured review of your processes, tools and AI use, and a delivery session where we walk you through the systems map, cost-benefit audit and roadmap. Typically completed within a couple of weeks.

The process is designed to be light on your time and heavy on output. Discovery is a focused conversation — we ask about your workflows, your tools, where hours disappear and what worries you about AI compliance. The review is our work, not yours: we map the processes, rank the automation opportunities by payback, and assess your position against the AI Act's live obligations. Delivery is where it comes together — we walk you through the three deliverables, answer questions, and make sure you leave with a plan you understand and could act on immediately, in-house or with us.

How is the Health Check different from a free consultation?

A free consultation gives you a conversation; the Health Check gives you deliverables you own. It is a structured, fixed-fee engagement producing a documented systems map, a ranked cost-benefit audit and a prioritised roadmap — an independent asset, not a sales call dressed up as advice.

Plenty of firms offer a free chat and call it an assessment. The difference here is that you walk away with documented, actionable outputs — and because the fee is credited against implementation, there is no incentive for us to inflate the opportunity to win a build. The roadmap is honest by design: if some of your processes are not worth automating, we say so. That independence is worth more than a free hour, and it is why the Health Check stands on its own even for businesses that never commission another thing from us.

Frequently asked questions

What does an AI readiness assessment involve?

It involves mapping your key processes and tools, identifying and ranking automation opportunities by payback, and reviewing your position against the EU AI Act's obligations. You receive a systems map, a cost-benefit audit and a prioritised roadmap covering both operations and compliance.

Is this an AI audit or a business process audit?

It is both. The Health Check audits your business processes to find automation opportunities and audits your AI use against the EU AI Act. Combining them means your resulting plan improves efficiency and manages compliance risk together, rather than in isolation.

How is the Health Check fee handled if I implement with you?

The full £1,250 fee is credited against your implementation. In effect, committed clients get the assessment for nothing beyond its upfront value, while those who act in-house keep a roadmap worth well more than the fee.

Is the automation audit available in German?

Yes. The Health Check is delivered bilingually in English and German, which is particularly valuable for businesses operating into the DACH region where AI Act expectations and documentation standards are applied rigorously.