--- title: What Is an AI Consultant, and What Do They Do All Week? description: What is an AI consultant? Someone who maps how your work runs, tests AI on real examples, builds or sets it up, and teaches your people. Here's a working week. image: https://ai-marketinglabs.com/hubfs/What%20Is%20an%20AI%20Consultant%2c%20and%20What%20Do%20They%20Do%20All%20Week.jpg --- [![AI Marketing Labs](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/hubfs/raw_assets/public/ai-labs/pages/assets/brand/logo-lockup.svg)](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/) - Systems [AIO System](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/ai-search-engine-optimization) [Voice Assistant](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/the-ai-assistant-for-business-that-runs-on-your-voice) [Buyer's Table](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/ai-market-research) [RAG System](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/ai-knowledge-management) [Custom AI Automations](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/ai-automation-services) - [Consulting](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/ai-consulting-services) - [About](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/about) - [Free tools](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/free-ai-marketing-resources) - [Blog](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/lab-experiments) [The Lab](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/the-lab) [Book your audit](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/ai-audit) [AIO System](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/ai-search-engine-optimization) [Voice Assistant](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/the-ai-assistant-for-business-that-runs-on-your-voice) [Buyer's Table](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/ai-market-research) [RAG System](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/ai-knowledge-management) [Custom AI Automations](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/ai-automation-services) [Consulting](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/ai-consulting-services) [About](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/about) [Free tools](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/free-ai-marketing-resources) [Blog](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/lab-experiments) [The Lab](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/the-lab) [Book your audit →](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/ai-audit) [The Lab Notes](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/lab-experiments) › AI Consulting # What Is an AI Consultant, and What Do They Do All Week? ![Kelly Kranz](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/hubfs/1c8a298050a84a029fa51a6945685d90.png) Kelly Kranz Nov 6, 2026 [Twitter](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https://ai-marketinglabs.com/lab-experiments/what-is-an-ai-consultant-and-what-do-they-do-all-week&text=What%20Is%20an%20AI%20Consultant,%20and%20What%20Do%20They%20Do%20All%20Week) [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/sharing/share-offsite/?url=https://ai-marketinglabs.com/lab-experiments/what-is-an-ai-consultant-and-what-do-they-do-all-week) ![What Is an AI Consultant, and What Do They Do All Week?](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/hubfs/What%20Is%20an%20AI%20Consultant%2c%20and%20What%20Do%20They%20Do%20All%20Week.jpg) What is an AI consultant? Someone who helps a business decide where AI fits and then works on it: mapping how a task runs today, testing approaches on real examples, building or setting up the tool, and teaching the people who'll use it. A useful week of that work looks less like strategy decks and more like watching real work, testing, and fixing what broke. **TL;DR** - The job is part advisor, part builder, part teacher. - A good week ends with something tested on your real work. - Before you sign, ask what they'll do each week and what you'll see. ## What does an AI consultant actually do? There's no official job title for it yet. The closest government category is management analyst, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics describes that role simply: ["Management analysts recommend ways to improve an organization's efficiency."](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/business-and-financial/management-analysts.htm) An AI consultant does that for one kind of fix, and a good one goes further than recommending: testing ideas on your real data, setting up or building the tool, and training the people who'll run it. That's what separates hiring a person from buying software. For the longer version of that difference, see [what AI consulting is and how it differs from buying software](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/lab-experiments/what-is-ai-consulting-and-how-is-it-different-from-buying-software). ## What happens in a week on a client project? Here's an illustration of a well-run week on one task, not a fixed schedule: - **Monday.** A call with the owner and the person who does the task. The consultant watches the work happen on a shared screen and asks about the cases that go wrong. - **Tuesday.** Mapping. Each step of the task written down, with where the information comes from and where it goes. Twenty or so real examples collected. - **Wednesday.** Testing. Two or three approaches tried on those examples, with the output put beside what the team actually sent. - **Thursday.** Building or fixing. The approach that held up gets set up in the client's own tools, and the misses from Wednesday get worked through. - **Friday.** A short session with the person who'll use it, a written note on what changed, and the decisions needed from the owner next week. Early weeks lean on listening and testing; later weeks lean on building, fixing and handing over. By the last week, the person who does the task should be running it while the consultant watches, not the other way around. Some weeks tilt toward advice and some toward building. What shouldn't change is the rhythm: real work in, something tested out. ## What should you see from them every week? - Something tested on your real examples, not sample data. - A short written note: what was tried, what worked, what didn't. - A list of decisions or access only you can provide. - A clear next step, with a date. If a week goes by with nothing to show but meetings, ask what the hold-up is. Sometimes it's on your side, like a login nobody can find. That's worth knowing too. ## Why do small businesses bring one in? Because trying AI and making it part of the work are different jobs. In a 2026 survey of owners in Goldman Sachs' 10,000 Small Businesses program, [only 14% said they were fully integrating AI into core operations](https://www.goldmansachs.com/community-impact/10000-small-businesses-voices/insights/ai-presents-a-major-opportunity-for-small-businesses), and 73% said their business would benefit from additional access to training and resources. Those are program alumni, not every small business. Across all US employer firms, the Census Bureau's business survey found [overall AI usage hovered between 17% and 20%](https://census.gov/library/stories/2026/05/ai-use-businesses.html) from December 2025 through early May 2026. Different surveys, different populations, and both point the same way: AI isn't yet part of the daily work at most businesses. ## What does an AI consultant need from you? Access and time, mostly. Logins with the right permissions, sorted before the first week so nobody waits on a password reset. Real examples of the work, not descriptions of it. An hour or two from the person who does the task, early on and again when there's something to test. And someone who can make decisions quickly, because a project that waits a week for every answer drags on. If you can't give those, say so up front. A good consultant will plan around it rather than bill for the waiting. ## How do you tell a good AI consultant from a weak one? Listen to their questions. A good one asks how the work runs today, who does it, what it costs you, and what you've already tried, before naming a tool. A weak one leads with a platform or a framework. Ask to see something they built that a client still runs, and ask what they'd tell you not to do. There are more questions in [how to vet an AI consultant company before you sign](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/lab-experiments/how-to-vet-an-ai-consultant-company-before-you-sign). ## What isn't an AI consultant's job? Deciding your business priorities for you. Reselling one platform and calling it advice. Running your system forever so you depend on them. A good consultant leaves you able to run what was built and to judge the next project yourself. If the engagement is shaped to keep you coming back, the incentives are pointed the wrong way. ## How is an AI consultant different from a developer or a firm? A developer builds what's been decided; a consultant helps decide it and can build the first version with you. Compare the two in [whether to hire an implementation consultant or an AI developer](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/lab-experiments/should-you-hire-an-ai-implementation-consultant-or-an-ai-developer). A firm brings a team and its own process; one consultant brings direct access to the person doing the work. That trade-off is covered in [whether to hire a firm or one consultant](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/lab-experiments/should-a-small-business-hire-an-ai-consulting-firm-or-one-consultant). ## What does working with one look like here? AI Marketing Labs offers consulting as one-on-one work with Rick Kranz over Zoom. Depending on the scope, you might review an approach together or build alongside him, with time to ask questions and understand the next steps. The scope and fee are agreed before work begins. For what any engagement should leave you with, see [what a good AI consultant should hand over](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/lab-experiments/what-ai-consultant-services-should-leave-you-with). ## Related articles - [What AI Consultant Services Should Leave You With](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/lab-experiments/what-ai-consultant-services-should-leave-you-with) - [What Is AI Consulting, and How Is It Different From Buying Software?](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/lab-experiments/what-is-ai-consulting-and-how-is-it-different-from-buying-software) - [What an AI Consultant for Small Business Does in the First Month](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/lab-experiments/what-an-ai-consultant-for-small-business-does-in-the-first-month) - [Should a Small Business Hire an AI Consulting Firm or One Consultant?](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/lab-experiments/should-a-small-business-hire-an-ai-consulting-firm-or-one-consultant) ## Frequently asked questions Does an AI consultant need to know how to code? Not always, but it helps. Plenty of useful work happens in no-code tools. When a task needs several systems connected or custom logic, someone has to be comfortable with the technical side. Is an AI consultant worth it for a solo business? It can be, when one task is eating hours every week and you've tried to fix it yourself. Keep the first engagement small and specific so you can judge the result. What should I prepare before talking to an AI consultant? The task you want help with, a few real examples of it, a rough count of the hours it takes, and what you've already tried. That turns the first conversation into work instead of questions.   Curious what a week would look like? See it on *your own work* Bring the task that's eating your week. Rick works through it with you over Zoom, and you agree on the scope and fee before any work starts. [See how consulting works](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/ai-consulting-services) ![Kelly Kranz](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/hubfs/1c8a298050a84a029fa51a6945685d90.png) Written by Kelly Kranz With over 15 years of marketing experience, Kelly is an AI Marketing Strategist and Fractional CMO focused on results. She is renowned for building data-driven marketing systems that simplify workloads and drive growth. Her award-winning expertise in marketing automation once generated $2.1 million in additional revenue for a client in under a year. Kelly writes to help businesses work smarter and build for a sustainable future. More on this topic [All posts →](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/lab-experiments) [![AI Training for Employees Who Don't Trust AI Yet](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/hubfs/AI%20Training%20for%20Employees%20Who%20Dont%20Trust%20AI%20Yet.jpg) AI Consulting AI Training for Employees Who Don't Trust AI Yet AI training for employees who don't trust AI yet starts with their worry, not the features. Show one task it handles well on their own work, say plainly what ... Nov 6, 2026](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/lab-experiments/ai-training-for-employees-who-dont-trust-ai-yet) [![What AI Strategy Consulting Services Should Hand You on Paper](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/hubfs/What%20AI%20Strategy%20Consulting%20Services%20Should%20Hand%20You%20on%20Paper.jpg) AI Consulting What AI Strategy Consulting Services Should Hand You on Paper AI strategy consulting services should hand you a short document you can act on next week: a ranked list of projects, the first one scoped with its cost and ... Nov 6, 2026](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/lab-experiments/what-ai-strategy-consulting-services-should-hand-you-on-paper) [![Does a Small Business Need an AI Governance Consultant?](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/hubfs/Does%20a%20Small%20Business%20Need%20an%20AI%20Governance%20Consultant.jpg) AI Consulting Does a Small Business Need an AI Governance Consultant? Before you hire an AI governance consultant, write a one-page AI policy yourself: which tools are approved, what data never goes into them, and who owns each ... Nov 6, 2026](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/lab-experiments/does-a-small-business-need-an-ai-governance-consultant) [![AI Marketing Labs](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/hubfs/raw_assets/public/ai-labs/pages/assets/brand/logo-lockup-white.svg)](https://ai-marketinglabs.com/) We build AI systems for manufacturers, agencies, educators, and field service businesses. Fixed price. Fixed timeline. You own it when we're done. 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