Program · Small businesses

AI Starter Kit for Small Teams

A practical starter program for small businesses that want AI to help with real work — inboxes, documents, and simple research — without hiring an AI team or turning everything upside down.

We'll help you choose the right tools, set them up safely, and give your team a shared playbook for everyday usage. No jargon, no “digital transformation deck” — just workflows your people can actually keep using.

Program overview · Audio

A short overview of the program: who it's for, what we cover, and how to get the most value out of it as a busy professional.

What your team will be able to do after this program

Less “we should be using AI” in meetings, more concrete ways your team uses it in real work.

  • • Choose 1–2 AI tools that actually fit your size and budget (instead of chasing every new product).
  • • Set up accounts, access, and basic policies so people aren't guessing what's allowed.
  • • Use AI for everyday tasks: emails, docs, summaries, and quick research.
  • • Share simple templates and examples so new team members can ramp quickly.
  • • Walk away with a short “how we use AI here” playbook that reflects your real business.

Who this is for

  • • Small businesses with 3–50 people
  • • Owners, operators, and team leads
  • • Teams that have “played” with AI but haven't made it part of daily work yet

What you'll work on

  • • Your actual tools and accounts
  • • Real emails, docs, and internal messages
  • • A written AI usage playbook for your team

Curriculum at a glance

Four modules that fit around a normal small-business week.

Module 1

Choosing tools & setting them up correctly

  • • Pick the right AI tools for a small team (without overbuying)
  • • Decide who needs access to what (owners, managers, staff)
  • • Set up accounts, permissions, and basic policies

Module 2

Everyday workflows: inbox, docs & quick research

  • • Use AI to draft and clean up email and messages
  • • Summarize docs, threads, and basic info quickly
  • • Create simple templates the whole team can reuse

Module 3

Team playbook: how we use AI here

  • • Agree on when to use AI vs. when not to
  • • Define do/don’t rules that fit your business
  • • Capture examples that show “good” vs. “bad” usage

Module 4

Implementation sprint & next steps

  • • Run a short “AI week” for your team with support
  • • Refine workflows based on what actually worked
  • • Decide what to scale next (and what to pause)

1. Choosing tools & setting them up correctly

Start by picking a small, sensible toolset — then set it up so people can actually use it without worry.

We begin with what you're already using: email, documents, chat, and any project tools. From there, we pick a tiny AI stack that integrates cleanly instead of adding more chaos.

  • • Review what tools your team already lives in
  • • Choose 1–2 AI tools that plug into that reality
  • • Decide who should have which kind of access
  • • Set up accounts, permissions, and billing in a way that won't surprise you later

Artifact: your small-team AI setup doc

By the end of this module, you'll have a one-page setup doc that covers:

  • • Which AI tools you use (and why)
  • • Who has access to what
  • • Where to go for logins, help, and changes

2. Everyday workflows: inbox, docs & quick research

Make AI show up in the tiny, daily tasks that quietly eat your team’s time.

Here we plug AI into work your team already does: emailing customers, writing internal notes, reading long docs, and looking things up. We'll keep a strong human review step so quality doesn't slip.

  • • Drafting and cleaning up email replies
  • • Summarizing long threads and documents
  • • Using AI to research questions faster (and safer)
  • • Designing a few “starter templates” everyone can use

Team prompt & template pack

Together we'll build a small shared library, such as:

  • • “Draft a reply to this customer based on X”
  • • “Summarize this thread and list action items”
  • • “Explain this document in simple terms”
  • • “Give me 3 options I can tweak, not 1 final answer”

3. Team playbook: how we use AI here

Make expectations explicit so people don’t have to guess what’s allowed or “good enough.”

Tools are one thing; norms are another. In this module, we turn everything you've tried so far into a short, understandable playbook for your team.

  • • Decide which kinds of work should never use AI
  • • Spell out what's okay with customer data and docs
  • • Capture a few examples of “good” and “bad” AI usage
  • • Clarify who to ask when people are unsure

Your “how we use AI” playbook

You'll leave this module with a short, shareable doc:

  • • 1–2 pages, written in plain language
  • • Do / don’t lists tailored to your business
  • • Concrete examples instead of abstract rules

4. Implementation sprint & next steps

Run a small, contained “AI week” to prove value and decide what to scale next.

Finally, we run a short implementation sprint: 1–2 weeks where your team uses the new workflows in real work, then we review what helped and what didn't.

  • • Pick a few simple metrics (time saved, fewer rewrites)
  • • Support your team as they test the new workflows
  • • Review what stuck, what needs adjusting
  • • Decide whether to expand, pause, or refine

Owner/leader summary

We close with a simple summary for the owner or leadership:

  • • What's working well so far
  • • Where AI helps vs. where it shouldn't be used
  • • 2–3 options for what to improve or add next

Format & logistics

Designed for small teams with real customers and limited time.

Schedule

  • • 2–3 weeks total
  • • Weekly live sessions (60–75 minutes)
  • • Light implementation work between calls

Team size

  • • 3–12 participants
  • • Mix of owner/ops + frontline team members
  • • Private cohorts for a single business

What you leave with

  • • A small, sane AI tool stack set up correctly
  • • A shared prompt & template pack for your team
  • • A written “how we use AI here” playbook

FAQ: AI Starter Kit for Small Teams

Questions owners and operators usually ask before bringing AI into the business.

Do we need to be “technical” to do this?

No. This program is designed for normal small-business teams: if your team can use email, documents, and basic web tools, that's enough. We'll keep the setup steps simple and documented.

Will this replace any of our existing tools?

Usually not at first. The goal is to layer AI on top of what's already working — making inboxes, docs, and summaries easier — not to rip out your systems. If we spot a clear tool consolidation opportunity, we'll flag it.

Is this safe with customer and financial data?

We'll talk concretely about what should and shouldn't be pasted into AI tools, and we'll design guardrails and examples for your context. You still stay in charge of what aligns with your industry and policies.

What if we’re already using AI a bit?

Great — this program will help you move from individual experiments to a shared way of working: consistent tools, clearer rules, and reusable templates your whole team can use, not just the early adopters.

Ready to give your small team a safe, sane AI starting point?

This program is about giving your business a clear, shared way to use AI in daily work — not chasing every new tool. You'll leave with tools, workflows, and a playbook your team can keep using after we're gone.

Talk to us about this programView all small business programs

If you'd like to run this for multiple locations or franchises, mention that in your note and we'll share options.