How to use this list
The questions follow the life of an implementation: diagnosis, scope, evidence, decisions, pilot, adoption, and handover. Bring the same recent operating example to every conversation so the answers are comparable.
1. What operating problem are we defining?
Ask the provider to distinguish a symptom from a proposed cause. A recurring late job may involve missing inputs, capacity, unclear scope, or several interacting constraints.
2. What evidence will you review?
Request the sample approach and the people involved. Successful and difficult cases should both inform the diagnosis.
3. What will you build versus recommend?
Identify actual outputs and working sessions. A report and a tested implementation are different scopes.
4. Who owns decisions internally?
Name the sponsor and receiving manager. A consultant cannot resolve every tradeoff without delegated authority.
5. What is excluded?
Clarify locations, systems, specialist work, and custom development. Hidden exclusions become implementation gaps later.
6. How will the pilot be accepted?
Define the cases and evidence required before expansion. Effort spent is not a completion test.
7. What time does our team need to commit?
Reserve operator, manager, and administrator time. The proposal should not assume unlimited internal availability.
8. How are scope changes handled?
Ask how additional work is estimated and accepted. Include effects on schedule and internal effort.
9. What remains after handover?
Confirm editable materials, access, training, and maintenance ownership. The team should know how to sustain the installed process.
Worked example
Illustrative use: two proposals both say onboarding improvement. One ends with recommendations; the other includes a readiness checklist, three pilot cases, and manager handover. The questions reveal the difference before either price is judged.
Turn the list into a decision
Select the items connected to your current operating problem. Assign an owner and an evidence source to each one, then use a recent real case to test the proposed change. Keep unresolved assumptions visible and review the result before expanding the process across the business.
Related implementation resources
Discuss the operating problem
Elixir consulting starts at $5,000 per month, with final pricing based on scope. Bring a recent example, the current workflow, and the person who owns the result to define the appropriate implementation scope.