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In-house, freelancer, agency or consultancy?
Four ways to get AI automation built, and when each one is the right choice. Including when it is not us.
In short
Hire in-house for a long, steady backlog. Use a freelancer for one well-specified task. Use an agency for a defined project with a clear brief. Use an AI automation consultancy with forward deployed engineers when you want AI to change how several teams work, built in your accounts and adopted by the people who use it.
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Hire in-house
Best for Companies with a long, steady backlog of automation work and someone to manage an engineer.
- Knows the business deeply over time
- Always available for small changes
- Builds lasting internal capability
- Months to recruit, and one person rarely covers every platform
- Needs a manager who can judge technical work
- Key-person risk when they leave
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Freelancer
Best for One well-defined task on one platform, where you can specify the work precisely.
- Fast to start
- Low commitment
- Good for a single, clear task
- Scope, testing and documentation depend on the individual
- Little cover for holidays, illness or departure
- Accounts and credentials often end up in their name
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Agency or dev shop
Best for A defined project with a clear brief, where you want a team to deliver it end to end.
- A team with several skills
- Project management included
- Can deliver larger builds
- Works from the brief, not from watching the work
- Often bills hourly or by change request
- Handover quality varies; adoption is usually not their job
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AI automation consultancy with forward deployed engineers
Best for Leadership that wants AI to change how several teams work, and wants it built, adopted and kept running.
- Engineers sit with your teams and find the work worth changing
- Fixed price per build after an audit; monthly for embedded engineers
- Measured on adoption, with everything in your accounts
- Needs leadership time to set priorities each month
- More than you need for one small, fully specified task
Side by side
What changes between the four.
| Hire in-house | Freelancer | Agency or dev shop | Consultancy with FDEs | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| How the work is found | You define it | You define it | You write the brief | Engineers observe it with your teams |
| Time to start | Months to recruit | Days | Weeks | Days to two weeks |
| Pricing model | Salary and overheads | Hourly or per task | Hourly or per project | Fixed price per build, or monthly |
| Platforms covered | What one person knows | Usually one or two | The agency’s stack | Your existing tools first, custom code where needed |
| Who owns accounts and code | You | Varies | Varies | You, from day one |
| Adoption and training | Up to you | Rarely included | Sometimes | Included, until the old way is gone |
| After go-live | The same person | Ad hoc | Support contract | Hypercare, then care plans from $50 a month |
Questions
Choosing how to build it.
What is the difference between an AI automation agency and a consultancy?
An agency usually builds from a brief you write. A consultancy starts by understanding how the work actually runs, decides with you what is worth changing, then builds it and stays until it is used. Forward deployed engineers are how a consultancy does that inside your teams.
When is hiring in-house the better choice?
When you have a steady, long-term backlog of automation work, someone who can manage an engineer, and the time to recruit. Many teams start with an outside build and hire once the systems and the backlog exist.
When is a freelancer enough?
For one well-specified task on one platform. Ask for the work to be built in your accounts, with a written handover, so it does not depend on the freelancer staying available.
What does SBD cost?
A $500 Automation Audit, credited to the build. Workflow automation from $1,500, internal tools from $3,000, multi-module systems from $5,000 and micro-SaaS from $10,000, each at a fixed price set after the audit. Forward deployed engineers are a monthly engagement priced after a discovery call.
Read more: Forward deployed engineers, pricing, what AI automation costs, build vs buy tool.
Not sure which fits?
We will tell you if it is not us.
On a discovery call we hear the work and recommend the cheapest route that will actually get it done, including a hire or a freelancer.
Book a discovery call