Is your business ready for an AI agent?
A practical checklist for choosing the first workflow, preparing reliable knowledge, and setting clear handoff rules.
The best first AI agent is not the one with the most features. It is the one attached to a repetitive, measurable workflow with clear boundaries.
1. Start with a narrow customer moment
Choose one recurring moment such as an unanswered website enquiry, a missed call, a qualification conversation, or an appointment request. Write down what a good outcome looks like and where a person must take over.
2. Check the source material
Collect current service descriptions, opening hours, qualification rules, pricing guidance, policies, and escalation contacts. Remove contradictions before an agent is asked to use the information.
3. Map the systems involved
List the calendar, CRM, help desk, phone system, inbox, and messaging tools touched by the workflow. Confirm access and integration options before promising a fully automated process.
4. Define safe boundaries
Decide which questions the agent can answer, which details it can collect, and which topics require a human. Add a clear fallback for uncertainty, sensitive requests, and unavailable systems.
5. Pick a useful success measure
Use a small set of operational measures: response time, captured enquiries, qualified conversations, booked appointments, resolved routine questions, or human hours returned to the team.