AI Strategy & Capability Baseline Workshop
A fast, executive diagnostic and decision accelerator.
A half-day workshop that gives your leadership team an honest baseline across the six dimensions that matter - and a prioritised list of what to do about it.
Most leadership teams have a view on AI. They just don't have the same view.
Some people think the business is well on its way. Others think it's barely started. Most sit somewhere in the middle and aren't sure what the others think. That's a problem, because every decision from here - which tools to buy, which roles to fund, which policies to write - depends on a shared starting line.
The AI Strategy & Capability Baseline Workshop builds that starting line. It's a structured, facilitated half-day for CEOs, managing directors, and their leadership teams, delivered in-person in Christchurch or on-site at your office.
You walk out with a clear view of where the business stands across six dimensions, a prioritised list of 25 to 35 opportunities rated on effort and impact, and a phased roadmap for the next 18 months. And because we work across all six dimensions in one session, you leave with your leadership team aligned on what they've just seen.
Who This Is For
This workshop fits your business if:
Your leadership team needs a shared view of where AI fits into the business, not just the IT team's view.
You know you need to do something with AI, but aren't sure which things matter most or in what order.
You want an honest assessment of readiness before committing budget to tools, training, or headcount.
You're a professional services firm, knowledge-intensive business, or office-based organisation where people, data, process, and governance all matter for AI adoption.
You're 20 to 200 staff, owner-operated or professionally managed, with no dedicated CIO or CTO function.
It's probably not the right fit if you're a very small firm (under 20 staff), a subsidiary of a multinational with an existing AI strategy, or an operationally-focused business where the six readiness dimensions don't map cleanly. If any of those describe you, this quiz will route you somewhere more useful.
What You'll Walk Out With
The Baseline Report
A full written report covering where the business stands across the six dimensions, a full opportunity landscape rated on effort and impact, a phased Now/Next/Later roadmap, and specific recommendations for the next 60 days and beyond.
The Baseline Briefing
A condensed companion covering the headline findings, top opportunities, and the roadmap at a glance. A faster read that stands alone - and pairs with the full Report when deeper context is useful.
A readiness score across six dimensions:
Strategy & Leadership Alignment
People, Capability & Change
Data & Information Management
Systems & Technology
Processes & Operations
Governance, Risk & Compliance
Each dimension is rated Foundation Work Needed, Building Capability, or Well Positioned - based on evidence from the workshop, not encouragement.
A Prioritised Opportunity Landscape
Covering the next 18 months. Every opportunity carries an effort rating and an impact rating, and is sequenced into Now (0 to 60 days), Next (3 to 12 months), or Later (12 to 18 months).
Alignment Across Your Leadership Team
This is harder to describe but often the most valuable outcome. Everyone in the room has worked through the same framework, seen the same evidence, and agreed on the same priorities. The conversation afterwards is measurably different.
How It Works
Step 1 - The Workshop (half day, in-person)
4 to 6 hours with your leadership team, facilitated on-site or at a Christchurch venue. We work through each of the six dimensions, using structured discussion and assessment prompts. No slides-at-you. No generic AI overview you could read online. It's a working session. We come prepared - our research on your business is done before we walk in, so the session opens at depth.
Step 2 - Analysis & Write-Up (2 weeks)
After the workshop, we synthesise everything discussed, apply the scoring framework, map the opportunity landscape, and write both the Report and the Briefing. You review drafts before anything is final.
Step 3 - Delivery (virtual or in-person)
We walk the leadership team through the findings, priorities, and roadmap. Questions answered. Suggested next steps clear. 60 minutes.
Investment
$4,500 + GST
Flat fee, all-inclusive. Half-day workshop, written Report, written Briefing, delivery session.
The Guarantee
If your leadership team doesn't walk away with meaningful strategic clarity, you don't pay.
Not sure this is the right workshop for your business?
Take the 2-minute quiz. It routes you to the right starting point based on where your thinking is today.
Why Binary Refinery
Binary Refinery is an independent AI strategy consultancy based in Christchurch. Founded by Kat Mac - 20 years in technology, former GM at a nationwide NZ financial services organisation, MBA, board-level governance experience.
We don't sell tools. We don't take vendor referral fees. We have no allegiance to any AI platform, model, or software provider. That independence is what lets us tell you what's actually true about your business, not what helps us sell you something.
We work with NZ professional services firms of 20 to 200 staff. We understand the Canterbury business market, the NZ regulatory environment, and the specific pressures of running an owner-operated or professionally managed firm that doesn't have a CIO.
Critical Success Factor: Full Engagement
A successful workshop is built on focused attention and active contribution from every person in the room. To get the most value from this workshop, we need one thing above all else: your full engagement.
To set us up for the best outcomes, we ask that everyone:
Leaves laptops and phones aside.
Stays engaged for the full session - even when the conversation shifts between different parts of the business.
Shares their knowledge openly - the insights we need are already inside your organisation.
Different moments will resonate with different people. That’s intentional. The value comes from hearing how the pieces connect across teams and perspectives.
The brains trust is in the room. The more we hear from those brains, the better the decisions we can make together.
FAQ
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Ideally:
CEO / Managing Director.
Someone who owns data/technology.
Someone who owns people/operations.
Someone who owns marketing/sales.
Finance.
Any leader responsible for customer experience or risk.
You don’t need a large group - you need the right decision-makers and the people who understand how work actually happens.
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Binary Refinery specialises in executive-level, independent emerging-technology strategy - not IT implementation, not vendor selling.
You get a blend of:
Deep experience in technology, governance, risk, and organisational change.
A proprietary assessment and opportunity-mapping system built for New Zealand organisations.
An adviser who translates complexity into clear, practical, business-first decisions.
The work is grounded, independent, strategic - and built for leaders.
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ROI typically appears through:
Avoided spend and avoided missteps.
Efficiency and time savings.
Clearer, faster decisions.
Reduced risk across data, security, governance, and compliance.
Targeted investment in opportunities that actually matter.
Many organisations see value immediately through avoided cost, quick wins, or tighter alignment.
Binary Refinery’s incentives are aligned with yours:
our purpose is to get you value, so the process deliberately surfaces realistic, achievable quick wins to help you build momentum and bring ROI forward. -
Two options:
Use it internally as your direction-setter for decision-making, capability building, and investment.
Move into the AI Opportunity Mapping Workshop, where strategy turns into a ranked, prioritised roadmap of value-creating initiatives.
Either way, you now have shared language, clarity, and direction that prevents scattered experiments.
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Most leadership teams spend 4–6 hours total, depending on the workshop. Binary Refinery does the heavy lifting - you simply show up ready to think, discuss, and decide.
No homework unless requested.
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No. These sessions are designed for strategic decision-makers, not IT teams or data scientists.
If you’d like your technology leaders present, they’re absolutely welcome - but not required.
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Yes. The frameworks scale up or down. Small and mid-sized organisations often see faster ROI because decisions are quicker and alignment is easier.
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Great - the workshop will:
Pressure-test your current direction.
Confirm priorities.
Expose blind spots, duplication, or unnecessary spend.
Tighten sequencing and focus.
You don’t lose momentum, you sharpen it.
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Binary Refinery works alongside your existing partners. We remain independent - no commissions, no preferred vendors.
Your IT provider is welcome to participate, and the resulting roadmap will make their role clearer and more effective.
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Absolutely - and this is a core value point. A good AI roadmap doesn’t just look for new tools. It identifies untapped value in the systems you already pay for, including AI functionality or integrations inside platforms like Microsoft 365, CRMs, ERPs, ticketing systems, analytics tools, and more. Many organisations get faster ROI by fully using what they already own.
Meet Your Facilitator: Kat Mac
Kat is the founder of Binary Refinery. Part strategist, part translator, she specialises in helping leaders cut through complexity, understand what emerging technology really means for their organisations, and make clear, commercially grounded decisions.
She brings experience across technology leadership, digital transformation, marketing, governance, and organisational strategy - supported by an MBA from the University of Canterbury and years advising senior leadership teams across New Zealand.
Her workshops are practical, engaging, and built around one goal: helping New Zealand organisations modernise with confidence, clarity, and control.
Ready to Get Started?
Book your AI Strategy & Capability Baseline Workshop and get the clarity your organisation needs to move forward with confidence.
Real clients. Real outcomes.
Explore case studies from New Zealand organisations that turned strategy into results - improving efficiency, accuracy, and confidence with Binary Refinery by their side.
