Standing Engagement
Starting at $2,000 CADMonthly retainer for ongoing operations. $2K to $5K per month.
Scope of engagement
What you get
- One sixty-minute monthly briefing call with the same Vanwebdev operator each month.
- Async access via Slack or email between calls; same-day on plain questions.
- Prioritised crisis slot when a model misbehaves or a vendor breaks something.
- Quarterly retro deck reviewing the prior ninety days plus a thirty-minute walkthrough.
- Change-impact reviews when you ship a meaningful AI stack update inside the month.
- Vendor-shift advisories when a tool you depend on changes pricing, terms, or policy.
- Procurement gut-checks before you sign a new AI vendor or renew a hyperscaler contract.
- Quarterly AI roadmap updates with the next four priorities and the costed shortlist.
Timeline
Monthly cadence, ongoing
Deliverables
- Monthly briefing call: A sixty-minute briefing call each month with the same Vanwebdev operator. We bring the agenda. You bring the workload state and the procurement docket. The call ships as a Loom recap plus a one-page action note inside one business day.
- Async access between calls: Async access between calls via Slack or email. We answer plain questions inside the same business day. Scoped questions that need a quick scan get twenty-four hours. Write-ups get queued into the next call agenda. Furthermore, every thread feeds the quarterly retro.
- Prioritised crisis slot: A prioritised crisis slot when a model misbehaves or a vendor ships a breaking change. We acknowledge inside four hours. We triage inside the same business day. Retainer clients jump the queue. Moreover, the first incident per quarter sits inside the monthly fee.
- Quarterly retro review: A quarterly retro covering the prior ninety days of calls and threads. We summarise the agenda. We name the recurring patterns. We update your AI roadmap with the next four priorities. Specifically, the retro deck ships the same week.
Prerequisites
- One named owner who can answer questions on the monthly call.
- A current AI stack inventory; we work from what you have today.
- A vendor list with contract dates so we flag renewal risk early.
- Honest answers about today's gaps; the retainer compounds on candour.
Who this is for
- The AI advisory retainer Canada operators keep on file
- You get a monthly briefing call
- Inside scope of the engagement
Customize this engagement
Live configurator arrives in milestone 2. For now, mention any custom scope on the kickoff call.
Frequently asked
How is the standing engagement different from a one-shot audit?
An audit ships once and the file closes. The AI advisory retainer Canada operators run is a relationship. The operator who scoped you stays the operator you call. Audits scope one workload at a fixed budget. The retainer scopes the stack at a recurring cadence. Specifically, you book audits for a one-shot scan. You book this for a standing line.
What is the minimum commitment on the standing retainer?
Three calendar months as the minimum. After the first quarter you can renew month to month with a thirty-day notice clause. Moreover, the first quarter doubles as the onboarding window. The operator builds your context file before the second-quarter cadence settles.
How fast is the response time on async questions and crisis pings?
Plain async questions get a same-day answer. Scoped questions that need a quick scan get twenty-four hours. The crisis slot acknowledges inside four hours. We triage inside the same business day. Furthermore, every thread feeds the quarterly retro. Patterns surface across the ninety-day window.
Can we pause the retainer if a quarter goes quiet on our side?
Yes. You can pause for one calendar quarter inside any twelve-month window. Thirty days notice. We hold your context file warm during the pause. The next call resumes from the prior agenda. Specifically, the pause clause exists because real operator quarters go quiet. We would rather bank the trust than burn a call.
What if we need hands-on implementation help inside the month?
Implementation falls outside the standing engagement. We can scope a separate build engagement on the rate card. You can run the work with your own team. The retainer carries the advisory load. Moreover, the cleavage is explicit. We never argue scope mid-month.
How do you bill the retainer: flat monthly or rate-card?
Flat monthly for the retainer plus the first crisis slot per quarter. Anything outside scope bills at rate-card by the hour. Subsequent crises bill at rate-card. Implementation bills at rate-card. Project work bills at rate-card. Specifically, the retainer fee covers the cadence.