Notes from introductory calls and confirmation emails:
Call with Claire O’Connell from Check:- Consulting on AI: Developed a simple strategy and set of use cases.- Need assistance in evaluating what solutions are most effective.- Ownership: 50% by G-square, 50% by Imran (CEO).- Imran’s “North Star” is an organization run without human staff, driven by strong faith in technology.- He has used AI in call centers and is idealistic about its potential.- Seeking support via two to three workshops, preferably in-person in Preston.- This could entail five to ten days of consultancy.- A robust plan is essential, as the company is aiming for a potential sale.
Met with the leadership team at Check to discuss projects:- • Imran (CEO), Martin Bloor (CTO - works on architecture, infra, Azure, etc.), and Matt Currell (Deputy CEO of the group, formerly at Barclaycard and Vitality Health group, focused on efficiency and practical reality)- Big discussion about them owning the electronic patient records, which is a good source of data- Started off from faxing records back and forth, but notes were always incorrect and in the wrong place or different place to the doctors- Striving to become a tech-first, not people-first business (very deliberate about this), but is going to keep AI out of the clinical side- Wants to use tech as a conduit for better doctor-to-patient engagement and have a sane roadmap- Really focus on financial and patient benefits - do easy ones first- Focus on the patient journey - there’s some goodness here I think for us to work onKey Challenges:- Lots of pressure on call centres with churn and low pay for call centre employees - consistent issue that limits their ability to service more patients- Marketing is an issue - they have national locations across NHS and private services, but the marketing team isn’t very good. Social media isn’t good and they need to do more (AI videos or AI-generated content?)- Reaching more tailored outreach to all of their customers - maybe can they get to all marketing being AI?Matt Currell’s Focus:- Want to find two use cases with value in marketing:1. Being more efficient2. Having better outreach3. Having greater insights and competitive intelligence from the information they have
Email:
The Check team REALLY liked you are keen to progress with getting your support. Imran makes quick decision!
He would like you to focus on the below:
- Focus on fleshing out approach to 2 use cases -
*- Marketing (inc increasing reach, but we need to really understand scope)*
*- Data Validation - Check has a lot of data primarily from the EPR which is sat in Fabric and used for BI and Billing. There are a lot of data quality issues which cause us issues with NHS billing in particular.*
- Review our Cisco project where we are using some form of AI to drive the patient journey.
- Have a bit of a look at the business (I can support here) and identify if there are obvious areas we could utilise AI or where we have existing tools that which we are not using. For example, we are using Business Central but I do not think we are using this to its full capability. I have another supplier Delaware who I am trying to get to look at this, so not expecting you to be a BC expert by any means, but there might be AI tools now that could be used.
Would you be able to have a think about a proposal? Imran liked the idea of a 6 month contract with a number of days we can use. He’d like you to propose a day rate.
Thanks again for the recent meetings and for the opportunity to support CHEC’s AI journey! I enjoyed the conversation with Imran, Martin, Matt and you, and I’m delighted to contribute to CHEC’s vision of becoming a tech-first organisation delivering the highest standards of patient care.
I’ve outlined below a proposed engagement structure that covers some of the items we discussed and Imran’s feedback. Of course this is just a preliminary proposal, so please let me know your thoughts and we can of course make changes.
addresses your immediate priorities whilst building toward longer-term strategic capability.
During the term of the engagement I’ll provide strategic advisory services to Check to help the team make informed decisions about AI adoption, implementation, and value capture. The services might include expert guidance and specific project support as required.
My role will be advisory in nature, working alongside Martin, your technical team, and other Check resources to strengthen CHEC’sinternal capabilities. Implementation will be owned and delivered by your team, with my support focused on guidance, frameworks, and knowledge transfer to ensure Check retains the expertise after this engagement concludes.
Primarily remote, with initial on-site workshops at CHEC’s Preston premises and additional on-site sessions as needed for key project milestones
Fee
£10,000 per month, invoiced monthly in arrears. Based on an expected average of 4 days per month, with flexibility to accommodate higher or lower intensity periods as project needs dictate.
I plan to work collaboratively with the team through a structured but flexible approach:
Initial Discovery Phase (Weeks 1-2): On-site workshops in Preston with key stakeholders to learn about the current state of programs, align on priorities, and establish success metrics
Sprint-Based Delivery: Two-week working cycles with clear objectives, regular check-ins, and incremental deliverables to maintain momentum
Monthly Executive Reviews: Structured sessions with leadership to review progress, address blockers, and refine priorities
Access: Availability via email and video calls for questions, guidance, and collaborative problem-solving
I’ve designed the engagement around 3 principles that I saw in our discussions:
Start with Impact: focus first on marketing and data quality, use cases where AI should be able to deliver measurable value quickly.
Build for Scale: each project should delivery learnings and processes that can be extended to future AI initiatives, supporting CHEC’s vision of becoming a tech-first organisation.
Keep Patients First: All recommendations will respect CHEC’s commitment to keeping AI out of clinical decision-making whilst using technology as a conduit for better doctor-to-patient engagement.
Please let me know once you’ve had an opportunity to review this proposal - I’m happy to have a call at your convenience, and can of course adjust the scope or approach to best suit CHEC’s needs.