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Lama versus the Big Four. A boutique, on purpose.
If you are choosing between a Big Four firm and a boutique for an AI build, here is the honest version from the boutique side.
A Big Four engagement is built to scale across hundreds of clients. A partner sells it, and a rotating bench of junior consultants delivers it. You get process, brand, and a deck. What you often do not get is the person who scoped the work staying on to build it.
We run it differently. The person you brief scopes the build, builds it, and answers when it breaks six months later. There is no offshore handoff and no subcontractor. The trade is real: we take on fewer clients, and we will not staff a problem we cannot ship.
Side by side
| Big Four | Lama | |
|---|---|---|
| Who delivers | A rotating junior bench | The person you brief |
| What you get | A strategy deck, then a separate build phase | A working agent, measured in 30 days |
| Pricing | Opaque, time and materials | Fixed by complexity, $5K to $60K+ |
| After handoff | A new statement of work | The same team maintains it |
| Best fit | Enterprise-wide transformation programs | One workflow that pays for itself, then the next |
Which one fits
The Big Four is the right call for a multi-year, enterprise-wide program with a board mandate behind it. We are the right call when you want a specific workflow shipped and measured this quarter, by someone who will still own it next year. If that is you, the six builds show what it looks like, the pricing is public, and the practitioner doing the work is one person. An AI Audit is where it starts.
Common questions
Is a boutique riskier than a Big Four firm?
The risk is different. A Big Four firm gives you brand and bench depth. A boutique gives you one accountable person and a build you can measure in 30 days. The audit and the fixed scope are there to take the guesswork out before you commit.
When is the Big Four the right call?
A multi-year, enterprise-wide transformation program with a board mandate and a budget to match. That is genuinely their strength, and we will tell you so.
15 min. 5-day written diagnosis. No deck.