AI Automation ROI Calculator & Audit | UK Enterprise Discovery Service

The gap between AI pilot enthusiasm and production ROI is widest where discovery is skipped. UK mid-market and enterprise firms typically surface 40–60 candidate processes, but only 12–15% clear a 12-month payback threshold once compliance, data readiness, and change-management costs are modelled.

Salyant's audit de-risks this by applying a structured valuation framework: process mining to capture true cycle-time variance, UK GDPR/ICO impact assessment per workflow, and a weighted scoring model that ranks opportunities by net present value (NPV) rather than technical novelty.

• Process mining across ERP, CRM, and legacy systems to capture true handling time and exception rates
• UK-specific compliance overlay: GDPR Article 22 automated decision-making checks, ICO AI guidance alignment, FCA Consumer Duty where applicable
• FTE capacity release modelling with on-costs (NI, pension, overhead) calibrated to UK salary bands
• Payback-period and NPV modelling under three adoption scenarios (conservative, base, aggressive)
• Executive-ready business case pack: one-page summary, detailed appendix, board presentation deck

The calculator is not a generic spreadsheet; it is a parameterised model populated during the audit workshops. Each candidate process is scored across six value drivers: annual transaction volume, average handling time (AHT), error cost per transaction, compliance risk weight, data readiness index, and change-management complexity.

Inputs are validated against live system extracts (API logs, database query plans, RPA bot telemetry) and finance-led cost-centre data. The model outputs a ranked portfolio with per-process payback, cumulative NPV at 12/24/36 months, and a capital-expenditure phasing plan aligned to UK financial-year budgeting cycles.

• Volume & AHT: extracted from system logs, not stakeholder estimates
• Error cost: includes rework, regulatory fines, customer churn attribution
• Compliance risk weight: binary gate (pass/fail) + continuous score for auditability
• Data readiness: schema completeness, labelling coverage, lineage documentation
• Change complexity: stakeholder count, union/work-council touchpoints, legacy integration depth
• Outputs: ranked backlog, capex/opex split, IRR, sensitivity tornado charts

Week 1: Stakeholder mapping and system access provisioning. Salyant architects run structured interviews with process owners, IT architecture, compliance, and finance. Parallel automated discovery agents ingest API specs, database schemas, and RPA logs.

Week 2: Process mining and value quantification. Workshops validate mined process maps, capture exception paths, and assign cost weights. Compliance team runs GDPR/ICO/FCA checks per workflow.

Week 3: Model population and scenario modelling. Calculator is populated with validated inputs; three adoption scenarios stress-tested. Sensitivity analysis identifies break-even thresholds.

Week 4: Executive read-out. Delivery of prioritised roadmap, business case pack, and implementation sequencing plan. Optional: technical spike on top-ranked use case to validate integration feasibility.

• Fixed-scope, fixed-fee engagement — no open-ended T&M
• Senior automation architect + compliance lead + financial modeller on every engagement
• All workshops recorded and transcribed for audit trail
• Deliverables owned by client; no vendor lock-in on tooling or IP

The AI Audit & Discovery service is priced as a fixed-fee engagement calibrated to enterprise complexity. Typical range: £35,000–£65,000 for organisations with 500–5,000 FTEs and 10–30 core systems in scope. Larger conglomerates or regulated entities (FS, healthcare, critical national infrastructure) engage on a scoped extension basis.

Fee includes all workshops, model build, compliance review, and final deliverables. Travel and expenses for on-site sessions within mainland UK are included. No success fee, no retainer obligation. If Salyant proceeds to build the top-ranked automation, 50% of the audit fee is credited against the Phase 1 build contract.

• Standard engagement: £35k–£65k fixed fee (4 weeks)
• Regulated sector uplift: +£10k–£20k for FCA/PRA/ICO deep-dive
• Multi-entity group discount: 10% per additional legal entity in scope
• Audit-fee credit: 50% applied to subsequent build engagement
• Payment terms: 50% on kickoff, 50% on executive read-out delivery

Salyant's last twelve UK enterprise audits (2023–2024) surfaced a median 8.4-month payback on the top-three ranked processes combined. The highest single-process ROI was a finance reconciliation workflow at a FTSE 250 insurer: 4.2-month payback, £1.2M annualised capacity release. The lowest viable process cleared a 14-month payback — a HR onboarding automation for a 2,000-employee logistics group.

These figures exclude strategic option value (e.g., freed senior analyst time redeployed to M&A due diligence). When option value is modelled, median portfolio NPV at 36 months rises 2.3x. All benchmarks are anonymised but verifiable under NDA.

• Median blended payback (top 3 processes): 8.4 months
• Median 36-month NPV (base case): £2.1M per £1M audit+build investment
• Highest single-process ROI: 4.2-month payback, £1.2M/year capacity release
• Lowest viable process in portfolio: 14-month payback
• Option value uplift on median portfolio: 2.3x NPV at 36 months