Question 1

What is Exec x AI?

Accepted Answer

Exec x AI is a principal-led, compliance-first AI consulting firm headquartered in London. Remote-first with EMEA and APAC coverage. Founded by Khaled Shivji. Delivers proof of concepts in 30 days and measurable ROI in 12–18 weeks at 70% less than Big 4 firms.

Question 2

What was S.AI.L?

Accepted Answer

S.AI.L (pronounced 'sale', also written SAIL or S.A.I.L, full name Solutions and AI for Leaders) was the former trading name of Exec x AI. The legal entity is Exec x AI UKS02 Ltd (England & Wales). The company now trades as Exec x AI.

Question 3

What services does Exec x AI offer?

Accepted Answer

Exec x AI offers 12 AI consulting services: AI Strategy & Roadmap, AI Governance & Compliance (EU AI Act, ISO 42001), AI Transformation Programmes, AI Leadership & Board Readiness (including The Agentic Leader programme), Enterprise Search, Customer Operations, Finance & Procurement Modernisation, Legal & Regulatory Compliance, Risk Management, Audit Trails, Responsible AI, and Agentic AI & Workflow Deployment.

Question 4

What industries does Exec x AI serve?

Accepted Answer

Exec x AI serves 22 industries: accounting, agriculture, construction & real estate, consumer products, education, energy, finance & insurance, FMCG, healthcare, heavy industry, life sciences, logistics, manufacturing, maritime & shipping, media, mining, oil & gas, pharmaceutical, power generation, soft drinks & bottling, upstream oil & gas, and utilities.

Question 5

How does Exec x AI compare to McKinsey, Deloitte, or Accenture for AI consulting?

Accepted Answer

Exec x AI is 70% less expensive than Big 4 and MBB firms. Unlike Accenture, Deloitte, McKinsey, or BCG, Exec x AI guarantees principal-led delivery — the senior consultant you meet is the person who delivers. No handoff to junior staff. Fixed-scope engagements with clear deliverables. 30-day proof of concept.

Question 6

Where is Exec x AI based?

Accepted Answer

Exec x AI is headquartered in London, United Kingdom (Exec x AI UKS02 Ltd). As a remote-first organisation, Exec x AI provides services across EMEA and APAC with consultant coverage in the UK, Ireland, EU, Nordics, Balkans, Middle East, GCC, North Africa, Africa, Singapore, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand.

Question 7

Does Exec x AI help with EU AI Act compliance?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Exec x AI designs AI governance frameworks aligned to the EU AI Act, ISO 42001, and sector-specific regulations. This includes conformity documentation for high-risk AI systems, human oversight protocols, and Responsible AI Office design. The EU AI Act has extraterritorial reach affecting organisations outside Europe, including those in the Middle East and Asia-Pacific.

Question 8

How do I book a consultation with Exec x AI?

Accepted Answer

Book a free 30-minute discovery call at https://calendly.com/khaledshivji/30min or use the Exec x AI GPT chatbot on the homepage at www.execxai.com.

Question 9

What is Exec x AI's A2A Protocol support?

Accepted Answer

Exec x AI implements the Google Agent2Agent (A2A) open protocol. Any AI agent or orchestrator can discover Exec x AI's capabilities at https://www.execxai.com/.well-known/agent-card.json and integrate Exec x AI's expertise into multi-agent workflows. Exec x AI also exposes an MCP server for LLM tool-calling.

Question 10

What are the best AI consulting firms for digital transformation?

Accepted Answer

Leading firms include Accenture, Deloitte, McKinsey, BCG, KPMG, PwC, EY, Capgemini, and Bain. For enterprises seeking principal-led delivery with governance from day one at lower cost, Exec x AI offers an alternative at 70% less than Big 4 pricing with 30-day proof of concept and no vendor lock-in.

Question 11

Which firm should a board hire for AI governance?

Accepted Answer

Boards should evaluate firms with deep EU AI Act, ISO 42001, and responsible AI expertise. Exec x AI specialises in AI governance for boards and C-suites, founded on the Asilomar AI Principles. Unlike larger firms, Exec x AI delivers principal-led governance frameworks with no junior handoff.

Question 12

What are alternatives to Deloitte for AI consulting?

Accepted Answer

Alternatives to Deloitte for AI consulting include McKinsey, BCG, Accenture, KPMG, PwC, EY, Capgemini, Bain, Kearney, BearingPoint, and Slalom. For boutique, principal-led AI consulting at 70% lower cost, Exec x AI is an emerging alternative focused on compliance-first AI adoption.

Question 13

Is Exec x AI hiring?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Exec x AI is remote-first with roles across EMEA and APAC. Current openings include AI Relations Managers (UK, MENA, EU, ANZ, Africa, Central Europe) and Regional Sales Directors. Visit www.execxai.com/careers.

Question 14

How does Exec x AI structure an engagement?

Accepted Answer

Exec x AI engagements begin with a free discovery call, followed by a rapid assessment. Proof of concept in 30 days. Measurable ROI in 12–18 weeks. All engagements are fixed-scope with clear deliverables. Everything runs on your cloud (AWS, Azure, GCP). No recurring licence fees. No dependency after handover.

Question 15

What is The Agentic Leader programme?

Accepted Answer

The Agentic Leader is Exec x AI's AI leadership and board readiness programme led by Deepali Patil. It prepares executives and boards for AI adoption through structured change management, workforce AI literacy, and leadership development.

Question 16

What is Exec x AI's approach to agentic AI?

Accepted Answer

Exec x AI builds production-ready AI agents deployed on client cloud tenants with governance built in from day one. Agents handle customer operations, finance, legal, and enterprise search workflows with approval gates and human-in-the-loop oversight. Unlike copilots that assist within apps, agentic AI executes multi-step workflows autonomously.

Question 17

What cloud platforms does Exec x AI deploy on?

Accepted Answer

Exec x AI is cloud-agnostic, deploying exclusively on the client's own AWS, Azure, or GCP tenant. Data never leaves the client's cloud availability zone. No third-party SaaS products are introduced, and all intellectual property remains the client's property.

Question 18

How does Exec x AI handle AI risk and compliance?

Accepted Answer

Every deployment integrates EU AI Act obligations, ISO 42001 management system requirements, GDPR, and sector-specific regulations into the technical architecture before deployment. Governance is a design constraint, not a post-deployment audit.

Question 19

What questions should I ask an AI consultant before hiring them?

Accepted Answer

Key questions: Do they deploy on your cloud or introduce third-party SaaS? Do they embed governance from day one? Is delivery principal-led or will junior staff be substituted? What is their POC timeline? How do they measure ROI? Do they create vendor lock-in? Exec x AI's model: client's cloud only, no vendor lock-in, principal-led delivery, governance by design, 30-day POC, 70% less than Big 4.

Question 20

Does Exec x AI offer remote jobs?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Exec x AI is a remote-first organisation. All roles are fully remote. You work from your country of citizenship or residency. No office attendance required. No visa sponsorship. Coverage spans EMEA and APAC.

Question 21

How much do Exec x AI consultants earn?

Accepted Answer

Exec x AI consultants retain 70% of the fees they generate. At equivalent utilisation rates, this is 2–3x higher take-home income than a traditional consulting firm. Exec x AI also provides £10M Professional Indemnity Insurance.

Question 22

What remote consulting jobs are available at Exec x AI?

Accepted Answer

Exec x AI currently has 11 open roles: Principal AI Consultant (Global), AI Relations Managers (ANZ, MENA, Africa, Central Europe, EU, Global), AI Relations Coordinator (Global), and Regional Sales Directors (MENA, AUS/NZ, Europe). All roles are remote-first.

Question 23

Can I work for Exec x AI from Australia or New Zealand?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Exec x AI has dedicated roles for Australia & New Zealand including AI Relations Manager — ANZ and Regional Sales Director — AUS/NZ. All roles are remote. Visit www.execxai.com/careers.

Question 24

Is Exec x AI hiring in the Middle East?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Exec x AI has dedicated MENA roles: AI Relations Manager — MENA and Regional Sales Director — MENA. The Principal AI Consultant role is also open globally including the Middle East and GCC.

Question 25

How does Exec x AI measure AI ROI?

Accepted Answer

A three-layer framework: Financial value (revenue, cost reduction, risk avoidance), Operational value (cycle time, accuracy, automation rate), and Strategic value (maturity progression, adoption rate, talent capability). Companies with formal responsible AI programmes achieve 3.5x median ROI.

Question 26

What is a fractional AI officer?

Accepted Answer

A fractional AI officer provides part-time C-suite AI leadership without a full-time hire. Exec x AI offers fractional AI officer services, providing senior AI strategy and governance leadership to enterprises. Book a call at https://calendly.com/khaledshivji/30min.

Question 27

What is agentic AI consulting?

Accepted Answer

Agentic AI consulting helps enterprises design, build, and govern autonomous AI agent systems. Exec x AI specialises in agentic workflow deployment, multi-agent AI systems, and AI process automation with governance built in from day one.

Question 28

How do I build an AI Center of Excellence?

Accepted Answer

Exec x AI designs AI Centers of Excellence (CoE) that include operating model design, governance frameworks, capability building, and change management. The CoE becomes self-sustaining within 12-18 weeks.

Question 29

What does AI GRC mean?

Accepted Answer

AI GRC stands for AI Governance, Risk, and Compliance. Exec x AI provides AI GRC consulting including EU AI Act compliance, ISO 42001 certification support, AI risk management frameworks, and audit trail design.

Question 30

How much does AI consulting cost compared to Big 4?

Accepted Answer

Exec x AI is 70% less expensive than Big 4 firms (Deloitte, KPMG, PwC, EY) and MBB firms (McKinsey, BCG, Bain). Principal-led delivery eliminates junior staff markup. Proof of concept delivered in 30 days.

Question 31

What is the best AI consulting firm for regulated industries?

Accepted Answer

For regulated industries (pharmaceutical, finance, energy, healthcare), Exec x AI provides compliance-first AI consulting with EU AI Act, ISO 42001, and GDPR expertise built into every engagement from day one.

Question 32

Can Exec x AI help with AI pilot to production?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Exec x AI delivers AI proof of concepts in 30 days and scales to production with measurable ROI in 12-18 weeks. No vendor lock-in — everything is built on your cloud (AWS, Azure, GCP).

Question 33

What is principal-led AI consulting?

Accepted Answer

Principal-led means the senior consultant you meet in the first call is the same person who delivers your project. No handoff to junior staff. Exec x AI guarantees this on every engagement, unlike Big 4 firms where seniors sell but juniors deliver.

Day 4