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AI Implementation, Construction & Trades

AI that works
as hard as your crew.

We find the workflows eating your team's hours, estimating, documentation, coordination, and build AI that actually fixes them. Practical. Governed. Built by someone who's run job sites, not just read about them.

Try the 2-Minute Assessment
HQ : Vernon BC Serving : Okanagan + BC Response : < 24 hrs Engagements from : $300

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Partners & affiliations

Current collaborations, active roles, and publications carrying Scott's AI column

KPMGCabin Resource ManagementVernon Morning StarBlack Press Media

The Problem

The gap is real.
So is the opportunity.

Construction is the least digitalized industry in BC, which means the businesses that move first get a compounding head start. These are the four places it usually hurts.

Days → ~90 min
Proposal turnaround after fixing the bottleneck

Winning work starts here, and it's where hours disappear. One excavation company's proposals took days; prospects moved on before the quote landed. After implementation, turnaround dropped to roughly 90 minutes, with no new headcount and no quality sacrifice.

80% on paperwork
Engineering time spent documenting, not engineering

Progress reports, RFIs, change orders, closeout packages. One engineering client measured 80% of their time going to documentation, 20% to actual engineering. Nobody hires an engineer to do paperwork, but that's where the hours go.

One source of truth
Instead of phone tag across subs, suppliers, and site leads

Chasing subs, suppliers, and site leads across texts, emails, and voicemails. The information exists, it's just scattered across five inboxes and three people's memories. AI coordination pulls it into one place and keeps it current.

Walks out the door
What happens when a senior person retires

Your senior estimator's knowledge is worth more than any tool you'll ever buy. When that person retires, it walks out the door, unless it's captured in systems that stay. This is the least visible risk and the most expensive one.

BC businesses, late AI adopters

68%

of BC businesses plan to adopt AI only after competitors prove it works. Most of your market is still waiting. SOURCE: GVBOT/B.C. BUSINESS SURVEYS, SEE BLOG

Canadian firms behind on AI

69%

of Canadian companies haven't meaningfully started. The window to be early is open, and it won't stay open. SOURCE: KPMG/CCA & STATSCAN REPORTING, SEE BLOG

Proposal turnaround, real client result

~90 min

down from days, at an excavation company. No new headcount. No quality sacrifice. That's what fixing the right point looks like.

Services

Start small. Prove it.
Then build what works.

Every engagement earns its way to the next step. Nobody gets talked into a big commitment before there's real evidence it's worth it.

01 Quick AI Opportunity Scan About a 45-minute discovery. A concise findings report within 5 business days: strongest opportunities, risks, next step. $300 → 02 Data & IA Review Two hours watching how information actually moves through one workflow, where it stalls, gets re-entered, or gets lost. $750 → 03 Full AI Readiness Assessment Six dimensions of organizational readiness, scored and cross-referenced into a formal report and executive brief. $3,500 → 04 Paid Pilot One bounded workflow, an agreed baseline, success criteria set in advance. A straight answer at the end. Scoped → 05 Phased Implementation Validated opportunities, built by Scott himself, connected to your real data, governance included from day one. Scoped →

Not sure which fits? Take the free 2-minute assessment or just call.

Governance

Your AI. Your data.
Your rules.

Most AI implementations skip governance entirely. That works until it doesn't. These aren't add-ons, they're built into every engagement from the start.

Accountability

Who's responsible when AI makes a decision in your business? Clear ownership, assigned from the start, not negotiated after something goes wrong.

Data Boundaries

What data is AI touching? What stays off-limits? Your client information, your pricing, your IP, explicit lines, written down.

Quality Control

AI outputs get human review before they reach a client, a bid, or a contract. Checkpoints built into every workflow.

Transparency

Your team and your clients should know where AI is being used. No black boxes. No surprises.

Read the full governance approach →

About

18 years on job sites.
Now building what comes next.

Scott Jarvis spent eighteen years running construction and trades operations before founding Jarvis Strategies. He's been the person drowning in proposals at 9pm, chasing subs for updates, and watching knowledge walk out the door when someone retired.

That's why this isn't theory. Every recommendation comes from someone who has actually lived the workflows he's fixing, and who stays to make sure what gets built actually works.

CURRENTLY WORKING ALONGSIDE KPMG ON ENTERPRISE AI IMPLEMENTATION

LinkedIn
Scott Jarvis, Founder and Principal of Jarvis Strategies
SCOTT JARVIS
FOUNDER & PRINCIPAL

Results

What happens when you fix
the highest-leverage point.

Excavation company · Proposals

"Proposals were taking days, long enough that prospects had often moved on. After implementation, turnaround dropped to roughly 90 minutes."

Days → ~90 minutes · No new headcount · No quality sacrifice

Engineering services · Documentation

"Engineers were spending 80% of their time documenting and 20% engineering. After: 30-40% less documentation time, audit trail intact."

30-40% less documentation time · Ratio now near 50/50

Real engagements. Results shared with permission; client identities anonymized. The numbers come from agreed before/after baselines, the same way we'd measure yours.

Client testimonial

“Scott helped us quickly see where AI and automation might have the most potential in our business and gave us a clear sense of where to focus next.”

Dirt Nerd Earthworks · Vernon BC

Who this is for

You run a real business.
AI should respect that.

Owners & GMs

You're too busy running the business to research AI, but you know it matters. You need someone to find the opportunities, prove them small, and build what works.

Estimators & ops leads

You're drowning in proposals, documentation, and coordination. You don't need another tool to learn, you need the work to take less time.

Companies that got burned

You've been pitched AI before. It was expensive, complicated, and didn't fit how you actually work. This is the opposite of that.

Insights

From the blog.

All articles →

Tower crane over a misty excavation site at dusk

Construction is dead last in BC tech adoption, that's the opportunity

68% of BC businesses plan to adopt AI only after competitors prove it. The first movers get the compounding head start.

Industry analysis · 5 min
Hard hat, rolled blueprint and tape measure under a warm desk lamp

Where to start with AI if you run a trades business

Not chatbots. Not robots. The four workflows where AI actually pays for itself in a trades company.

Practical guide · 4 min
Matte black cube with a glowing amber core on a dark reflective surface

What is an AI agent, in plain language?

AI assistants answer questions. Agents handle the whole thing. Here's what that actually means for your business.

AI 101 · 9 min

FAQ

Straight answers.

Engagements start with a $300 Quick AI Opportunity Scan: about a 45-minute discovery with a concise findings report within 5 business days. From there: a $750 Information Architecture Review, a $3,500 full Readiness Assessment, or a custom-scoped paid pilot. Nobody gets quoted a big implementation before the small steps prove it's worth it.

No. Scott works with owners, estimators, and operations leads, not IT departments. Everything is scoped in plain language around your actual workflows: proposals, documentation, coordination, reporting.

No. The tools get built around your people, not instead of them. AI assists with the repetitive document and data work; your team keeps every decision. Quality control checkpoints are built into every workflow.

Your data stays yours. Every engagement includes explicit data boundaries, what AI can touch and what stays off-limits, written down before anything gets built.

The Quick Scan is about a 45-minute discovery, with a concise findings report within 5 business days. A pilot runs weeks, not months, with an agreed baseline and success criteria set in advance. One excavation client cut proposal turnaround from days to roughly 90 minutes.

Contact

Three ways to start. All low-commitment.

Book a call

30 minutes. No pitch. We talk about your business and I'll tell you honestly whether I can help.

Call or text

Prefer to just talk? I'm at 250-258-4465. If I don't pick up, I'll call you back, usually same day.

Call Now

Email

sjarvis@jarvisstrategies.com. Tell me a bit about your business and what's eating your team's time.

Send Email

Ready when you are

Start with a $300 scan.
Leave knowing exactly where AI fits.

About 45 minutes of discovery. A concise findings report within 5 business days, with a recommended next step, even if it is "don't bother yet."

Try the free assessment first