BLOG — FIELD NOTES

Notes from the studio.

Short, opinionated reads on AI, CRM, automation and the operational side of building a startup. Written by the people doing the work.

AI·2026
Featured
AI · 8 MIN READ · MAY 2026

Why most AI integrations fail in production — and what to do instead.

The four production-grade patterns we use across every AI engagement, and the demos-disguised-as-products to avoid.

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CRM
CRM · 6 MIN · APR 2026

Build vs. buy: when a custom CRM actually pays back.

The seven questions we ask before recommending a custom CRM build over Salesforce or HubSpot.

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AUTO
AUTOMATION · 5 MIN · APR 2026

The 80/20 of business automation — start here.

You don't need an AI agent yet. You need a Zapier you actually maintain. Here's the order to do it in.

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DATA
DATA · 7 MIN · MAR 2026

The five dashboards every operating team needs.

Most BI is theatre. This is what an actually-used dashboard looks like — and the sequence to build them in.

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SU
STARTUPS · 5 MIN · MAR 2026

Pre-seed tech stack: what you actually need on day one.

The minimum-viable software stack to look professional, sell and scale — for under $400 a month.

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