AFCO
Consulting & Associates

AI Strategy Alignment Canvas 2.0 – Rethinking the Firm

Aligning Business Model, Decisions and Digital Capabilities for Competitive Advantage
Business model + Operating model (Hardware + Software)
+ People + Learning & Experimentation Loops
= 7 blocks to Rethink the Firm
AS-IS Baseline
Where are we competing from today?
Current Competitive Position
What is our core business model today?
What are our current sources of differential advantage?
Digital maturity level today: (1–5)
Current Strategic Archetype
Focused Differentiation → segment advantage
Vertical Integration → value chain control
Collaborative Ecosystem → co-created value
Platform Leadership → network effects
Competitive Pressure
Who could disrupt us with AI within 18 months?
Biggest structural vulnerability today?
Where are competitors already using AI against us?
TO-BE Vision
Where do we need to be — and what does winning look like?
Target Business Model
How does the business model change when AI is embedded?
What new value do we deliver that we can't today?
Digital maturity level target: (1–5)
Target Strategic Archetype
Which archetype are we moving toward with AI?
What new sources of differential advantage do we build?
Degree of value chain control: low → high
The Gap
What is the delta between AS-IS and TO-BE?
Which capabilities must we build that we don't have?
What must change in culture, process, and structure?
Block 1
Strategic Intent
What do we want to achieve with AI?
Ambition
What is the 1 dominant AI strategic priority?
Bottleneck | Business case | Workflow | Business Unit
Metrics That Truly Matter
Primary metric (revenue, EBITDA, NPS, time-to-market...)
Leading indicator that predicts success
Time Horizon
6–12 months: what specific win are we targeting?
12–36 months: what capability are we building?
AI Posture
Fast follower  |  Co-creator  |  AI-native
Block 2
Value at Stake
Where is the money?
Value Map
Where is value created today? (top 3 processes)
Where is value destroyed today? (costly inefficiencies)
Where is value dormant or under-captured?
Quantification
$ at stake if we solve the bottleneck
Benchmark vs. competitors or best-in-class
To-Be Archetype
Which archetype are we moving toward with AI?
Degree of value chain control: low → high
Block 3
Decision Advantage
Which decision, if improved, wins the game?
Decision Taxonomy
Strategic (annual) → capital allocation, M&A, portfolio
Tactical (monthly) → pricing, capacity, product
Operational (daily) → fulfillment, service, risk
Prioritization
Which decision has the highest economic impact?
Which has the highest frequency and volume?
Is the bottleneck human, data-driven, or process-driven?
Solution Design
Human-in-the-loop  |  AI-assisted  |  Fully automated
What signal (data) do we need that we don't have today?
Block 4
Digital Capabilities Stack
What must we build vs. buy?
Data — The Foundation
Do we have proprietary data that is hard to replicate?
Data quality, accessibility, governance: what is the gap?
Models & Software
External foundation model (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google...)
Fine-tuning / RAG with proprietary data → differential edge
Build vs. buy vs. partner?
Infrastructure
Cloud / on-prem / hybrid → what does regulation dictate?
Technology interdependency: low → high
Build capabilities, not vendor dependencies.
Block 5
Strategic Bets & Roadmap
What do we bet on — and what do we leave out?
The 1–2 Bets
Bet 1: [name] → value hypothesis → success metric
Bet 2 (optional): same structure
Next 90 Days — Sprint Zero
Week 1–2: diagnosis and data audit
Week 3–6: prototype / MVP
Week 7–12: pilot, measure, decide
What We Will NOT Do
Projects we consciously deprioritize
Vendors / technologies we are not adopting now
Is this bet coherent with our AI posture and strategic archetype?
Block 6
Risk & Responsibility Matrix
What can go wrong — and how do we manage it?
People Risk
Which roles change or disappear? Reskilling plan?
Is there cultural resistance? How do we address it?
Ethics & Bias
What biases could the model amplify?
Who audits AI decisions?
Regulation
EU AI Act, GDPR, local regulation — what applies?
Do we need explainability (XAI) for compliance?
Dependency
What happens if the vendor raises prices or shuts down?
Contingency plan and exit strategy
Learning & Experimentation Loop
The canvas is alive — not a one-time exercise.
Review Cadence
Sprint review (every 2 weeks): Are we learning what we expected?
Monthly checkpoint: Is the core hypothesis still valid?
Quarterly full canvas review
Review Experiments
Track number of failures and successes
Document what we learned from each experiment
Ownership
Executive sponsor: protects the bet with budget and authority
AI Lead: operates and reports on progress
Ethics & Risk Owner: escalates conflicts
⚡ Kill Switch
If there is no signal within 90 days: what threshold triggers a pivot or stop?