Boxtree Consulting has launched with a clear message for UK businesses: simply purchasing AI tools such as Microsoft Copilot is not the same as having an AI strategy.
According to the Birmingham-based consultancy, the biggest opportunities lie in transforming everyday business processes rather than simply improving individual productivity.
Founded by operational transformation specialist Max Pardo-Roques,(PICTURED) Boxtree combines Lean principles, originally developed through Toyota's renowned production system, with modern AI technology to identify repetitive manual tasks that can be automated.
These include activities such as invoice processing, data entry, scheduling, compliance checks and other administrative work that quietly consumes thousands of staff hours each year.
The company argues that many organisations have embraced AI on the surface, using it to draft emails or improve marketing content, while leaving their most time-consuming and expensive workflows untouched.
Pardo-Roques believes this is where businesses are overlooking substantial savings.
He told That's Business that many chief executives, finance directors and operations leaders believe they have implemented AI because staff have access to AI assistants. In reality, he argues, true transformation only begins when organisations redesign the processes where most operational costs occur.
Recent research suggests many UK businesses still have some way to go. Analysis of Office for National Statistics data found that fewer than three in ten UK businesses employing under 50 people were using AI in 2025, compared with 44 per cent of organisations employing more than 250 staff. Meanwhile, the Government's AI Champion for Advanced Manufacturing has warned that many firms remain stuck in a "pilot trap", experimenting with AI without deploying it at scale.
Boxtree's approach is deliberately practical. Every client engagement begins with a Lean diagnostic that maps business processes and identifies waste in financial terms. Projects only move forward if they are expected to generate savings that exceed implementation costs during the first year.
The consultancy is confident enough in its approach to guarantee every project will be cost-neutral within its first year, with an overall target of delivering a five-to-one return on investment.
Rather than replacing existing software, Boxtree focuses on embedding AI into the systems businesses already use, reducing disruption while improving efficiency.
Serving organisations across manufacturing, logistics, professional services and other operations-intensive sectors, Boxtree believes the next stage of the UK's AI journey will not be driven by software licences alone, but by businesses willing to rethink how work gets done.
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