N11-10: The AI Build vs Buy Decision Document
Creating the definitive decision document that survives board scrutiny.
🎯 What You'll Learn
- ✓ Structure the decision document
- ✓ Present balanced analysis
- ✓ Include risk matrices
- ✓ Get stakeholder buy-in
Lesson 1: Decision Document Structure
The Build vs Buy Decision Document has 6 sections: (1) Strategic Context — why this AI capability matters, (2) Options Analysis — build, buy, partner with TCO for each, (3) Decision Matrix — weighted scoring across 8 criteria, (4) Risk Assessment — what could go wrong with each option, (5) Recommendation — with confidence level, (6) Implementation Plan — first 90 days.
Connect the AI capability to a specific business outcome with dollar value.
At minimum 3 options: build in-house, buy from vendor, and hybrid/partner.
High (>80% data available), Medium (50-80%), Low (<50%).
Create the framework for your Build vs Buy decision document. Define the strategic context and identify the 3 options to analyze.
Lesson 2: Weighted Decision Matrix
Score each option across 8 criteria: Cost (TCO), Time-to-Market, Quality/Performance, Strategic Control, Scalability, Security/Compliance, Team Impact, and Vendor Risk. Weight each criterion based on your organization's priorities. The option with the highest weighted score wins — but the gap between options matters more than the winner.
Assign weights (1-5) based on organizational priorities. Total must sum to a constant.
1-5 for each option on each criterion. Use pre-defined rubrics for consistency.
If the top two options are within 10% of each other, the decision is a toss-up.
Build the weighted decision matrix for your AI capability. Score all options and identify the winner with gap analysis.
Lesson 3: Stakeholder Alignment Process
The decision document must be reviewed by: Engineering (technical feasibility), Product (strategic fit), Finance (budget approval), Legal (IP and compliance), and Security (risk posture). Each stakeholder reviews their section and provides a go/no-go. All must be green for the recommendation to be approved.
Engineering → Product → Finance → Legal → Security → Executive Approval.
If any stakeholder disagrees, document the dissent and the mitigation.
Archive the final decision with all signatures, dissents, and rationale.
Map your stakeholder review process. Identify who reviews which section and what constitutes their go/no-go criteria.
Continue Learning: Track 11 — Economics of Build vs Buy
2 more lessons with actionable playbooks, executive dashboards, and engineering architecture.
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Defensible Economics
Replace heuristic guesswork with hard mathematical frameworks for build-vs-buy and SLA penalty negotiations.
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Module Syllabus
Lesson 1: Lesson 1: Decision Document Structure
The Build vs Buy Decision Document has 6 sections: (1) Strategic Context — why this AI capability matters, (2) Options Analysis — build, buy, partner with TCO for each, (3) Decision Matrix — weighted scoring across 8 criteria, (4) Risk Assessment — what could go wrong with each option, (5) Recommendation — with confidence level, (6) Implementation Plan — first 90 days.
Lesson 2: Lesson 2: Weighted Decision Matrix
Score each option across 8 criteria: Cost (TCO), Time-to-Market, Quality/Performance, Strategic Control, Scalability, Security/Compliance, Team Impact, and Vendor Risk. Weight each criterion based on your organization's priorities. The option with the highest weighted score wins — but the gap between options matters more than the winner.
Lesson 3: Lesson 3: Stakeholder Alignment Process
The decision document must be reviewed by: Engineering (technical feasibility), Product (strategic fit), Finance (budget approval), Legal (IP and compliance), and Security (risk posture). Each stakeholder reviews their section and provides a go/no-go. All must be green for the recommendation to be approved.