AI Services for Western Canadian Business
Microsoft Copilot rollout, AI policy and governance, workflow automation, custom AI agents, and AI-assisted development. Human expertise, enhanced by AI. Built for BC, AB, and Yukon teams from 5 to 500.
Every AI workstream, run by senior engineers.
Pick the workstream you need help with. Each one is scoped fixed price, with a written deliverable you can hand to your board, your insurer, or your auditor.
Copilot that gets used, not just licensed.
Most Copilot rollouts stall on data hygiene and adoption, not on licensing. We fix oversharing, clean up permissions, design role-based training, and report on real usage so the spend actually returns ROI. Microsoft 365 Copilot, Copilot Studio, and Copilot for Sales or Service.
- Tenant readiness and oversharing audit
- Role-based training for every department
- Usage and ROI reporting after rollout
A written AI policy your insurer will read.
Insurers and enterprise clients are asking. Most SMBs do not have one. We draft a custom AI usage policy covering acceptable use, data classification, prohibited inputs, vendor approval, training, and incident reporting. Aligned to PIPEDA, BC PIPA, and Alberta PIPA expectations.
- Written policy, two-page summary, and training deck
- Vendor approval workflow and approved-tools list
- Annual review and update included on Pro tier
Stop paying humans to copy and paste.
We connect your existing tools with Make, n8n, Power Automate, and Zapier, and we add AI exactly where it removes a manual step. Inbound email routing, CRM enrichment, ticket triage, draft replies, call note summarisation, quote drafting. Scoped, built, documented, and maintained.
- Discovery and ROI sizing before any build
- Documented runbook for every automation
- Monthly maintenance and version pinning
Agents built for one specific job.
When an off-the-shelf tool will not do, we build a custom agent on Anthropic, OpenAI, or self-hosted models. Quoting agents, triage agents, research agents, customer support copilots. Scoped per use case with a written success metric and a kill switch.
- Anthropic, OpenAI, or open-weight self-hosted
- Data flow diagram and DPA review every project
- Human-in-the-loop by default
Ship custom software in weeks, not quarters.
We use AI-augmented engineering across the stack: spec writing, code generation, code review, test generation, and QA. The output is real, documented, owned by you, and built to handover. Internal portals, integrations, dashboards, Shopify customisations, and bespoke business apps.
- Fixed scope, fixed price, weekly demos
- You own the code and the repo on day one
- Source-available handover, not vendor lock-in
Know where AI helps and where it does not.
Two-week engagement that maps your processes, identifies five to ten realistic AI use cases, sizes ROI, and ranks them by effort and risk. You leave with a written report, a quarterly roadmap, and quotes for the top three. Fixed price.
- Process mapping and data inventory
- Ranked use case list with ROI estimates
- Vendor and tooling recommendations
Project rate, monthly rate, or both.
One-off engagements are fixed scope. Ongoing AI tooling and oversight roll into our Professional tier so you see one monthly invoice. Founding pricing locks for the life of the original term if you sign before September 1, 2026.
Assessment
$2,500fixed
Two-week AI readiness assessment. Ranked use cases, ROI sizing, and written report.
- Process mapping across five departments
- Data inventory and PIPEDA review
- Five to ten ranked AI use cases
- Written report and quarterly roadmap
Build
From $1,500per use case
Workflow automation, Copilot rollout, or a custom AI agent. Scoped fixed price after the assessment.
- Fixed scope, fixed price, weekly demos
- Written runbook and DPA review
- Human-in-the-loop by default
- 30 days of warranty after handover
Manage
Pro tiermonthly
Ongoing AI oversight, policy updates, automation maintenance, and Copilot adoption inside our Professional managed services plan.
- Quarterly AI policy review
- Automation maintenance and version pinning
- Copilot adoption coaching
- One monthly invoice across IT and AI
Honest about AI. Allergic to hype.
We use AI where it removes real work. We tell you when it does not. Three rules apply to every engagement.
No customer data into consumer chatbots.
We use Microsoft 365 Copilot, enterprise OpenAI, Anthropic, or self-hosted models where the data sensitivity requires it. Every project includes a written data flow diagram and a DPA review before code ships.
AI drafts. Humans approve.
Every automation we build has a clearly documented human-in-the-loop step for anything customer-facing, financial, or legally binding. AI accelerates. People are accountable.
Source-available handover, no vendor lock-in.
You own the prompts, the workflows, the code, and the data. We document everything, hand over the runbook, and you can take it elsewhere any time. We earn the relationship monthly.
Want a real conversation about AI?
Book a 30-minute scoping call. We will look at where AI actually helps your business, where it does not, and what is worth building first. No hype, no quote-or-die pressure.
Get a Free Assessment Contact usFrequently asked questions
What AI services does Northstar IT offer?
Northstar IT delivers five core AI workstreams: Microsoft 365 Copilot rollout and adoption, AI policy and governance, workflow automation using tools like Make, n8n, and Power Automate, custom AI agents and copilots built for specific business processes, and AI-assisted software development. Each engagement starts with a scoped assessment so you only pay for what moves the business forward.
Can you help our team roll out Microsoft 365 Copilot?
Yes. Most Copilot rollouts fail on data hygiene, permissions, and adoption, not on licensing. We run a readiness assessment across SharePoint, OneDrive, Teams, and Entra ID, fix oversharing and stale permissions, then design role-based training so employees actually use Copilot in their daily work. Licensing is procured at your tenant level. We handle the rest.
Do you write AI usage policies?
Yes. We draft a written AI usage policy customised to your business, covering acceptable use, data classification, prohibited inputs, vendor approval, training requirements, and incident reporting. Insurers and clients increasingly ask for this. Most BC and Alberta SMBs do not have one yet. We can also align the policy to PIPEDA, BC PIPA, and Alberta PIPA expectations.
What is workflow automation and how does AI fit in?
Workflow automation removes manual handoffs between your existing systems. We use Make, n8n, Power Automate, and Zapier to connect CRM, accounting, ticketing, and email tools. AI fits in where decisions, summarisation, classification, or content generation used to need a human, such as routing inbound email, summarising call notes into your CRM, classifying support tickets, or drafting first-pass replies. We scope, build, document, and maintain.
Can you build a custom AI agent for our business?
Yes. We build custom AI agents and copilots when an off-the-shelf tool will not do. Examples include a quoting agent that drafts proposals from your product catalogue, a triage agent that classifies inbound tickets and writes the first response, or a research agent that monitors competitors and reports weekly. We use Anthropic, OpenAI, or open models depending on the data sensitivity and budget, and we self-host where compliance requires it.
Is our data safe when you use AI tools?
We design every AI engagement around three rules: no customer data into consumer chatbots, no training on your data unless you opt in, and Canadian or US data residency where the vendor supports it. We prefer Microsoft 365 Copilot for general office work because it inherits your tenant security boundary, and we use enterprise OpenAI, Anthropic, or self-hosted models for sensitive workloads. Every project includes a data flow diagram and written DPA review.
How much do AI services cost?
AI policy and Copilot readiness assessments start at a fixed project rate. Workflow automation builds are scoped per use case, typically $1,500 to $8,000 once, plus monthly maintenance. Custom AI agents are project-based and depend on integration complexity. Ongoing AI tooling and oversight is rolled into our Professional managed services tier so you get one monthly invoice. Book a free assessment for a fixed quote.