Looking to Speak with Post-Acquisition Searchers re: AI in the Operator Seat

February 16, 2026

by a searcher from University of Toronto - Joseph L. Rotman School of Management in Toronto, ON, Canada

Hi all — I’m hoping to connect with searchers who have already acquired and are currently running a business (preferably mid-sized companies or larger). I’m taking time to do operator-focused discovery on how AI is actually being used in real SMB operations today — not just demos or theories, but daily workflows in dispatching, reporting, customer communication, back-office tasks, decision support, and so on. Specifically curious about: - Where AI tools have genuinely helped (or failed) - What you tried and abandoned - Where the friction still lives in your operating model - The “if this existed it would change my life” wishlist items Not selling anything--just trying to learn from operators in the trenches so future tools are built around real operating constraints rather than tech hype. If you’re open to a quick chat, I’d really appreciate it. I’m also happy to share a summary of patterns I learn from others as well. Thanks!

Reply by a searcher
in Raleigh, NC, USA

in our plumbing company we tried using AI CSR's to answer the phone but it failed miserably. We are in North Carolina and it just could not interpret thick southern drawl and conversation pace was an issue as well. We are currently using AI chatbots for aggregator messaging, web and social media chat, and estimate follow up and it works great for all of that. We are also using AI for first level bookkeeping and expense categorization but it needs to be watched closely for right now. Just like if we hired an entry level assistant to handle receipts, we catch a lot of errors and it has increased workload for the time-being until it learns more. Our biggest AI win was in truck cameras. We installed cameras in all of the trucks which monitor driver behavior, distraction, etc. That was an absolute game changer and has helped us pinpoint and correct some dangerous habits

Reply by a searcher
from Tulane University in Atlanta, GA, USA

I had experience incorporating AI (both before and after the LLM craze) into the business I led and the biggest dirty secret is how much human in the loop is still required for "enterprise grade" results. It's a great accelerator, but even with high accuracy, without an indication of where errors will occur, you will still have issues if not properly incorporated into a broader process. Consider that even McDonalds discontinued use due to customer satisfaction at their drivethroughs.

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