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People × Systems × Expertise

Work out what should change. Then build the useful version.

I work with people and small organisations whose value comes from what they know. We look at where your people are actually at, whether your systems work in real life and where the real value sits. Then we build around that, with you or for you.

Not sure what needs fixing first? That's exactly what a Read is for.

Rachel McKay at her desk with a mug of coffee and her laptop, smiling

Hi, I'm Rach

Teacher by qualification and character. Builder by nature.

Better systems·More capable people·More room for human work.

Sound familiar?

Most tech problems aren't just tech problems.

Before anyone picks a tool, I want to know what's actually happening. Usually it's one of these.

Professional services

“We have ChatGPT. The staff need to use AI.”

Access isn't adoption.

The team were told to play with it. Nobody got the output they wanted, so everyone quietly stopped.

What “this worked” looks like: the team are using it and asking questions.

Experts and communities

“You don't need to keep up with AI. That's my job.”

Your expertise could travel further.

You need to know what it changes for your field. Sometimes that's a tool your members use. Sometimes it's one you can charge for.

How I work inside communities →

Everyone else

“I've saved all the reels.”

We don't have a knowledge problem.

Almost anything you want to know is a search away. Knowing it and changing how you work are two very different things.

The doing is where I come in.

Hear it from me

I learn it, test it, translate it.

So you don't have to keep up with every new tool. A few of the things I explain most, in under 30 seconds.

It's not a knowledge problem27 sec
Check the foundations first19 sec
Name the job before the tool22 sec
Stop re-explaining yourself20 sec

Working together

How much of this do you want to hold yourself?

You don't need to know which tool or package you need. You need to know where you're stuck, and how much of the build you want to hold.

DiagnoseStart here

The Read

“I'm not even sure what the right problem is yet.”

Buy the diagnosis before you buy the build. You leave with a sequenced Map of what should happen next.

Works out which mode fits
Start with a Read →
Done with you

Build It With Me

“I know what I want and I want to build capability while we make it.”

You drive. I guide. Build the thing, and build your capability at the same time.

You hold
Build it with me →
Done for you

Hand It Over

“I know what I want and I want Rachel to make it.”

I build. You approve. Without building a black box you can't use without me.

You hold
Hand it over →
TeamsCommunities

Bring Me In

“My team, members or community need to come with me.”

Don't just give your people AI tools. Build their capability to use them well.

Your people hold
Bring me in →
05

Keep Me Close. Built the thing? Keep me in your corner while you use it.

How ongoing support works →

What we might build

The method stays the same. The build fits you.

Rachel pointing up, mid-idea

I wondered if this would work, so I built it.

01AI working setups

Context, voice, skills, recurring work and repeatable ways of working that make AI genuinely useful.

02Smarter workflows and systems

The repetitive process, admin job or operational friction that keeps eating attention.

03Interactive tools

Calculators, self-assessments, decision trees, scorecards, prompt generators, readiness audits and action-plan builders.

04Learning and member experiences

Courses, memberships, resources, workshops and onboarding designed around application rather than passive consumption.

05Expertise made usable

What you know, turned into a repeatable resource, tool, programme, workflow, product or internal system.

06Customer and member journeys

Clearer, easier experiences from the customer's side of the screen.

07Digital builds

Landing pages, websites, resource hubs, content infrastructure and bespoke tools.

08Content systems

Ways to capture your expertise, shape ideas and reuse your thinking without flattening your voice.

Got something weird? Good. Show me.

Tell me what you're working on

How I work

The method is BUILD. The project changes. The thinking doesn't.

Every pathway runs on the same method, and the capability moves across to you as we go.

  1. Begin with the outcome

    What should be different when we're done? “Can we automate this?” isn't the problem yet.

  2. Understand the human

    Who has to use this on Monday, what they already know, and what makes the change hard.

  3. Identify the leverage

    The smallest change that makes the biggest difference. Sometimes that's removing a step, not automating it.

  4. Learn by doing

    Do the thing while the support is still in the room.

  5. Design for adoption

    It isn't finished because it's built. Can the people who need it use it, own it and keep using it when I'm not there?

I doWe doYou do

Rachel McKay smiling, arms wrapped across herself, outdoors

Curious enough to try early.Experienced enough not to confuse new with better.

Why this comes from a teacher

I didn't leave teaching. I changed classrooms.

Teaching was never just delivering information. It was working out where someone was starting from, what the next achievable step was, and why something wasn't landing. I was an early adopter the whole way through, including helping colleagues through a learning management system change.

The learners changed. The tools changed. The work underneath it didn't.

TeacherHow people learn, change and build capability.
Curious early adopterI test the new thing so you don't have to keep up.
TranslatorWhat does this actually mean for you?
BuilderI turn the idea into something you can use.
The full story

Free guides · all 12 complete

Useful systems, ready to steal.

Built for doing, not just reading. Each one ends with one thing to try this week. See all 12 →

FoundationsFree

The Half-Built Audit

Four half-built AI things. One page to decide what stays.

“I started with AI and it got away from me.”

Read the guide →
Voice and promptsFree

The Voice File

Adjectives don't make it sound like you. One file does.

“Everything it writes sounds like a press release.”

Read the guide →
Building thingsFree

The lead magnet that isn't a PDF

Downloads aren't leads. Build the version that asks back.

“People grab the download and never open it.”

Read the guide →
Steal this · Prompt 01
Act as my editor. Rewrite [DRAFT] for [AUDIENCE] in under [WORDS] words. Keep my voice. Flag anything you're unsure of.

copy, paste, done.

Not sure what needs fixing first?

Before we add another tool, let's work out what's actually getting in the way.

A Read looks across your people, systems and expertise and gives you a sequenced Map.

  • What needs to change first
  • What can wait
  • What doesn't need changing at all

One useful note, most fortnights

Steal what I'm learning.

What I'm testing, what I built, what I changed my mind about. No hype. If it isn't useful, it doesn't get sent.

The Three Repeats Starter Kit, free when you join.

Speaking · Partnerships · Media

Work with Rach

Booking a speaker, bringing me into your team or community, pitching a partnership, or after a guest? Four different jobs, so tell me which one and I'll ask the right questions. I read these myself.

Which one is this?
A few lines is plenty. Specific beats polished.

You'll get a real answer either way, within a business day or two.