Plain-English glossary for operators

AI readiness is how prepared a business's data, processes and team are to put an AI system into daily use.

An AI agent is software that uses a language model to take actions, such as processing a return, updating stock and emailing the customer.

AI guardrails are the controls that keep an AI system safe and predictable in production, such as structured outputs, human checkpoints, spending limits and audit logs.

Model Context Protocol is an open standard that lets an AI agent connect to tools and data through one shared interface.

Workflow automation uses fixed rules to move data and tasks between systems so the team stops handling them by hand.

A fractional CTO is a senior technology leader who works with a business part time and gives senior technical direction for a fraction of a full-time salary.

A tech stack is the full set of software, platforms and integrations a business uses to run its operations.

A tech stack audit lists every tool a business pays for, what each one costs and who uses it, then recommends what to keep, merge or cancel.

A platform rescue is a focused project that repairs a broken CRM or business system where it stands, keeping the data and the tools the team already knows.

Revenue operations is an operating model that puts sales, marketing and customer success on one process and one shared set of data.

A citizen developer is someone outside the IT team who builds apps or automations with no-code and low-code tools.

Answer engine optimisation is the practice of structuring a website so AI assistants such as ChatGPT, Gemini and Google AI Overviews cite it in their answers.