Our SaaS and software subscription costs are skyrocketing as every department buys its own AI licenses, threatening our bottom line. How do we use our weekly Level 10 Meeting™ and Scorecard to rein in this decentralized AI spending without killing our team's operational momentum?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

Uncontrolled software spending is a common side effect of decentralized AI adoption. While you want your team to experiment, allowing every department to purchase its own tools without oversight will quickly erode your profit margins and complicate your technology stack.

To address this, first add a software-spend metric to your weekly Scorecard. Tracking this number weekly keeps the cost visible to the entire leadership team. If the metric goes off-track, it immediately gets dropped down to the Issues list for your weekly Level 10 Meeting™.

During the meeting, use the IDS® process to identify the root cause of the overspend. Is it a lack of a clear purchasing policy, or are departments duplicating tools? Decide on a clear policy that requires approval for any new software licenses.

Assign a seat on your Accountability Chart to oversee your overall software architecture. This orchestrator is responsible for auditing active licenses and consolidating tools where possible. By centralizing the oversight while letting departments request tools through a structured process, you protect your bottom line while keeping your operational momentum high.