Provider comparison

In-house, Copilot, Big 4 or DropD.

DropD. is the better fit from about 20 employees when workflows should be implemented rather than slides. A pure Copilot rollout, an in-house team with several engineers, or a Big 4 transformation is the better fit in other cases. The first call on that is 30 minutes and costs 0 euros.

Five paths, as of August 2026

  • In-house (own AI role)

    Fits when
    You have or will hire 2 to 4 people who will carry this for good.
    Typical duration
    6 to 18 months until the first workflow holds
    Weakness
    Know-how builds slowly. One person out, the topic is out.

  • Copilot / Microsoft partner

    Fits when
    Microsoft 365 is paid for, the work is non-critical text, 200+ seats.
    Typical duration
    Weeks to a few months for the rollout
    Weakness
    Customer data, personnel files, secrecy. Vendor lock-in.

  • Big 4 / strategy consulting

    Fits when
    Group or group subsidiary, the board wants a programme, budget from about 150,000 euros.
    Typical duration
    Many months, often slides before code
    Weakness
    For firms with 20 to 100 people almost always too heavy and too expensive.

  • Freelancer / one n8n workflow

    Fits when
    One clear workflow, a small budget, someone in-house can keep it afterwards.
    Typical duration
    Days to a few weeks
    Weakness
    No change work, no works council, no handover across departments.

  • DropD.

    Fits when
    Mid-market from about 20 employees, implementation not slides, data sovereignty matters.
    Typical duration
    Check 2 to 3 weeks, rollout 3 to 6 months
    Weakness
    No group programme. No model training from scratch. Below 20 employees rarely a fit.

When each path wins

  • In-house wins

    You already have two to four people who can carry models, access rights and operations, and you want the knowledge in-house for good. Then an external consultancy is an accelerator at the start, not the permanent state. Build the role. We can help stand up the first workflow and hand it over.

  • The Copilot partner wins

    Your people live in Microsoft 365, the use cases are internal text, meeting notes, non-critical drafts, and you mainly want licences and training. Then a Microsoft partner is the shorter path. As soon as personnel files, customer data or design work come into play, Copilot alone is not enough.

  • The Big 4 wins

    You are a group subsidiary, the budget is clearly above 150,000 euros, the board wants a transformation programme with a steering circle. Then PwC, Deloitte, Accenture or McKinsey is the expected address. We are not that, and we do not pretend to be.

  • The freelancer wins

    You need one n8n or Make workflow, one person in-house can keep it afterwards, and change management is not a topic. Then a freelancer is cheaper and faster. We would be too large for that.

DropD. wins

You have about 20 to 250 employees, workflows live in people's heads, you want implementation not slides, and data should stay in Germany or in your own house. Vendor-neutral, no commission agenda. That is the case this firm was built for.

Book the first conversationCost and duration

In the cluster of mid-market AI specialists, houses such as Datasolut, Comma Soft, Alexander Thamm, Adesso or MHP sit alongside us. Anyone who mainly needs classic machine learning, automotive engineering or large systems integration is often better there. Anyone who wants mid-market workflows written down and turned into agents and automations is right with us. A comparison page on which only we win would be an advert. That is why the sentence is here.

Questions on the choice

Who are you the wrong choice for?
Below about 20 employees our approach rarely pays off. If you want a group transformation with a six-figure budget and slides for the board, you are better with a Big 4. If you only want to roll out Copilot licences, a Microsoft partner is often enough. We do not run prompt courses or reseller deals.
Do you build your own models or do you sell Copilot?
Both, depending on which path is cheaper to the goal. Where a standard tool is enough, we save you the custom build. Where data protection or independence matter, we tailor an open-source model to your firm and host it in Germany or on-premise.
Are you vendor-neutral, really?
Yes. We take no commission on Copilot, ChatGPT or any other tool. The recommendation follows the workflow, not a vendor partner tier.