The business model of the future
For decades, relationship-based businesses have faced an impossible choice: scale and lose quality, or stay small and stay excellent. SaaS tried to solve this by turning service into software, with no accountability for outcomes. Service companies tried to solve it by hiring more people - too slow and too expensive.
The market lied and told us: scale OR quality. Software OR service. Margins OR relationships.
This conundrum was one of the key reasons I founded Versapia, and the solution is enabled by technology that’s only become viable in the last year. AI in general, and vibe-coding in particular, is giving rise to a new kind of business that combines the margins and scale of software with the quality, personal connection and focus on outcomes of service providers. SaaS may not stand for software-as-a-service for much longer. The future is in software-and-a-service.
AI can finally handle context. It can ingest the nuance of your company, crunch reams of relevant data, identify patterns and draft solutions - things that take consultants weeks. But it still can’t replace judgement, trust or the expert’s ability to look a CEO in the eye and say, “Here’s what you’re missing.”
Here’s how it works: experts build the methodology, encode it into AI tools and simple software, then use group coaching and live events to serve customers globally. When seeing the same problems at scale, these experts develop templates and resources for common issues that can be customised and tailored as needed.
This shift is already happening. Novabook are a UK based accounting firm specialising in startups, who combine expert accountants with software to provide outstanding service on the things that need it, and reliability on the routine tasks (disclaimer: Novabook are our accountants, but I’m recommending them without compensation or discount!). Noom give users app-based lessons and tracking tools to help them lose weight while assigning them a personal coach for accountability. BetterUp gives users AI and human coaching to ensure results.
At Versapia, we’re developing high performance culture strategies tailored to every organisation, built by experts who’ve delivered hundreds of times and AI that analyses the input of every employee, getting results in weeks, not months. There’s no software to learn, no decks that get left in drawers - just a clear plan, every tool you need, and the support to make outcomes inevitable.
This hybrid business model dissolves the biggest constraints to service companies in every industry - time, capacity and cost - enabling greater access, greater leverage and more reliable customer experience. Customers get world-class solutions at a fraction of the cost, without losing the bespoke elements they love. Entrepreneurs keep headcount low while scaling globally, which compounds - they work with more customers, see and solve more problems, and so develop better solutions. Large companies can eliminate variation in service quality by giving every employee best in class tools and expertise.
It’s a cliché by now that, “AI won’t replace you, but people using AI will.” Clichés are often based in fundamental truths. Businesses that combine expertise and reach will dominate their markets.
So think about this - what’s one part of your business you wish you could scale, but that feels impossible without losing what makes it great? Let me know in the comments.
(P.S. If you know someone who needs to read this today, send it to them and encourage them to subscribe to the Versapiens blog. If you haven’t subscribed yet, come join us on our journey through the intersection between culture, technology and business.)