Hi Reddit! This is Ray, Chief Strategy Officer at Homebase, the all-in-one team management app for hourly teams.
My team and I build AI tools for small businesses, the kind that don't have an IT department: restaurants, retail shops, salons, the places that live and die by hourly scheduling. We know you have a different set of problems than enterprise companies, the ones AI is usually built for. That’s what we’re trying to help with.
But I know a lot of you might not be sure how it fits into your process today. The owners and managers I talk to have been told two things at once: that AI will fix everything, and that it's mostly hype.
You’re right to be confused. I want to help today. So, if you've ever wondered:
- What should your small business automate first, and what should stay manual?
- Where does AI actually save time on scheduling, hiring, or compliance (and where does it just create new problems)?
- What's overhyped right now, and what's underhyped?
- Is any of this actually right for a business that doesn't have time to babysit new tech?
I'll be live Tuesday Oct 6 1-4 PM ET / 10 AM - 1 PM PT and Wednesday Oct 7 4-6 PM ET / 1-3 PM PT, and I'll keep checking in across those days too.
I can talk about:
- AI for hourly teams: scheduling, hiring, compliance, the works
- What's real vs. overhyped in AI for small business today
- Where Homebase is using AI ourselves, and where we're deliberately not
- What I've gotten wrong building this stuff
- What small business owners should actually pay attention to over the next year
Lastly, a couple of quick notes:
- I'm not here to sell you on Homebase. I'll say clearly when something's a product feature versus general advice.
- I can't speak to your specific business setup, just give you a general perspective.
- Keep it on-topic, and I'll get to as many questions as I can.
Ask me anything!
Proof: https://imgur.com/a/VVKv7vX
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