Meetings

Plain-English AI for Small Businesses

A free, friendly hour at Electric Works for business owners who want to start using AI.

AI tools can write your emails, tidy your notes and answer questions in seconds. They can also sound completely sure while getting things wrong. Each session shows you how to use them in your business, and how to check what they tell you.

Reserve a seat ↓

When and where

Twice a month, after work

When
The second and fourth Thursday of every month, 5:45 to 6:45 pm.
Where
Electric Works, on the Sheffield Digital Campus, opposite Sheffield station.
Cost
Free. The meeting room seats 6, so please reserve your seat.
Who it’s for
Small business owners, especially if you have never used AI or only tried it once or twice. No experience needed.
How it runs
One topic per session (see what we’ll cover), with a short guide to follow while I help around the table.
What to bring
Your phone, tablet or laptop if you have one. If you don’t, come anyway and follow along with the guide.

Next sessions

  • The second and fourth Thursday of every month

What we’ll cover

7 topics, one per session

The first round starts on Thursday 26 November 2026, with the topics in this order. Each session stands on its own, so you can join at any point.

Every topic has a one-page practice card, and I bring copies on the night. If you’d like your own in advance, to print or keep on your phone, download it below the topic.

1. Your first chat with AI
Set up a free AI tool on your own phone or laptop, ask it a first question about your business, and learn the habit that matters most: checking the answer.
Practice card (PDF) ↓
2. Emails and customer messages
Draft replies to customers and reviews that still sound like you, and read them through before you press send.
Practice card (PDF) ↓
3. When AI sounds sure but is wrong
Simple ways to catch made-up facts and wrong prices, dates or rules before they reach a customer.
Practice card (PDF) ↓
4. Keeping customer details safe
What never goes into an AI chat, and the settings worth switching off, with UK GDPR in plain words.
Practice card (PDF) ↓
5. Staying safe from AI scams
How to spot fake invoices, cloned voices and convincing fake emails, and what to do if something feels off.
Practice card (PDF) ↓
6. Words for your business
Social posts, website text and product descriptions that sound like you and only promise what you can deliver.
Practice card (PDF) ↓
7. Your own AI rules
Use AI for everyday paperwork like summaries, notes and checklists, then write a one-page set of rules to keep.
Practice card (PDF) ↓

After the last topic, the round starts again from the beginning. If there is enough interest, a more advanced program may follow instead. That depends on demand, and if it goes ahead, I’ll announce it here and email everyone who asked to hear about future sessions.

How we work together

A calm, friendly space to learn

These sessions are neurodivergent-friendly and made for beginners. Everyone learns in their own way and at their own pace.

  • Kindness and respect, for everyone. This is the one rule for all of us. Different views are fine; arguing or putting others down isn’t. I’ll step in if anything makes the room feel uncomfortable for others.
  • Time to practice. Everyone gets time to try things on their own device, at their own speed.
  • Ask anything. No question is too basic, and you can ask as often as you need.
  • Mistakes are welcome. They’re part of learning, and nobody is judged for what they don’t know yet.
  • Come as you are. Take a break, step out, or just watch for a while. Headphones, sunglasses and fidgets are all welcome.
  • Thinking time. I sometimes take a moment before I answer. If I don’t know something, I’ll say so, and email you the answer afterwards.
  • Something to keep. Everyone gets a printed practice card, and each one is also on this page to download.
  • A little extra help. If you need more time with something, I can stay for up to 30 minutes after the session, until 7:15 pm.

Getting in

I’ll meet you at the door

  • The building locks at 5:30 pm, so I meet everyone at the back entrance between 5:35 and 5:45 pm and we go up together. When I confirm your seat, I’ll email you directions to the door.
  • The session starts at 5:45 pm, when I head upstairs and the door stays locked behind us.
  • Running late, or can’t come after all? Email me at baxterdoby@gmail.com, so your seat can go to someone else if needed.
  • If you work at Electric Works, meet us at the back entrance too, and we’ll all go up together.

Good to know: the back entrance has steps, and after 5:30 pm it is the only way in. If the fire alarm sounds, we leave together by the back door, the nearest exit.

The poster

Seen it on the wall?

The meetings poster: Plain-English AI for Small Businesses, a free hour at Electric Works on the second and fourth Thursday of every month, 5:45 to 6:45 pm, up to 6 people, with a QR code to reserve a seat.
Download the poster (A1 PDF) →

Reserve a seat

Save your place

Tell me which session you’d like, and a little about where you are with AI. I read every request myself and email you to confirm your seat.

The questions below are optional, but they help me plan the sessions around what people really need.

How often do you use AI tools now?
Which have you tried? Tick any.
What would you most like help with? Tick any.
What worries you most about AI? Tick any.
What device would you bring?

Your answers reach me through Formspree, as set out in my Data Privacy Notice. I use them only to arrange your seat and to plan the sessions, and I never share them.