Common questions
Things owners actually ask.
Straight answers about Office Hours - the virtual leadership team for Australian trade businesses. If your question isn't here, email us and we'll answer it straight.
The basics
What is Office Hours?
Office Hours is a virtual leadership team for Australian small businesses, built for trades first. Four AI executives - a CFO, COO, CMO and CEO - examine your real business problem from every angle, then your CEO hands you one plan with a next step - and the call stays yours.
It's made by Venn Foundry in Adelaide, South Australia, for business owners who are good at the work and carrying every decision alone.
What is a virtual C-suite (or virtual leadership team)?
A virtual C-suite is a team of AI agents that each specialise in an executive role - a CFO for finance, a COO for operations, a CMO for marketing. It's really only the big end of town that says "C-suite", so we call it a virtual leadership team.
Same idea, friendlier language: the big picture, strategic thinking that large companies have in-house, available to your business on demand.
Who is Office Hours for?
Trade businesses in Australia with up to ten staff - electricians, plumbers, builders, HVAC and dozens more. If decisions like pricing, hiring an apprentice or chasing the big job land on you alone, it's built for you.
How does Office Hours work?
You ask one question in plain English - "should I take on an apprentice this financial year?" Your CFO, COO and CMO each weigh it up from their corner: the money, the operations, the work coming in. Then your CEO pulls it together into one plan with a concrete next step.
No spreadsheet required to start. See a worked example.
Using it
Why would I pay for this when ChatGPT is free?
ChatGPT is one voice with no memory of your business. Office Hours is a full leadership team that knows your numbers, your trade and your customers - and it finishes with one plan, not a wall of options.
It's the difference between a search bar and a strategist.
Will an AI really understand my trade?
It will if it's been built for one. Office Hours is trades-first by design - built around how Australian trade businesses actually run: quoting, cash flow, slow payers, subbies, apprentices, seasonal work.
Try it on a real question and judge it on what comes back.
Can I use it instead of my accountant or lawyer?
No. Office Hours is a strategic thinking partner - not a licensed accountant, lawyer or financial adviser. It gives you information and frameworks to make the call, and it will tell you to see a qualified professional for tax, legal and regulated financial matters.
Use us for the thinking; use them for the compliance work.
Do I need Xero or ServiceM8 to use it?
No. You can tell your team the numbers and context in plain English from day one. Xero (accounts) and ServiceM8 (jobs) are the first connections we're building; run something else - MYOB, Tradify, AroFlo or SimPRO - tell us, and founding members shape the order. Connections are optional, and the thinking gets sharper with them.
What if I'm not tech-savvy?
If you can send a text, you can use Office Hours. You ask a question the way you'd ask a mate, and you get one plan back, in plain English. No setup, no spreadsheets, no training course.
I'm not the one on the tools - can a partner or bookkeeper run it?
Yes. Office Hours is for whoever helps keep the business running - owner, partner, office manager or bookkeeper. Plenty of trade businesses split the tools and the books; the person on the books can run the sessions and bring back one plan.
The final call stays with the business.
Pricing
How much does Office Hours cost?
The public price at launch is $499 a month. The first 20 founding members lock in $299 a month for life while they stay subscribed - under $10 a day for a whole leadership team. Prices ex GST.
Is there a lock-in contract?
No lock-in. Office Hours is month to month and you can cancel any time. The founding rate stays locked for as long as your subscription stays active.
Is it tax deductible?
For most Australian businesses, software subscriptions used to run the business are generally deductible business expenses. Every situation is different, so confirm with your accountant.
This is general information, not tax advice.
Launch and early access
When does Office Hours launch?
Founding members get first access when the MVP (the first working version) lands in late 2026. The public launch follows in early 2027 at the standard $499 a month.
What does "early access" actually mean?
Founding members use Office Hours from the MVP (the first working version) in late 2026, months before the public launch. Early access is honest about being early: the core - four executives, one plan - works, and founders shape what gets built next with a direct line to the founder.
What exactly do the Founding 20 get?
One of 20 founding spots: $299 a month locked for life while subscribed (public price $499), first access at first release in late 2026, a $197 refundable reservation that converts to your first two months at launch, and a direct line to the founder.
Your data and privacy
Is my business data used to train AI models?
No. Your sessions and business data are never used to train AI models. Our AI providers process your questions under commercial API terms that exclude training on your inputs and outputs - and we hold them to it.
Where does my business data sit?
Your account and business data are stored on Australian-hosted infrastructure in Sydney. When your team works on a question, the relevant context is processed securely by enterprise AI providers under no-training terms; that processing can occur outside Australia.
Full details live in our Privacy Policy, published before any payment is taken.
What happens to my data if I cancel?
It's your data. You can export your sessions and business context before you go, and ask us to permanently delete your account data. Exact retention windows are set out in our Privacy Policy, published before any payment is taken.
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Ask it straight and we'll answer it straight - and probably add it to this page.