Download the decision record
Use one record per subscription decision. Keep it with the invoice, agreement or internal evidence that supports the choice, in a location your firm controls. Use the free online AI Renewal Checklist to prepare the review, or browse all free review templates. The online checklist and guides need no signup. To request a file by email, use its $0 checkout with your email, country and ZIP/postal code.
Choose the action that fits the evidence
| Decision | Meaning | What to record next |
|---|---|---|
| Keep | Continue the current arrangement. | Why it remains useful, who owns it and when to review it again. |
| Resize | Change seats, plan, usage limit or commercial terms. | The specific change, approval needed, account owner and confirmation date. Renegotiating terms belongs here. |
| Test | Resolve a defined uncertainty through a bounded evaluation. | The question, success criteria, spending limit, owner and end date. |
| Retire | End the subscription and manage any transition. | Notice deadline, data or workflow dependencies, responsible person and completion evidence. |
If evidence is missing, record what remains unknown and assign a date to resolve it. A Test decision should have a real evaluation plan and an end date.
What belongs in an AI subscription decision record?
A useful record answers five questions:
- What are we deciding? Name the tool, plan, team and work it supports. State whether the review concerns a renewal, a new purchase, a plan change or a test.
- What do we know? Record the current cost and billing period, evidence of use and the dates that evidence covers. Identify estimates and missing information.
- Why this choice? Explain the operational reason in a sentence or two. Include any client, confidentiality or workflow requirement that affects the action.
- Who will do what, by when? Name the decision owner and the person authorized to make the account change. Set a date before the relevant contractual deadline.
- When will we check the result? Set the next review date and state which evidence will show whether the action was completed.
Reference evidence rather than copying sensitive client material into the record. Your reviewers need enough context to understand the choice, not the contents of a client's work.
Example: resizing a subscription
Illustrative scenario only. A consulting firm's operations lead is reviewing an AI writing subscription before renewal. The team confirms that some assigned seats are no longer needed.
- Decision
- Resize.
- Reason
- Retain the plan for the team members who use it and request removal of seats the team has confirmed it no longer needs.
- Evidence
- A dated account usage report, the current invoice and confirmation from the team lead. Note any seasonal or project-specific needs before changing access.
- Next action
- The account administrator checks the plan's minimum commitment and change terms, obtains the required internal approval and submits the change.
- Completion check
- Record the vendor's confirmation, the effective date and the next invoice. Keep any estimated change in cost labeled as an estimate until confirmed.
The record explains the action without assuming a financial result or treating a request as a completed change.
Give a test an ending
For a Test decision, define the work to be evaluated and the evidence your team will collect. Name the participants, agree on a spending limit and choose an end date that leaves time for a decision before renewal or conversion.
At the end, record what was observed and choose the next action. Separate the team's measured results from expectations and vendor claims. If the evaluation needs more time, document the reason, approval and revised limit.
Close the loop after approval
The decision record supports your own process. Your team still completes any plan change, limit setting, notice or cancellation through the relevant vendor account.
Once the action is confirmed, add the effective date and the next review date. Link it to the renewal calendar so the next review begins with the previous reasoning.
Frequently asked questions
What should an AI subscription decision record include?
Record the tool and plan, the decision, supporting evidence, the reason, the approver, the action owner and the next review date. Identify estimates and missing information.
Does recording a decision change the vendor account?
No. The record supports your own process. Your team still completes any plan change, limit setting, notice or cancellation through the relevant vendor account and records the confirmation.
How should we document a Test decision?
Define the question, success criteria, spending limit, owner and end date. At the end of the evaluation, record what was observed and choose the next action.
Bring the records into one review system
The AccruePilot AI Spend Control System brings together a local browser Control Center, an Excel workbook and a field guide for ongoing AI spend reviews.
The free decision record and calendar are companion files for the review choices, approvals and notice deadlines. The paid Control Center and workbook have no dedicated fields for those records; keep them in the free companion templates or your own files.
US$59, one-time. Internal use by one purchasing U.S. organization. Resale, redistribution or repeatable client-service delivery requires a separate written commercial license. Built for U.S. professional service firms with 10 to 250 employees.
Explore the AI Spend Control System or start with the review guide.