Which route fits the work?
Compare delivery arrangements before committing to one. The useful distinction is who does the work, who directs it and who is accountable for the result.
By the Triage team at Deployed · Updated 19 October 2026
Permanent
Consider this route when you need continuing capability within the organisation. The question is whether the work belongs in your ongoing operating model, rather than whether a vacancy can be opened quickly.
Check the expected duration, internal capacity, budget and the capability the organisation needs to retain.
Contingent
Consider this route when you need additional capacity or specialist skills for a period, with your team directing the work. The commercial label alone does not establish the actual working arrangement.
Check supervision, duration, responsibilities and the relevant employment, tax and procurement review requirements.
Service via SoW
A statement of work describes an agreed piece of work. This route may fit when a supplier manages delivery and is accountable for defined outputs or outcomes.
Set out what will be delivered, how you will accept it, who manages delivery and how changes will be handled. Calling an arrangement a statement of work does not, by itself, make it a managed service or resolve worker-classification questions.
Outsourcing
Consider this route when a provider takes responsibility for an ongoing service or function. The emphasis is the service you need and how it will be governed over time.
Check service levels, continuity, responsibilities, data access, dependencies and the arrangements for change or exit.
AI Agents
Consider whether bounded parts of the work can be carried out by software, with appropriate access and oversight. A task that sounds repetitive is not enough evidence on its own.
Check input quality, permitted actions, acceptable error rates, review points and who is responsible when the system cannot complete the task. Assess the work and its consequences before selecting a tool.
Compare the whole arrangement
A project may need more than one route. For example, an internal owner may work with a supplier delivering a defined outcome, while software handles a bounded supporting task.
Compare the total delivery cost, management effort, capability, timing and risk using your own evidence. Keep alternatives visible where the facts do not support a single answer. The cheapest headline rate is not a complete business case.
Use Triage to make the next step clear
Triage uses diagnostic questions and your configured rules to support the route decision. It can identify conflicting answers and show what still needs review before the request moves into the next system.
These descriptions explain the five channels. They are not legal classifications or a substitute for local review. The website's interactive example illustrates four scored channels; it does not calculate an AI Agents recommendation.
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