# BAAF® Framework

Business AI Awareness Framework

**Draft 1.0** | **March 2026** | **Flintworks AI**

Author: Luis Diego Maroto Segura

## 1\. Executive Summary

The BAAF® Framework (Business AI Awareness Framework) is a methodological framework designed to guide the successful implementation of artificial intelligence in any business organization. It establishes the correct order of work: first understand the business model, then map the digital assets that support it, and on that foundation build situational awareness that perceives, comprehends, and anticipates through artificial intelligence agents. It is composed of three sequentially dependent abstraction levels: Business Foundation (L1), Digital Business Connectors (L2), and Situational Awareness (L3).

The BAAF® is applicable to B2B, B2C, and hybrid B2B2C organizations, regardless of their industry or size. Each level operates with independent pipelines, but there is a strategic alignment dependency between them: L2 pipelines must be aligned to the purpose defined in L1, and L3 pipelines depend on L2's integrity. AI agents operate at L3, and their goal is to be **Coherent, Connected, and Aware**. If the business operation does not align with the methodology defined in L1, agents will not be coherent with how the business should operate. If the digital connectors in L2 experience service losses or deficient integrations, the user experience degrades and agents lose their connection to the business. At L3, where AI agents are implemented, it is necessary to define the required maturity level (AI-Assisted, AI-Augmented, AI-Driven, or AI-Automated) and how the agent facilitates the business's situational awareness: what it perceives, what it comprehends, and what it anticipates. Without these definitions, agents lose situational awareness with the business. Once correctly implemented, all three levels operate together and continuously feed back into each other.

The BAAF® Framework simultaneously serves as:

  * **A diagnostic tool:** by evaluating the state of each level, it reveals the gaps that prevent a successful AI implementation.
  * **A technical blueprint:** the level map defines the architecture that the AI platform needs to operate aligned to the business.
  * **A reference framework** for the implementation of artificial intelligence agents.

> This document is a consultation draft. Its distribution is not authorized without the express consent of Flintworks AI. The complete edition of the BAAF® Framework, including techniques and application tools, will be published as an independent version.

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## 2\. Context and Problem It Solves

Most AI implementation initiatives fail, not only because of limitations in available technology, but because they are built on processes that no one has documented and on an incomplete understanding of the underlying business model.

Table 1: Common Errors in AI Implementations

Common Error | Consequence
---|---
Implementing AI without mapping business flows | Agents may not be coherent with the business, as there is no alignment between operations and the methodology required by the business model
Developing digital connectors in isolation, without consistent error handling or integrated QA | Agents lose connection with the business when connectors fail without control, degrading the user experience
Prompt engineering without alignment to business logic or available data | Agents lose situational awareness: they don't perceive the right signals, misinterpret context, or fail to anticipate adequately

The BAAF® Framework seeks to expose these gaps by establishing a logical and inevitable order: first understand the business (L1), then map and connect the digital assets (L2), and only then build situational awareness (L3).

---

## 3\. BAAF® Framework Structure

The BAAF® Framework is composed of three levels. Each one fulfills a specific role within the framework, and their alignment determines whether AI agents will be coherent, connected, and aware.

Table 2: BAAF® Framework Levels

Level | Description
---|---
**L1** | **Business Foundation — Coherence.** Defines the business model and the methodology that governs its operation. AI agents will be coherent only if the operation aligns with the correct methodology for its business model.
**L2** | **Digital Business Connectors — Connection.** Maps and connects the business's digital assets: APIs, databases, channels, and services. Agents maintain connection with the business as long as these connectors operate with integrity.
**L3** | **Situational Awareness — Awareness.** Defines the required AI maturity level and how the agent facilitates the business's situational awareness: what it perceives, what it comprehends, and what it anticipates.

### 3.1 L1 — Business Foundation

The first level establishes the business model and the sales or marketing methodology that governs its operation. It is the starting point of the framework: every decision in L2 and L3 aligns to what is defined here.

**B2C** stands for Business-to-Consumer. It is the commercial model where a company sells products or services directly to the end consumer (individual people), rather than to other businesses. **B2B** stands for Business-to-Business. It is the commercial model where a company sells products or services to other companies or organizations, rather than to the end consumer. **B2B2C** stands for Business-to-Business-to-Consumer. It is a hybrid model where a company sells to another company, which in turn sells to the end consumer.

Table 3: Everyday B2C Examples

Sector | Example
---|---
E-commerce | Amazon, Mercado Libre
Streaming | Netflix, Spotify
Retail | Walmart, clothing stores
Food & beverage | McDonald's, Starbucks
Mobile apps | Instagram, Duolingo

Table 4: Everyday B2B Examples

Sector | Example
---|---
Enterprise software | Salesforce, SAP
Cloud computing | AWS, Microsoft Azure
Consulting | McKinsey, Deloitte
Logistics | FedEx, DHL (corporate services)
Telecommunications | Cisco, Twilio

Table 5: B2C vs B2B — Key Differences

Aspect | B2C | B2B
---|---|---
**Customer** | Individual person | Company or organization
**Sales cycle** | Short (minutes to days) | Long (weeks to months)
**Purchase decision** | Emotional / impulsive | Rational / formal process
**Average ticket** | Low to medium | Medium to very high
**Customer volume** | Massive | Reduced and segmented
**Relationship** | Transactional | Consultative and long-term
**Marketing** | Massive, emotional | Direct, educational (content)

Table 6: Business Models and Applicable Methodologies

Model | Characteristics | Applicable Methodologies
---|---|---
**B2B** | Long cycles, multiple decision-makers, high value | MEDDIC, MEDDPICC
**B2C** | Quick decision, emotional, massive | AIDA, JTBD, RFM, CDJ
**B2B2C** | Hybrid: company sells to company that sells to consumer | Combination adapted to the flow

Understanding the difference between B2B and B2C is fundamental because it determines how AI agents are configured to facilitate the business's situational awareness. In B2B, the agent needs to understand an opportunity qualification process with multiple decision-makers and stages defined by methodologies like MEDDIC or MEDDPICC. In B2C, the agent must respond to consumer behavior: what attracts them, what problem they are trying to solve, what their value as a customer is, and where they are in the decision journey. In B2B2C models, both flows coexist and agents must identify which context they are operating in.

> The BAAF® Framework is not intended to guide the implementation of these methodologies, but to highlight the need for their use as a foundation for a successful AI implementation.

### 3.2 L2 — Digital Business Connectors

The second level identifies, maps, and connects all digital assets of the business. This is the most critical step of the framework: the digital connectors in L2 are the ones that provide the data necessary for L3 to perceive, comprehend, and anticipate.

Digital connectors include:

  * Internal and external APIs
  * Operational and analytical databases
  * Communication channels: WhatsApp, Email, Voice (Amazon Connect)
  * Forms and data capture points
  * CRM, ERP, and management systems
  * Third-party services: payments, logistics, healthcare, etc.
  * Real-time events and webhooks
  * MCP links (Model Context Protocol): a standard protocol that enables AI agents to connect directly with tools, services, and external data sources

Table 7: Examples of Digital Connectors by Business Type

Connector | B2C (Dental Clinic) | B2B (Enterprise Sales)
---|---|---
**Communication channel** | WhatsApp for appointment confirmation | Corporate email + Amazon Connect for calls
**CRM** | Patient history and treatments | Opportunity pipeline with MEDDIC stages
**API** | Online scheduling system | Integration with client's ERP for quotations
**Database** | Clinical records and visit frequency | Interaction and contract history
**Webhook** | Notification when patient completes a form | Alert when a lead opens a commercial proposal
**MCP** | AI agent connection to calendar and medical records | AI agent connection to CRM, email, and documents

The L2 analysis produces the business digital asset map — a deliverable that is a prerequisite for any AI agent implementation. This map enables the AI Deployment Team — developers, product owner, and commercial team — to have clarity on the available digital assets, the scope of agent deployment, and the level of situational awareness required. At AI-Driven and AI-Automated maturity levels, agents must also have operational visibility over connectors: what data is available, what channels they can use, and how to respond to the loss of availability of a digital connector.

> The BAAF® Framework is not intended to guide the technical implementation of digital connectors, but to highlight the need for their identification, mapping, and integration as a foundation for AI agents to maintain connection with the business.

### 3.3 L3 — Situational Awareness

The third level implements the concept of Situational Awareness, originally taken from aviation and formalized by Mica Endsley.

The concept of Situational Awareness was developed in the context of military aviation, where pilots must make critical decisions in real time with changing information and multiple variables. In a business environment, AI agents face an analogous challenge: they must interpret business signals, comprehend their meaning in context, and anticipate the next state to act or recommend actions before it is too late.

Table 8: Situational Awareness Levels (Endsley)

SA Level | Description | Key Question
---|---|---
**Perception** | Capture of signals and data from the environment | What is happening right now?
**Comprehension** | Interpretation of the meaning of the data | What does what I'm seeing mean?
**Projection** | Anticipation of the next state | What will happen if I don't act?

Table 9: Examples of Situational Awareness Applied to Business

SA Level | B2C Example (Dental Clinic) | B2B Example (Enterprise Sales)
---|---|---
**Perception** | The patient has not confirmed their appointment within 24h | The lead has not responded to the follow-up email in 5 days
**Comprehension** | High no-show risk based on history | The opportunity may be losing priority against the competition
**Projection** | Send a WhatsApp reminder with an option to reschedule | Alert the salesperson for direct contact and check if the Champion (see Glossary) is still active

#### Relationship Between AI Maturity Level and Situational Awareness

Not all agents need the same scope of situational awareness. The chosen AI maturity level determines how far the agent goes in each SA dimension:

Table 10: Situational Awareness Scope by Maturity Level

Maturity Level | Perception | Comprehension | Projection
---|---|---|---
**AI-Assisted** | Captures basic data | Human interprets | Human decides
**AI-Augmented** | Captures and organizes data | Suggests interpretations to human | Presents possible scenarios
**AI-Driven** | Continuous real-time monitoring | Interprets autonomously | Anticipates and recommends actions
**AI-Automated** | Full autonomous monitoring | Interprets and decides | Anticipates and executes without intervention

Choosing the right maturity level is not just a technical decision. Section 4 elaborates on what state the organization must have at each framework level to support these maturity levels and what it implies in terms of risk tolerance.

#### The Role of Prompt Engineering in Situational Awareness

Prompt engineering is the mechanism through which the agent's situational awareness is configured. Through the prompt, it is defined what data the agent must perceive, what business rules it applies to comprehend context, and under what conditions it must anticipate and act. A prompt misaligned with business logic (L1) or available data (L2) produces an agent that operates without real situational awareness.

---

## 4\. AI Maturity Axis

The BAAF® Framework includes an AI maturity axis as a diagnostic tool. This axis enables the AI Deployment Team — developers, product owner, and commercial team — to evaluate the current state of each framework level and determine which agent level is viable for the organization.

Table 11: AI Maturity Axis — Required State by Level

Level | Description | Who Leads | Business Foundation | Digital Connectors | Situational Awareness
---|---|---|---|---|---
**AI-Assisted** | AI helps the human with specific tasks | Human | Defined | Partial | Reactive
**AI-Augmented** | AI expands human capabilities | Human + AI | Executed | Connected | Dashboards
**AI-Driven** | AI leads, human supervises | AI + Human | Optimized | Real-time | Predictive
**AI-Automated** | AI executes autonomously | AI | AI-optimized | Self-healing | Autonomous

#### Business Foundation State by Maturity Level

  * **Defined:** The business model and methodology are documented but not necessarily executed consistently.
  * **Executed:** The methodology is applied consistently in business operations.
  * **Optimized:** The methodology is continuously reviewed and adjusted based on results.
  * **AI-optimized:** AI itself suggests methodology adjustments based on data.

#### Digital Connectors State by Maturity Level

  * **Partial:** Some connectors are integrated, others operate in isolation.
  * **Connected:** All critical connectors are integrated and operate with stability.
  * **Real-time:** Connectors transmit data in real time with active monitoring.
  * **Self-healing:** Connectors detect and recover from failures automatically without human intervention.

#### Situational Awareness State by Maturity Level

  * **Reactive:** The agent responds only when requested.
  * **Dashboards:** The agent presents organized information for the human to make decisions.
  * **Predictive:** The agent anticipates situations and recommends actions.
  * **Autonomous:** The agent perceives, comprehends, anticipates, and executes without intervention.

An organization does not need to reach AI-Automated. The ideal level depends on its business model, resources, and risk tolerance. Each maturity level implies greater agent autonomy and less human intervention. The greater the autonomy, the greater the exposure to unsupervised errors: incomplete data in L2, gaps in business logic in L1, or scenarios not covered in the agent's prompt. Risk tolerance defines how much autonomy the organization is willing to accept, considering that no level of the framework is free from gaps.

Table 12: Examples of Risk Tolerance by Maturity Level

Maturity Level | B2C Example (Dental Clinic) | B2B Example (Enterprise Sales)
---|---|---
**AI-Assisted** | The agent suggests available time slots, but the receptionist confirms the appointment | The agent identifies potential leads, but the salesperson decides who to contact
**AI-Augmented** | The agent sends automatic reminders, but the human manages rescheduling | The agent prepares opportunity summaries with recommendations, the salesperson executes
**AI-Driven** | The agent reschedules appointments automatically based on history and availability, the human supervises exceptions | The agent prioritizes opportunities and assigns salespeople, the manager supervises decisions
**AI-Automated** | The agent manages the entire appointment cycle without intervention — if it misinterprets a patient's urgency, it may cancel a critical appointment | The agent escalates, negotiates, and closes opportunities autonomously — if it misqualifies a deal, it may lose a high-value account

---

## 5\. The Feedback Loop Between Levels

The BAAF® Framework is not a static bottom-up flow model. The levels feed back into each other continuously, creating an improvement cycle that evolves with the business. This mechanism is what keeps coherence, connection, and awareness aligned over time: what L3 detects can reveal gaps in L1 or L2, and changes in L1 or L2 can expand or limit the scope of situational awareness in L3.

Table 13: Feedback L3 → L1 → L2

L3 Detects | L1 Adjusts | L2 Responds
---|---|---
B2B: 60% of enterprise opportunities have no identified Champion | Reinforces that stage in MEDDIC and trains the commercial team | Adds mandatory field in CRM, alert trigger to salesperson via WhatsApp
B2B: High abandonment rate at quotation stage | Reviews post-proposal follow-up methodology | Creates automatic reminder flow via email and Amazon Connect
B2C: Dental clinic patients don't return after the first visit | Activates RFM reactivation segment aligned to JTBD | Sends personalized WhatsApp campaign with preventive checkup offer

Table 14: Other Feedback Directions

Direction | Example | Impact
---|---|---
**L2 → L1** | CRM data reveals that B2B clients are buying with B2C behavior (low ticket, quick decision) | The business model is redefined: a B2C flow with AIDA methodology is added for that segment
**L2 → L3** | A new MCP connector is integrated providing access to the client's financial history | The agent can now perceive data that didn't exist before, expanding its comprehension and projection capabilities
**L3 → L2** | The agent detects that a notification webhook fails recurrently on Mondays | A failure point in L2 is identified that requires monitoring or redundancy
**L1 → L2** | The company migrates from AIDA to JTBD as its B2C methodology | Digital connectors must be reconfigured to capture data aligned to the new approach (customer jobs instead of funnel stages)

---

## 6\. How to Apply the BAAF® Framework

The framework is industry-agnostic. The section below illustrates how the AI Deployment Team would apply the framework in three typical scenarios, including the recommended AI maturity level for each case:

Table 15: Scenario 1 — Dental Clinic (B2C)

Level | Concrete Application
---|---
**L1 — Business Foundation** | B2C model. Methodology: JTBD + AIDA. The patient "hires" peace of mind and health, not a dental procedure.
**L2 — Digital Business Connectors** | WhatsApp for appointments, email for reminders, web form, clinical history system via API.
**L3 — Situational Awareness** | Perception: Has the patient responded? Comprehension: Is there a risk of no-show? Projection: Send an early reminder.
**Recommended maturity level** | AI-Augmented — The agent sends reminders and organizes information, but clinical staff manages rescheduling and treatment decisions.

Table 16: Scenario 2 — Vehicle Dealership (B2B + B2C)

Level | Concrete Application
---|---
**L1 — Business Foundation** | B2C for individual purchases (AIDA), B2B for corporate fleets (MEDDIC). Same company, dual methodology.
**L2 — Digital Business Connectors** | CRM for opportunity tracking, WhatsApp for customer service, Amazon Connect for incoming calls, quotation form.
**L3 — Situational Awareness** | Perception: Did the lead qualify? Comprehension: Is it B2B or B2C? What funnel stage? Projection: Assign the right salesperson with full context.
**Recommended maturity level** | AI-Driven — The agent classifies leads, prioritizes opportunities, and assigns salespeople automatically. The commercial manager supervises high-value decisions.

Table 17: Scenario 3 — Enterprise Contact Center (B2B)

Level | Concrete Application
---|---
**L1 — Business Foundation** | B2B model. MEDDPICC applied: metrics, Economic Buyer (see Glossary), Champion (see Glossary), and decision process identified before escalation.
**L2 — Digital Business Connectors** | Amazon Connect as core. CRM APIs, customer database, WhatsApp Business, corporate email, ticket system.
**L3 — Situational Awareness** | Perception: Who is calling and what is their history? Comprehension: Is it an opportunity, a problem, or a renewal? Projection: Escalate or resolve autonomously?
**Recommended maturity level** | AI-Driven — The agent resolves first-level inquiries and escalates with full context. The human team intervenes in negotiations and strategic decisions.

---

## 7\. Glossary of Terms

Term | Definition in BAAF® Context
---|---
**AI-Assisted** | Maturity level where AI helps the human with specific tasks, with the human leading all decisions.
**AI-Augmented** | Maturity level where AI expands human capabilities, suggesting interpretations and scenarios.
**AI-Automated** | Maturity level where AI executes autonomously without human intervention. Implies the highest risk exposure.
**AI Deployment Team** | Multidisciplinary team responsible for the implementation of AI agents, composed of developers, product owner, and commercial team. Evaluates the state of framework levels and determines the scope of deployment.
**AI-Driven** | Maturity level where artificial intelligence leads processes and the human supervises and validates.
**AIDA / JTBD / RFM / CDJ** | Consumer marketing and behavior methodologies applied in B2C environments.
**BAAF® Framework** | Three-level methodological framework to guide successful AI implementation, establishing the correct order of work: L1 → L2 → L3.
**Champion** | MEDDIC methodology term. Person within the buying organization who has influence, access to decision-making power, and a personal interest in seeing the solution implemented.
**Digital Connectors** | Term encompassing all digital assets that connect the business to its data, channels, and services: APIs, databases, CRM, webhooks, MCP links, communication channels, and third-party systems.
**Economic Buyer** | MEDDIC methodology term. Person with the final authority to approve the budget and make the purchasing decision.
**Feedback Loop** | Feedback mechanism between BAAF® levels that allows the organization to continuously learn and improve.
**L1 — Business Foundation** | First level. Defines the business model (B2B/B2C/B2B2C) and the applicable sales or marketing methodology.
**L2 — Digital Business Connectors** | Second level. Inventory and connection of all digital business assets: APIs, databases, channels, and services.
**L2 Map** | Document or diagram describing all active digital connectors of an organization. Critical asset for AI implementations.
**L3 — Situational Awareness** | Third level. The organization's ability to perceive, comprehend, and anticipate situations through AI.
**MEDDIC / MEDDPICC** | Opportunity qualification methodologies for enterprise B2B sales. MEDDIC: Metrics, Economic Buyer, Decision Criteria, Decision Process, Identify Pain, Champion. MEDDPICC adds: Paper Process and Competition.
**Prompt Engineering** | Mechanism through which the agent's situational awareness is configured: what data it should perceive, what business rules it applies, and under what conditions it should anticipate and act.
**Risk Tolerance** | Degree of autonomy an organization is willing to accept in its AI agents, considering that greater autonomy means greater exposure to unsupervised errors.
**Situational Awareness (SA)** | Concept originated in aviation (Mica Endsley). Ability to perceive the environment, comprehend its meaning, and anticipate the next state.
**Technical Blueprint** | BAAF® level map that defines the architecture the AI platform needs to operate aligned to the business.

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## 8\. References

Concept | Original Source | Reference
---|---|---
**MEDDIC** | Dick Dunkel & Jack Napoli, PTC (1996) | Lahoutifard, D. _Always Be Qualifying: MEDDIC, MEDDPICC_. MEDDIC Academy.
**MEDDPICC** | Evolution of MEDDIC | Whyte, A. _MEDDICC: The Ultimate Guide to Staying One Step Ahead in the Complex Sale_. 2020.
**AIDA** | E. St. Elmo Lewis (1898) | Strong, E.K. Jr. _The Psychology of Selling and Advertising_. 1925.
**JTBD** | Tony Ulwick (1991), popularized by Clayton Christensen | Christensen, C. et al. _Competing Against Luck: The Story of Innovation and Customer Choice_. Harper Business, 2016.
**RFM** | Arthur Hughes (1994) | Hughes, A.M. _Strategic Database Marketing_. McGraw-Hill, 1994.
**CDJ** | David Court et al., McKinsey (2009) | Court, D., Elzinga, D., Mulder, S., Vetvik, O.J. "The Consumer Decision Journey." _McKinsey Quarterly_ , June 2009.
**Situational Awareness** | Mica R. Endsley (1995) | Endsley, M.R. "Toward a Theory of Situation Awareness in Dynamic Systems." _Human Factors_ , 37(1), 32-64, 1995.

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## 9\. List of Tables

Table | Title | Section
---|---|---
1 | Common Errors in AI Implementations | 2
2 | BAAF® Framework Levels | 3
3 | Everyday B2C Examples | 3.1
4 | Everyday B2B Examples | 3.1
5 | B2C vs B2B — Key Differences | 3.1
6 | Business Models and Applicable Methodologies | 3.1
7 | Examples of Digital Connectors by Business Type | 3.2
8 | Situational Awareness Levels (Endsley) | 3.3
9 | Examples of Situational Awareness Applied to Business | 3.3
10 | Situational Awareness Scope by Maturity Level | 3.3
11 | AI Maturity Axis — Required State by Level | 4
12 | Examples of Risk Tolerance by Maturity Level | 4
13 | Feedback L3 → L1 → L2 | 5
14 | Other Feedback Directions | 5
15 | Scenario 1 — Dental Clinic (B2C) | 6
16 | Scenario 2 — Vehicle Dealership (B2B + B2C) | 6
17 | Scenario 3 — Enterprise Contact Center (B2B) | 6

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## 10\. Intellectual Property Statement

The BAAF® Framework — Business AI Awareness Framework, including its name, three-level structure, definitions, terminology, diagrams, tables, and all written expression contained in this document, is original intellectual property of:

> **Luis Diego Maroto Segura** Founder & AI Solutions Architect
>
> Flintworks AI — Costa Rica
>
> March 2026

Total or partial reproduction, distribution, modification, or commercial use of this framework is prohibited without express written authorization from its author. The use of the name "BAAF® Framework" or "Business AI Awareness Framework" in any commercial, educational, or consulting context requires a license granted by Flintworks AI.

BAAF® Framework Draft 1.0 — Flintworks AI © 2026 — All rights reserved