Where to start with AI and who to bring with you
Last month we argued that implementing AI in a business needs a plan. So how do you actually begin? In this issue, we will help you pick the right starting points and give you tips on how to bring your people along and engage the right help.
In the gold rush of AI implementation, I have heard the same questions repeatedly over the past month: Do I hire a specialist? Do I upskill an existing team member? Do I bring in external consultants? Before asking those questions, make sure your business understands that AI is not a replacement for the trust-based relationships that exist between your staff and clients.
A great place to start is with high volume, low-skill tasks. They are easy to evaluate and let you understand how well AI actually performs before you bet anything important on it. The practical test is simple: don't measure how fast AI produces the work, measure the net time saved once a human has validated it. Run AI on a sample of real tasks, and find where validation is fast and cheap. The numbers will show you clearly which tasks to start automating with AI.
Once the nuances are understood, a crucial next step is bringing people on the journey. The cultural change that AI brings requires thought. Staff concerns, from 'fear of change' to 'AI taking my job', are real. Good leadership manages them, building trust and improving outcomes. Start talking to your teams, create a communication strategy, and reassure staff that AI is a tool that empowers them, not something that replaces them.
After you have some initial tasks for AI automation and a plan for how to bring everybody on the journey, your focus can switch to finding the right people to drive it. A larger organisation should be looking to its technology leaders. Smaller organisations with in-house technology teams will be well placed to utilise them to implement a strategy. Businesses without an in-house technology team should consider engaging a trusted technology partner with a proven track record, extensive industry experience, and demonstrated success delivering automation solutions.
