Aiming for a Successful AI Transformation: 5 Ways to Ensure Your Organization Reaps the Rewards
Aiming for a successful AI transformation is great, but if you can’t lead the initiative effectively, you won’t deliver the results the business demands.
1. Partner with your peers
Gabriela Vogel, senior director analyst in the Executive Leadership of Digital Business practice at research firm Gartner, said digital leaders must focus urgently on exploiting emerging technology effectively. "CIOs who don’t understand the focus on value — and make promises about AI without thinking about what they are getting involved with — might not stay at the top. They will lose power, they will lose inference, and potentially even lose their jobs."
2. Create a working group
James Fleming, CIO at Francis Crick Institute, said the digital leader’s role in AI is to provide oversight within the IT department and across the business. "There’s got to be a degree of leading from the front and making it OK for your team to think about these questions and become experts in them, and then you’ve got to guide the rest of the organization along that journey."
3. Optimise your resources
Bruno Marie-Rose, chief information and technology officer of the Paris 2024 Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games, said the key to leading AI transformations is turning new personal habits into business benefits. "Maturity is crucial for the International Organizing Committee, having an approach where you can say, ‘I’m four years ahead of the Opening Ceremony and need to progress, what do you advise?’"
4. Reduce people’s fears
Ollie Wildeman, vice president of customer services at travel specialist Big Bus Tours, said executives who explore AI will discover three types of people are worried. "It will be the people on the front line who think their jobs will be replaced, it will be the people who manage those guys, and stakeholders will worry about the money you’re putting in and what will happen to the customer satisfaction scores in the long run."
5. Don’t poison the well
Jon Grainger, CTO at legal firm DWF, said successful AI transformations ensure the data that feeds IT systems is well-managed and trustworthy. "You can’t do stuff without your data being right. You can go much deeper — and be much more solid on your outcomes and what you’re trying to achieve — as your data gets better."
Conclusion
In conclusion, to ensure a successful AI transformation, organizations must partner with peers, create a working group, optimize resources, reduce people’s fears, and don’t poison the well. By following these five ways, organizations can reap the rewards of AI and stay ahead of the competition.
FAQs
Q: What is the role of the digital leader in AI?
A: The digital leader’s role in AI is to provide oversight within the IT department and across the business.
Q: How can organizations optimize resources with AI?
A: Organizations can optimize resources with AI by using data to help optimize the use of resources across the Olympics.
Q: How can executives reduce people’s fears about AI?
A: Executives can reduce people’s fears about AI by communicating the benefits of AI and providing training and support for those who will be impacted by the technology.
Q: What is the importance of data quality in AI?
A: Data quality is crucial in AI, as poor data can lead to incorrect results and undermine the effectiveness of the technology.
