5 Steps to Get Started with AI

"So, where do I begin with AI? Seriously, what do I do tomorrow?"

This is the question I get from a lot of CEO's.

There’s a growing awareness of the opportunity. Investors, customers, and employees want a plan. They want guidance in these frothy times where fear and fascination permeate many companies.

I'm going to share a set of concrete steps to get started. Caveat: Each leader, company, and industry differs, so your specific plans will vary. For the sake of a post, this is a good starting. If this approach resonates, I’d love to discuss the specifics of your business.

► C-SUITE-LEVEL. There are some things best driven by the C-Suite:

1️⃣ Education is Key: Start by educating your team about AI. This isn't just for tech folks; everyone should understand the basics. Find simple applications to demonstrate its immediate benefits for being more creative and productive. We want to show that we can save the team 3 - 4 hours a week and enable them to do things that could not do before.

2️⃣ Create an AI Steering Group: This team should be diverse from various departments. They oversee AI initiatives and ensure they align with business goals. Regular meetings are essential.

3️⃣ Develop Guidelines for Ethics and Usage: Having clear principles for AI use that reflect your company's values is essential. This helps guide your team and reassures them about the role of AI. These can evolve over time.

4️⃣ Assess the Impact: Understand how AI may affect different parts of your business. This includes job roles, workflows, and overall business strategy.

5️⃣ Develop a Strategic Roadmap: Plan the integration of AI into your business in stages. This should be a flexible plan that can adapt as needed.

► EMPLOYEE LEVEL. There are other things that can and should, be driven at the employee level:

1️⃣ Highlight Internal AI Advocates: Identify those enthusiastic employees who can champion AI within your organization. They can be a go-to resource for others. They will be the early adopters who thrive in times of change. Make them successful and others will follow.

2️⃣ Organize Informal Learning Sessions: Regular, informal Lunch-and-Learns or Brown Bag Sessions that encourage knowledge sharing about AI. This helps in keeping everyone informed and involved.

3️⃣ Encourage Identification of AI Opportunities (aka, Use Cases): involve employees in suggesting how AI can be used in their own areas. Get them thinking about the data that will be needed. This encourages buy-in and innovative thinking.

4️⃣ Involve Teams in Evaluating AI Tools: Let the people who will use these tools have a say in which ones are chosen. This ensures better alignment with their needs and workflows.

5️⃣ Track and Share Successes: Monitor how AI improves processes and share these wins with your team. This helps in building confidence and momentum.

If this resonates, I'd love to talk.

- Matt

The Prompt

Making AI Actionable & Accessible.