AI strategy in your company – how to build it? | AI in business #85

Why does your company need an AI strategy?

When machines learn to understand and respond to human needs, having an AI strategy is crucial for any business. Artificial intelligence allows for task automation, creating new products and services, and improving customer experiences.

For example, companies using AI-based chatbots, like ChatGPT, can provide faster and more personalized customer service. According to research by McKinsey, around one-third of business leaders decided to implement AI in at least one area of their operations in 2023. Moreover, about 60% of organizations claiming to have adopted AI leverage generative forms of artificial intelligence. However, it’s essential to remember that without a well-thought-out AI strategy, creating business value and avoiding failures can be challenging.

First steps – defining the goals and scope of your AI strategy

At the beginning of any journey, you must set a goal. In the case of building an AI strategy, you need to know exactly what you want to achieve and what areas of your business you want to improve. It’s not enough to simply say you want to “implement AI.” You need to define the specific business goals you want to achieve with artificial intelligence.

To quote a well-known motivational speaker Simon Sinek, start by answering the question “Why?” Defining the goals and scope of an AI strategy is the foundation of any action plan. In this context, it is important to define the specific business goals that the company wants to achieve with AI. For example, if your goal is to increase the efficiency of customer service, you might consider implementing AI to analyze customer data and personalize communications.

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Key areas for implementing AI in your company

Identifying the key areas where an AI strategy can deliver the most value is critical to successful implementation. In e-commerce, for example, AI can personalize offers to customers or optimize logistics. In finance, AI can analyze transactions in real time to prevent fraud. Below is a list of examples of areas where AI can be successfully implemented:

• Customer experience personalization – for example, product recommendations in online stores,
• Supply chain optimization – demand forecasting and optimized inventory management,
• HR management – for example, analyzing labor efficiency or skills acquisition of company team members,
• Fraud prevention – real-time analysis of financial transactions,
• Risk management – predicting and minimizing business risks,
• Data analytics – crunching large data sets to gain insights into an organization’s operations,
• Customer service – AI chatbots and virtual assistants to handle customer inquiries.

Each of these areas can bring significant benefits to a company if properly identified and implemented as part of an AI strategy.

AI strategy – creating a step-by-step action plan

Creating an AI strategy requires a detailed roadmap. You need to identify the technologies you will use, the resources you will need, and the processes you will automate or improve. Planning should also include training employees to use the new tools effectively.

Here is a five-step plan for creating an AI strategy for a small or medium-sized business:

1. As-is analysis – evaluating processes that can be automated or improved with AI.
2. Defining goals – this is basically determining what the company wants to achieve by implementing AI.
3. Choosing technologies and tools – identifying AI technologies that best fit a company’s goals and will help implement its AI strategy.
4. Preparing resources – providing adequate data, infrastructure and training for employees, as well as the funds needed to purchase subscriptions and tools.
5. Implementation and monitoring – implementing selected AI solutions and monitoring their effectiveness.

Each step requires careful consideration and tailoring to the company’s specific business. For example, a logistics company might focus on using AI to optimize delivery routes, while an online store might use AI to personalize offers to customers.

How can AI change your company – threats and opportunities

Artificial intelligence offers new opportunities for businesses, but it also comes with risks. AI initiatives without a strategy can fail for a variety of reasons, including miscalculation of business value or return on investment. To avoid such situations, it’s important to create an AI-ready environment and ensure proper automation and monitoring. Here are the opportunities that AI brings:

• automating processes, saving time and resources,
• better understanding of customers through data analytics, enabling creating more personalized offers,
• increased operational efficiency, which helps respond faster to market changes.

On the other hand, there are risks associated with AI. Since it is a new technology, an improperly built AI strategy can cause a variety of problems, for example:

• failures of AI projects related to improper estimation of business value or ROI,
• risks associated with the lack of an appropriate production environment for artificial intelligence, and
• challenges related to achieving production efficiency in AI projects, primarily due to inconsistent quality of results, which can lead to wasted efforts and projects getting stuck in the pre-production phase.

Security and ethics in your AI strategy

Implementing AI responsibly involves addressing security and ethical considerations. In your company’s AI strategy, you should ensure that the data on which AI relies is protected, and the algorithms are not biased. This guarantees the safety and ethics of AI solutions for both your company and customers. It’s important to note that data security and ethical AI practices not only have legal implications but also build customer trust and enhance your company’s positive image.

A step ahead of the competition – how AI shapes the future of business

AI has the potential to revolutionize almost every industry. Companies that strategically integrate AI into their operations gain an advantage over competitors. Creating an AI strategy should involve defining the problem, considering a timeline, creating a roadmap, and focusing on data, algorithms, and infrastructure. All of this should align with business goals to ensure that AI initiatives become strategic assets.

Summary

In summary, building an AI strategy is a process that requires careful analysis, planning, and commitment. Implementing artificial intelligence can bring significant benefits to your company, but only if you approach the task strategically. The key to success is combining technological innovations with specific business goals. With a well-thought-out AI strategy, your company can not only streamline current processes but also open doors to entirely new development opportunities.

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