Conclusion

Very few leaders can claim to be experts in AI or know precisely how to translate AI opportunities into strategic action. However, beyond the solutions introduced earlier, our discussions with leaders across industries have identified several practical steps that one can take to position themselves—and their organizations—for success.

Start small, go low, go slow, but go.​ While the opportunity that AI promises is clearly recognized, capturing the opportunity with practical next steps can be an overwhelming ask. Leaders we’ve spoken to suggest starting small. Driving smaller, manageable initiatives with tangible results can break down the daunting uncertainty that comes with the shift, educating and boosting curiosity along the way. This is the foundation for fast and sustainable transformation.

Create room for transparent exploration.​ Leaders could create a psychologically safe space for exploration within their teams and organizations. Allow for the experimentation with different forms of AI within a secure sandbox—embrace utility-ready tools and capabilities at your fingertips, guided by organizational oversight and governance. This will bring playfulness to the transition at hand and could boost overall engagement and enthusiasm. Allow for consistent dialogue and organization-wide visibility of the sandbox learnings and outcomes; it could create a cultural shift of openness to the new technology. Moreover, leaders should ensure that all necessary stakeholders are included in this process.

“Go slow and pick something that works. Find technological interventions that are repeatable, scalable, easy to understand, and accurate.”

Richard Ashworth, Amedysis

“I see my role as the person who can educate, navigate AI as a journey, starting with small and digestible ‘use cases’ to build confidence before looking at the more advanced AI capabilities available.”

Ciara Moore, Bank of Ireland

“AI developments in the organization are an evolutionary rather than revolutionary way.”

Rolf Habben Jansen, Hapag Lloyd

Disrupt yourself first, or AI will. Allow yourself as a leader to engage with this new technology by, for example, enrolling in an introductory online course, encouraging your colleagues to take the same approach. Some leaders we’ve spoken to emphasized personal learning, or understanding of AI, as one of the most crucial characteristics for embarking on a successful transition. Engage with experts in the field and embrace an internal shift of continuous learning.

Last but not least, leaders need to keep a sharp eye on investments in AI and not lose the “venture mindset” on those investments. This would mean being sharp about choosing the “right investment use cases” where the business case is clear, either to manage risk or to drive growth potential. And secondly, being ruthless about killing those investments where “value can’t really be realized” due to some real obstacles. Finally, never losing sight or focus on “scaling” value-creating use cases, as that is key to realizing more sustainable value.

“I think the big challenge is the people. And I don’t agree that it’s the frontline people, but it’s the leadership. Whether it’s senior leadership or mid-management, they both tend to operate the same way they’ve always operated.”

Patrick Trippel, Inventus Power

“It’s all about the leadership mindset.”

Jennifer Zhu Scott, IN. Capital

“Maintaining your own judgment as a leader is absolutely critical.”

Ron Lior, Uber Freight

“You cannot get a company to embrace change if they don’t have a clear understanding of where they want to go.”

Béatrice Guillaume-Grabisch, Nestlé

Are you preparing to lead your organization into the age of AI?

While our survey found that leaders are overwhelmingly looking at AI as an opportunity, the picture is not yet clear on how to harness this opportunity practically. It may be some time before a clear organizational strategy can emerge, but leaders can already test their own level of readiness to lead in the age of AI by reflecting on a few questions:

  1. Am I tending towards fear or excitement when I think about AI and its possibilities? Where do I focus my efforts – on risks and barriers, or possibilities and potential?
  2. Am I dreaming big enough when thinking about the potential use cases for my organization?​ Am I being audacious enough in my thinking, or am I limiting my outlook by focusing on barriers?
  3. Am I creating a truly experimental environment?​ How do I enable my people and teams to test, learn, and fail?
  4. Am I seeing the possibilities and challenges from every angle?​ Am I really listening to the views of all stakeholders to understand how AI may benefit or disrupt the different functional areas of my organization?
  5. Am I embracing AI in a real sense, or am I experiencing it in a theoretical sense only?​ How am I experimenting with the technology? Have I witnessed its power firsthand, or am I forming judgments based on what I’m reading or hearing others say?

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