Taking the jet to the grocery store

And other things people do when they are starting out with AI

Let’s talk about investments

On the one hand, there is pressure to find ways to capitalize on the potential of AI. On the other hand, you don’t want to bet the farm on something that isn’t proven. Especially when your CFO expects a clear timeline for ROI, and you know that if you can just meet it, you’ll be a hero in your organization with increased budgets, headcount—you can really be the spark of ushering your organization into the era of Autonomous Transformation.

So where to begin?

The temptation to take the jet to the grocery store

There are so many things we’re already doing that could be done so much more efficiently. Imagine if you could shorten your grocery store commute from 5 minutes to 10 seconds. That’s 30 times more efficient!

But wait. How much more expensive is it to fly a jet to the grocery store than to take a car? And do I need my commute to the grocery store to be more efficient than 5 minutes? Also, what’s the difference in fuel cost?

If you’re incorporating AI into your strategy by starting with quick and easy applications of AI where you can prove there will be a return on investment and guarantee a timeline, the only path forward is to choose things others have already invested in and gotten results from—a game of catch up—and the value of your investments are unlikely to justify the cost of the project, let alone the ongoing cost of data science staff.

So what should you do instead?

Assuming you’ve been putting off the task of incorporating AI into your strategy, here are 7 steps for getting started. (If you’ve already taken a swing at incorporating AI into your strategy, stay tuned for my post on Friday)