10 Steps To Make Your Company AI-Ready
10 Steps To Make Your Company AI-Ready
By Eli Amdur
Everybody agrees. We must embrace and transition to AI. So why are so many organizations and individuals behind the curve on making this transition? As an independent career and executive coach for the past 27 years, I think the answer lies in this riddle.
Question: There are six frogs on a log. Five decide to jump off. How many frogs are left on the log?
Answer: No, it’s not one. It’s still six. Deciding to do something and actually doing it are two different things.
(If you’ve seen that one a few hundred times in your career, sorry. But it applies.)
What prevents action?
Generally, not knowing where to start is the biggest impediment to starting. And the bigger the project or transition, the greater the inertia. Given that, here’s a 10-step outline of a plan to make you and your organization AI-ready.
- Do not fear change. Desire, respect, and enjoy it. It’s not like you have a choice. You don’t.
- Establish the sense of urgency and create your steering/guiding group. Put together a mix of people who can make things happen (read: Budget) and thought leaders to whom others listen.
- Look at time as an ally, not a deadline. Creativity and creative thoughts don’t like time pressure, buy they thrive when relaxed.
- Emphasize team learning. Collaborative learning is most effective and is retained longest. Create dialog groups and develop simulations. The primary activity in which we will engage in the 21st century is learning. The most effective method is cooperatively.
- Cross-pollinate human capital, intellectual capital, and resources. The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
- Communicate the change and the new ideas. Change is tough enough for most people to absorb. Don’t make it harder. Be transparent from day one.
- Germinate immediate small success stories” and then “leadership at all levels.” Early successes ae highly motivating, even if you have to manufacture them or set them up
- Create momentum for gain. Empower broad-based action at all levels. Institutionalize the process by engaging in continuous coaching and peer-mentoring.
- No one is a spectator. With AI still so new to most organizations, this calls for all hands on deck. Some people might shrink fro this, so prepare to help people overcome their fears.
- What’s new today is old tomorrow. That’s fine. That’s what you want.
