Is your organization equipped to understand generative AI?
It is obvious to me that organizational leadership is under increased pressure to understand and figure out how to deploy AI technology in their firms. When I opened my email this morning, I saw the headline "When implementing AI, first train your managers" from Joe McKendrick in ZDNet. The article explains that one can't just "drop" artificial intelligence into an organization and its IT departments. The reason is that the managers and executives who control the funding simply can't handle AI yet.
In a recent SAS survey of 1600 IT decision-makers, nine out of 10 senior tech decision-makers (93%) admit that they do not fully understand generative AI (GenAI) or its impact on business processes. Furthermore, the study concludes that "fewer than half (45%) of CIOs in the survey and just over a third (36%) of CTOs consider themselves "extremely familiar" with GenAI adoption in their organizations. Worse yet, only 13% of chief digital officers admit they are intimately familiar with AI. Only 4% of the heads of IT or Information systems claim extreme familiarity with AI, along with only 2% of IT managers or directors."
It is clear that we are now moving from the "hype" phase, where organizations will have to prove that they are capable of deploying GenAI tools and can provide proof of a clear return on investment (ROI). The use cases for GenAI are reasonably well known; plenty of tools are already on the market to help organizations build and deploy GenAI solutions.
Organizations deploying GenAI need to consider multiple aspects that will impact its success. Governance needs to be in place, and privacy considerations and security issues must be addressed. For example, if a RAG (Retrieval Augmented Generation) solution is deployed using internal data stores, information such as HR documents needs to be protected from people who should not have access to that information. The SAS report concludes that "our research shows that businesses are rushing into GenAI before establishing adequate systems of governance, which could result in serious issues with quality and compliance later."
The ZDnet article summarizes the leading issues that organizations are experiencing using AI:
🎯48% report they are experiencing issues utilizing both public and proprietary datasets effectively.
🎯45% report an absence of appropriate tools.
🎯42% indicate they are experiencing challenges in transitioning Generative AI from a conceptual phase to practical use.
🎯39% say they are having compatibility issues with current systems.
The article also highlights that in-house AI expertise is in critical demand, with half of organizations (51%) being concerned that they lack the skills to use technology effectively. We have seen the same concern when talking with our customers and potential opportunities that have reached out to us.
To make the transition to GenAI easier, the TELLUS International partnership with design and engineering firm A-CX is built with the concept that we can offer an easy entry to the world of GenAI. We can cover the envisioning and business model design process and then help to build the first prototype or MVP (Minimum Viable Product). We are keen to demonstrate the value of GenAI and how an organization can take the next steps with a less risky approach. Due to our background in helping hundreds of organizations in their envisioning process, we can guide the organization on what is needed for a successful outcome.
Yours,
Dr. Petri I. Salonen
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