How to start using ai in your business today

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“ More often than not, the best assets are the ones you already have.”

If you’ve been anywhere other than under a rock this past year, you’ve likely encountered a flood of AI-generated content, ranging from impressively realistic to downright ugly. You’ve seen text, photos, and even videos created from prompts using the ever-more impressive AI tools that sprout up every day.

It’s no question that large or technologically advanced organizations have been leveraging AI internally for years to optimize operations and improve their bottom lines. Advancements in machine learning (ML), natural language processing (NLP), and AI have turbocharged capabilities for those prepared for these breakthroughs.

While many AI advancements you encounter might be customer-facing, like 24/7 chatbots or copyright-free photos for blog posts, exactly how businesses utilizing AI can seem like a mystery. Figuring out how to implement AI yourself, or incorporating it into your company’s strategies, can feel like an insurmountable challenge if you don’t know where to start. Read on for a helpful strategy that will set you on the path to start successfully using AI in your business today.

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Step 1 - Identify Your Data Sources

The first step is understanding your data sources, if you haven’t mapped this out already. Common sources include your CRM, POS systems, ERPs, website analytics platforms, social media platforms, and more.

Step 2 - Revisit Your Business Objectives

This is the most important step in this process. You must contextualize any implementation of AI with your business goals. A clear understanding of your priorities from a strategic perspective will help you stay aligned with your values and filter out the noise. Be sure to identify the data sources you mapped out in Step 1 that will be the most relevant to each of your business objectives. 

Step 3 - Assess Existing AI Tools

Many teams in your business likely already use or have access to AI tools provided by your current vendors. For instance, if your team uses Microsoft products, they’ve probably encountered text-based generative AI while creating documents in Word. Many CRMs have begun to incorporate AI capabilities, for example, creating predictive conversion scores for each customer.

Convene and/or survey your team leads, especially those dealing with your data sources identified in Step 1. Prioritize discussions with SMEs and stakeholders to assess (1) your current AI capabilities, (2) available AI tools worth evaluating, and (3) immediate actions to enhance AI capabilities with minimal overhead. By starting small quickly, you and your team can gain better insight into what AI really can (and cannot) do for your company.

Step 4 - Form an AI Oversight Team

Based on insights from Step 3, invite interested employees from different business units to join the AI Oversight Team. The team’s structure will depend on your specific business needs and limitations. This team, drawing on diverse expertise, will drive your implementation strategy. The team’s first task should be completing the gap analysis initiated in the previous steps. Start your implementation roadmap with low-overhead, high-impact recommendations, always staying aligned with the goals from Step 2. 

Step 5 - Implement and Iterate

Implement the recommendations from Step 4, which may involve seeking additional third-party vendors for data or tools. Use a customized rubric to evaluate vendors, ensuring alignment with your business goals and use cases. This rubric will also help determine KPIs to track tool efficacy. Make sure your chosen KPIs–whether new or existing–are aligned with what you’re implementing the tool to do. It can be easy to get lost in add-ons and pretty visualizations, but in the end, you need to measure your implementation against your strategy and goals; not the other way around.

Iterate through this process.You may find that off-the-shelf solutions don’t work for your use case(s). You can decide to customize, build, or just wait for a suitable solution to come to market. Your decision depends on your goals and the results from previous iterations.

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In the rapidly evolving AI space, it’s impossible to track every development and tool. By following this process, you can start implementing AI in your business effectively, ensuring real impact that is aligned with your business goals. Utilize existing resources before investing in new trends. More often than not, the best assets are the ones you already have. That’s how you can begin implementing AI in your business today!

AI Disclosure: No AI was used to generate the content of this article. ChatGPT 4.0 was employed solely for spelling and grammar correction.