How to Implement AI in your organization

I. The Rise of AI in Small Businesses

Over my many years in the business world, there is regular flow of idea that are “game changers”. Some are (ie email) and some aren’t (ie Microsoft’s Clippy). The latest technology that has emerged as a game-changer for businesses is Artificial Intelligence (AI). I don’t know if I believe all the hype but I have come to believe it can be useful. From automating mundane tasks to providing expert advice, AI is no longer just a buzzword – it’s a tangible solution that can help businesses thrive. Assuming a lot of the hype is true, what is a business leader to do to implement AI in their company? In this article, we will talk about how to implement AI and the concept of an AI Portfolio that can help your employees and your business.

II. The Power of Augmentation: How AI Assistants Can Revolutionize Your Team’s Productivity

When I started in the business world, email didn’t exist. (Age is just a perspective right?) Then along came this tool that was going to help me get more done and help me stay in touch with my customers. Although one could argue that email has hindered productivity over time, if used well, it is a tool that helped me get my job done. It didn’t take over my job and there were lots of initial concerns about sending information outside the company but we lived through it and survived. I’m not sure how businesses would survive without it these days. AI is in a similar spot right now.

So where to begin with AI? Here’s the thing – your teams are probably already using AI tools on their own, without any oversight on what company data they’re sharing externally. It’s like if everyone in your company was using different email platforms.

So what’s the smart first move? Give your people access to a localized AI assistant that you can actually control. This way, they get all the benefits of AI while you maintain control over your data and costs.

Think about it – your teams know their work challenges best. When you provide them with AI tools, they’ll naturally discover the most valuable use cases for your business. Meanwhile, you’re keeping sensitive information within your environment and establishing some sensible guardrails.

It’s really about finding that sweet spot between empowering your people and protecting your company. A controlled in-house AI solution lets everyone experiment and innovate safely – and that’s the perfect place to start your AI journey. I heard a quote “AI won’t take your job but someone who uses AI will.” (While I have no idea who said it it – it definitely resonated with me.)

A localized AI Assistant is a tool that gives users access to a Large Language Model (LLM) which is the foundation for all AI. It also lets users upload specific information that applies to their role or job function. They key is that it’s localized meaning you run it on your desktop or on your network and users don’t have to send information outside of your company walls

III. Streamlining Your Workflow with AI: How to Automate Repetitive Tasks and Boost Efficiency

Once your team has AI Assistant tools at their fingertips, the next step for you is to start thinking about how you can incorporate AI into established workflows. I think too many companies start with AI and try to figure out what problem it could solve. I’d start with known processes within your organization. Maybe it’s support processes or sales process but it’s things you already know well. Then look at those processes and see what steps within that process could benefit with AI. Just take one of the steps in the process and see if inserting an AI Assistant into that step would help. While it’s hard not to start thinking about automating every step in every process, I recommend “thinking big and starting small”. Lots of little improvements will make a big deal.

IV. The Future of AI in You Business: Using AI to change your world

The third area for leveraging AI in your business is the “think big” and see how AI could change your entire business. Typically, this will require a lot of resources – people and processing (think GPU’s) and a pretty significant budget. I think too many companies start and stay here and I think that is a mistake. This area is complicated and time consuming. It is the high risk/high reward area so I wouldn’t want it to be my only AI area.

V. Implementing an AI Portfolio: A Blend of All Three Areas

Depending on the size (and budget) of your company, your AI portfolio should be a blend of all 3. Giving employees an AI Assistant is low risk and the benefits will be hard to measure as each person will use it differently. (Can you measure email benefits? Yet you still have email.)

Incorporating AI Assistants into your existing processes is slightly higher risk as it is now beyond a single person. Assuming you started with a known process, you should be able to measure the benefits against how the process was done prior to introducing AI.

Changing the world is a big risk and takes time. Not only will it take time but there will be several failures along the way. And that’s ok and should be expected. To use a baseball analogy, you are swinging for the fences. You are going to miss a lot. But when you get one – it’s huge!

What percentage of your resources should be in each bucket? That’s a tough one. A lot depends on your risk profile and number of resources at your disposal.

Sure you could go:

• AI Assistants for all: 100%
• AI Assistants for workflows: 0%
• AI to Change my business: 0%

It’s very tactical and might be a good place to start, but over time you should expand into the other areas.

If you went:

• AI Assistants for all: 0%
• AI Assistants for workflows: 0%
• AI to Change my business: 100%

There is nothing wrong with that. I just hope you have a lot of time and a lot of money because it could be a while before it pays off.

As with most things, I think balance is key here. And review your AI portfolio percentage on a regular basis to see if it needs adjustments.

VI. Addressing Common Concerns: Security, Cost, and Implementation

As we’ve discussed, implementing AI in any of these areas can be a game-changer for small businesses. However, there are several concerns that need to be addressed before making the leap.

Security is a top concern when it comes to AI assistants. “With great power comes great responsibility” (I know where this quote came from – thank you Spiderman), and companies need to ensure that their data is protected from unauthorized access. To mitigate this risk, look into localizing your AI Assistants.

Cost is another significant consideration. While AI assistants can help streamline processes and increase efficiency, you do have to consider if the process takes off “beyond your imagination”. What would your costs look like then? There are AI Assistants that don’t charge you by the token.

In the context of Large Language Models (LLMs), a token refers to the smallest unit of text that can be processed and analyzed by the model.

Think of tokens like individual words or characters in a sentence. Just as each word has a specific meaning, each token has a unique representation within the LLM’s internal workings.

Most AI providers charge “per token” so the more you use, the most you pay.

Implementation is also a critical factor to consider. Companies need to ensure that their employees are properly trained on how to use AI assistants effectively, and that the technology is integrated seamlessly into existing workflows. For the three areas listed, local AI Assistants are pretty easy and as I said earlier, people are probably already using AI. With a few articles on prompt engineering, they should be up and running in no time. For workflows, it’s less about the AI and just understanding the process. There will be some training needed to integrate AI Assistants API’s into a process but if you have a solid development team, they should be able to pick it up quickly. Implementing AI to change your business does require a lot more training and resources. Understanding how models are trained, GPU’s required will take some time to get up to speed. As I said earlier, this is a long-term investment.

Summary

AI and AI assistants have the potential to revolutionize the way small businesses operate. By providing personalized support, automating repetitive tasks, and streamlining workflows, AI assistants can help companies increase productivity, reduce costs, and improve customer satisfaction.

Implementing AI into your business requires careful consideration. Sure, you need to think about security, costs, and how you’ll actually implement everything. But here’s the thing – with some good planning, the payoffs can be huge.

Small businesses that jump into AI the right way are seeing some amazing results. You don’t have to be a tech giant to make this work for you. By tackling those common concerns head-on – like where your data goes or how much this will cost – you can actually get ahead of competitors who are still on the fence.

In today’s digital world, standing still isn’t really an option. The businesses that thrive are the ones willing to try new approaches. And the good news? AI tools are becoming more accessible and easier to use all the time.

When you get this right, you’re not just keeping up – you’re positioning your business to spot opportunities others might miss. That’s the real advantage in our fast-paced market, where being a step ahead can make all the difference.

As we’ve discussed, implementing an AI requires careful consideration of several factors, including security, cost, and implementation. However, with proper planning and execution, the benefits of AI can be significant.

By embracing this technology and addressing common concerns, small businesses can unlock their full potential and stay ahead of the competition in today’s fast-paced digital landscape.