AI/ML and change leadership

[Chris Shakespea]

For enterprise organisations AI has to be purpose driven and provide insights for the business. Machine learning uses the available data to train models which are then used to provide action through intelligence workflows and delivering business value through insights.
AI has to be easy to consume without requiring highly specialised skills such as data scientists and linguistic. It provides the “Brain Trust” that enables generalists to consume the information to make informed decisions.

There are some formidable barriers I have seen organisations face when considering the introduction of AI :-
Plug and Play
One of the biggest mistakes is that AI gets seen as a plug-and-play technology with immediate returns. It’s a technology that is rapidly developing and needs to be considered as a part of a wider vision for the organisation – Dream big

Other priorities
I’ve worked with a number of organisations where its recognised that AI can deliver value but often the teams responsible for the technology platforms are struggling with overwhelming demand, technical debt and lack of clear purpose for AI

Cultural and organisational barriers can also mean that the introduction of AI falls short of reaching its potential. Kotter’s change model (HBR 1995) is a well known and has 8 steps. Its still relevant today and applicable to introducing AI/ML into an organisation. Applying this model to AI introduction and change leadership :-

1. Create a sense of urgency
Introducing AI should be because there is a driver for the need e.g. improved customer satisfaction, need for more home working, removal of cost from the business. Introducing AI is going to affect the core business and potentially be transformational. AI can be seen as a technology lead initiative but this is likely to cause problems in introducing the change and maintaining it within the organisation.

2. Form a powerful coalition
Singular efforts by a small group of motivated people is not going to lead to a successful introduction of AI. Its at its most impactful when developed by cross-functional teams that bring a mix of skills and perspectives. Linking the AI introduction to the organisations goals or business imperatives and then building sponsorship from the organisations executive is key. Putting this together as a coalition and developing a high sense of urgency within the management team helps significantly.

3. Create a vision for change
The vision should help clarify the direction in which the organisation needs to move. Its the rallying call / true North that people can relate to and understand. From this vision the plans, objectives and measures will be formed. Introducing AI into an organisation is to serve a vision e.g. the vision could be to provide the best customer self service experience in your sector. AI then becomes one of the factors used to support that vision.

4. Communicate the vision
It is important to communicate the vision and strategics in a meaningful way that encourages the rest of the organisation to accept and support the change initiative. AI can have negative connotations (we have all seen the movies) these should be recognised along with the positives. For users of a system it can mean a more responsive, time saving experience and for the back end users it can mean repetitive tasks are removed allowing them to focus on more meaningful tasks. Work to capture the hearts and minds of the employees in the organisation.

5. Remove obstacles
When implementing change obstacles may frequently occur. These can be people, process or technology related. AI often needs a different approach. It's not about a one off introduction of new processes but more of one that fosters adaptive learning and experimentation. This can be alien to the organisation as they move to a test and learn approach. Involving people in the change and getting feedback early is a good way to remove obstacles. If your organisation is highly reliant on people owning and maintaining relationships then introducing AI can be seen as a threat. Look to see how that can be turned around with AI providing valuable insights to strengthen those relationships.

6. Create short-term wins
Creating the full change transformation will take time. To build confidence in the organisation that the change is worth it have short-term goals to accomplish and celebrate early success. E.g. has AI reduced call wait time because people are better able to self serve? , has satisfaction increased by the users of the system? What has been the impact to the core business of the organisation? This may mean, for example. focusing on things up front that have less intrinsic monetary value and more focused on improved user experience. That way the organisation is carried forwards and becomes the sponsor for wider change.

7. Build on the change
Sustaining the change is key. Organisations can declare success too early after a few quick wins loosing sight and momentum towards the longer term objectives. Use the opportunity of each win to perform a retrospective – what worked well and what went wrong., what barriers were faced etc. Use this to revise the plan and check alignment to the wider objectives. Be diligent on the communications as well, continuing to demonstrate tangible results to inform and influence the wider community on what is happening and the changes.

8. Anchor the changes in corporate culture
With AI and especially applications such as ML which rely on models and data it is important to maintain the momentum and embed the change within the organisational culture.
Continue to look for areas to apply AI that improve or eliminate organization processes that do not align to the new cultural. Process optimization assisted by AI can help accelerate this.
Training and development plans can assist in helping employees develop new skills and competencies that are relevant to the change. Reinforce the culture by hiring new talent , rewarding employees that align to the change.

Other articles of interest -
https://workflow.servicenow.com/it-transformation/a-new-finish-line-for-ai-in-organizations/

https://workflow.servicenow.com/it-transformation/how-to-develop-ai-strategy/