The Best Time To Start Was Yesterday, The Second Is Today. How To Prepare For The Future Of AI?

Amazon’s Alexa, Google’s Home, Apple’s Siri, and Microsoft’s Cortana are all using AI-based algorithms to make consumers’ lives easier. Interactions that would have once required multiple steps on the consumer’s part can now be completed with a single command. Whether you realize it or not, the majority of future transactions will be completed with the help of AI and the continuous use of these technologies will play a large role in dictating future consumer behaviors.

Consumer trends that continue to favor AI-based solutions will put incredible strains on businesses that fail to adapt. Businesses that fail to take advantage of these advancements in technology will not be able to meet the ever-evolving demands of consumers and will in turn perish or be pushed to the wayside by businesses that have adopted AI technologies. In many ways, the AI revolution is already here. Despite this seemingly new phenomenon, many notable businesses are already reaping the benefits.

In this article, we’ll dive into the benefits of adopting AI technologies in addition to covering 5 preliminary steps that you can implement today to ensure your business doesn’t suffer tomorrow.

What are the benefits of adopting AI technologies?

Implementing AI into your business practices will have an incredible impact on your business’s productivity and efficiency. AI can help your business increase sales, detect fraud, improve customer experiences, automate work processes, and provide unmatched predictive analysis. Failing to adopt means falling behind and many businesses are beginning to recognize the competitive edge they can gain by leveraging AI.  

In order to achieve significant benefits from AI, it’s important to focus on learning and organizational transformation. It’s not enough to simply integrate new technology and algorithms. Instead, you must create a symbiotic relationship between your people, and your technology. Investing in human capabilities in tandem with embracing cutting-edge technology is the key to creating a massive competitive advantage.

What steps can I take to implement AI in my business?

1. Familiarize yourself with AI

Like any new endeavor, it’s best to start with the basics. It’s important to use this time to familiarize yourself with AI and learn what modern AI can do for you and your business. While early adoption is key, it’s crucial to inform yourself of the benefits and pitfalls of leveraging AI before rushing into a solution that may not be right for your business. Luckily, there are numerous online forums, resources, and training modules that have everything you need to familiarize yourself with the basic concepts of AI.

2. Identify the problems you wish to solve

Now that you’ve taken the time to familiarize yourself with the basics of AI, it’s time to determine what AI can do for you. Before you can implement AI into your business, you must first determine what problem(s) you’re hoping to solve with the technology. It’s important to take the time to explore different ideas and determine how you can use AI to improve existing practices. Conceptualizing specific use cases in which AI could solve a problem or demonstrate value is an excellent starting point.

3. Source the right people for the task

After you’ve taken the time to identify what problems you’re hoping to solve, it’s time to get your hands dirty. While you may be eager to get started, it’s important to recognize that there may be an internal capability gap. Depending on your organization, you may have existing colleagues or teams with relevant background knowledge that can help you get started.  If this isn’t the case and you’re starting from scratch, there’s no shame in bringing in an expert to help you set up your pilot project.  Identifying where your expertise falls short is invaluable and will ultimately save you tons of time and money down the road.

4. Consider storage before moving forward with a plan

AI solutions and storage go hand in hand. Before launching your new project, you must first consider the storage requirements that are necessary to implement your AI solution. It’s important to remember that AI operates on data. Without adequate volumes of data to help build accurate models, AI systems or solutions cannot improve enough to achieve the computing objectives you have set out in your plan. Taking the time to review your storage options prior to diving in will have a positive impact on how your system runs when it’s online. ‍

5. Study Your Competetion

AI progress is still in its infancy and as such, many organizations still haven’t adopted the technology. If you want to get ahead of the curve, and don’t want your business to fall behind in the wave of AI adoption, it’s crucial to keep an eye on your competition. Are you familiar with what technologies your competitors are using? Do you know if they are using AI or machine learning to boost productivity and efficiency? How are they preparing for the future?

The time to innovate is now

The key to growth is innovation. If you fail to adapt, you’ll get left behind and your competition will be sweeping you off the floor. One day soon you will look back on this time and laugh. The concept of AI that once felt futuristic and far off will be as commonplace as email, or text messaging. The only way to ensure your businesses survival is to welcome these technological advancements with open arms. Gone are the days of remaining stagnant and hoping for the best. The best time to start was yesterday, the second best is today.