If you’re not using AI your business is dead! what practical AI things you Can do in your business?

If you’re not using AI your business is dead or about to be…

You’ve probably heard the quote…’AI won’t take your job but someone with AI skills will’…

Sounds scary but really it’s just the next evolution that was the internet, mobile phones, social media now it’s GenAI. So what are you doing to make the transition into AI?

‘Does it make the boat go faster’?

I’ve had A LOT of conversations about AI every day for the past 3 years and the key themes I keep hearing are it doesn’t solve all problems but putting an AI lens across business processes, different coding tasks and asking the old adage - does it make the boat go faster? Will start to get you results - the things it can automate or small efficiencies…these small changes can lead to bigger changes as your mind set develops an AI first approach and you challenge what you do…

Some great intel from a recent article on AI ‘A hitchhikers guide to the AI bubble’ by Django Beatty:

‘If you're a developer: build. The tools are here, they're cheap, and they're getting better every week. While everyone else debates consciousness, ship products. The barbarians aren't knocking - they're already through the door with mud on their boots.

If you're a business: ignore the noise. Everyone has strong opinions about AI, and they're mostly wrong. While experts argue and vendors overpromise, focus on what works today. That boring automation, that small efficiency gain, that better interface - these compound. The companies that win won't be waiting for clarity. They'll be the ones who started with simple tools and learned by doing.’

Full article here: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/hitchhikers-guide-ai-bubble-django-beatty-3semc/

I’m hearing in dev great for unit tests, data structures, getting boiler plate templates up and running - really using it as that companion. Trying to solve the problem yourself and then using it for added inspiration. All powerful stuff to make the boat go faster…

Some things you can start doing in your business:

  • Go to a local AI meet-up - take your team to the Christchurch AI meet up here: https://www.meetup.com/christchurch-ai/

  • Attend online webinars on AI - immerse yourself in new ways of thinking 

  • Run an in-house AI hackathon - highly recommended as staff will tackle real problems in your business and likely you’ll solve some manual or laborious tasks that have been draining the life out of people in that session

  • Get AI training ie prompt engineering  - engage an AI consultancy to run some prompt engineering sessions - maybe Lyndal from Alexanders Marketing in Christchurch or Damian from Rush in Auckland 

  • Start using GenAI tools yourself like ChatGPT, Perplexity or Gemini and then get your staff using them

If you haven’t already - establish governance and some guardrails to ensure you have good privacy & security. Saying you can’t use AI in your business is like the early years when some offices said ‘no internet’ or banned social media use in the office (which actually happened would you believe when they first came out - showing my age here haha;-)

‘But even still there's a nervousness around whether AI is coming for your job or not. Getting people's hands on the tools helped curb that fear.’ - Wade Foster (Co-founder / CEO of Zapier)

Check out Wade’s blog on gaining 89% AI adoption at Zapier here: https://zapier.com/blog/how-zapier-rolled-out-ai/

It’s time to embrace AI and let people take an AI first lens to your business and that’s when the magic of innovation happens…

As you might have already seen I got out of my comfort zone and built an AI chatbot Sunny for our website which was a lot of fun…ask Sunny a question here: https://sunstonetalent.com/aichat-faqs

I’m Paul, lover of coffee, dogs, biking, surfing & skiing. Founder & Principal Consultant of Sunstone, an IT Recruitment & HR company specialising in recruiting IT roles within software, web, digital, mobile, blockchain, AI, machine learning, data, cloud infrastructure, security & networks in Christchurch & South Island of New Zealand.

Paul SwettenhamComment