Thinking about adding AI into your workstream and integrating it into your workflow but unsure how to start? You’re not alone! As the pressures on capturing the benefits from AI mount on you, becoming "AI-ready" is essential to stay competitive.

Based on insights from Neeraj Bhargava and Eric Selvadurai, co-founders of Aistra, an AI adoption company, we’ve distilled the process into three key steps. These steps will empower your organization to harness AI effectively and drive meaningful change. Ready to unlock the potential of AI? Let’s dive in!

Target and Prioritize Specific Benefits from AI

The first step is building a clear understanding of how AI can benefit different areas of your business. This involves assessing the biggest opportunities—whether it's boosting productivity, creating new revenue streams, or enhancing customer and employee experiences. It also requires evaluating potential risks and challenges.

As Neeraj pointed out, the key is to prioritize areas where AI can have the most significant impact with the lowest risk. He emphasized the importance of taking a pragmatic approach, rooted in your organization’s goals and capabilities, rather than getting swept up in the hype surrounding AI.

Create a Practical Implementation PlanCreate a Practical Implementation Plan

Once you've identified the AI use cases that align with your priorities, it's time to determine how to bring them to life. This involves assessing your data and technology readiness, as well as planning a phased approach to implementation.

Eric stressed the importance of starting small with pilot projects rather than attempting a full-scale overhaul. “Becoming 'AI-ready' is a journey, not a destination—be prepared to experiment, learn, and adapt as you go,” he said. The goal is to demonstrate the value of AI in specific areas and then gradually scale it across the organization, integrating AI seamlessly with existing processes and systems.

Establish the Institutional Framework for Scaling

As AI becomes more embedded in your operations, the focus shifts to scaling it across the organization. This means defining new roles and responsibilities, training your workforce, and establishing effective management and governance structures.As AI becomes more embedded in your operations, the focus shifts to scaling it across the organization. This means defining new roles and responsibilities, training your workforce, and establishing effective management and governance structures.

Neeraj highlighted the importance of visualizing what your future “hybrid” workforce—comprised of humans and AI agents—will look like, then reverse-engineering the steps to get there. He shared an example of a CFO who created a parallel "virtual" team to benchmark the capabilities of AI against human employees.

The key is to approach AI adoption as an ongoing organizational transformation, not a one-time technology implementation. This requires aligning AI initiatives with your core business priorities, managing risks and challenges, and continuously adapting based on lessons learned.

Conclusion

Becoming AI-ready is a journey, not a destination. By following these three steps, organizations can position themselves to capitalize on the transformative power of AI and stay ahead of the curve. As Neeraj wisely stated, “Don't get dismayed by the constant changes in technology—stay the course on your chosen path and focus on delivering tangible business value.”