Cast your mind back to the 1980s when the ‘Back To The Future’ films captivated audiences all over the world with their ideas of time travel and futuristic technology. Whilst we’re not zipping around town on hoverboards (…yet!), many of the technologies portrayed in the films have become reality: video calls for example, and fingerprint recognition. What was once a novelty, and seemed frankly impossible to the audience of the 1980s, is now an integral part of our business operations and security practices. We now use them every single day without batting an eyelid.

In much the same way, only a few years ago Artificial Intelligence was still a novelty. Now, it’s becoming transformative for businesses and an integral part of their future planning. Much like businesses’ initial adoption of computers and the internet in the 1980s, organisations that don’t embrace technological change will eventually lose their competitive edge and fall behind. Whether we like it or not, AI will become integral to our business operations, so we may as well stay ahead of the curve and embrace it.

In this blog, we’ll talk about why businesses should adopt AI, what AI readiness is, and the importance of data management and cyber security.

Why Should Businesses Care About AI?

As stated above, AI will become integral for businesses whether we choose to embrace it now or not. So if you care about the success of your business, you should be caring about how it’s going to use AI.

In tangible terms though, using AI can significantly impact your business operations. It can automate routine tasks, analyse business data and provide valuable insights, it can aid communication, it can help educate your workforce, and it can make your business more productive and economical. Additionally, those companies that embrace AI now – ‘early adopters’ in the SMB space, if you like – will automatically gain a competitive advantage which in itself will make your business more successful.

What is AI Readiness?

AI readiness refers to how prepared your business is to integrate and leverage AI technologies effectively. It covers various aspects, including infrastructure, data management, workforce skills, and cyber security. Being AI-ready means your business is able to seamlessly adopt AI solutions.

Achieving AI-readiness is an essential step that shouldn’t be missed out. AI readiness ensures that your business’s use of AI, its goals, and what tools you’re using and how, are all unified across the business. It also ensures that your workforce are both mentally and logistically prepared for AI adoption.

Diving into AI usage without first being AI ready, can result in consequences ranging from small staff frustrations and inconveniences, right through to full operational disruption, security vulnerabilities and data breaches.

We know it might feel like a catch 22: embrace AI soon and don’t get left behind, but also make sure you wait and are fully prepared. As with everything, it’s about finding the correct balance for your business.

Key Steps For Achieving AI Readiness

#1 Assess Your Current Infrastructure: Evaluate your existing IT infrastructure to determine if it can support AI technologies. This includes hardware, software, and network capabilities.

#2 Implement Cyber Security Measures: Robust cyber security is essential. Ensure you have the necessary protections in place before deploying AI solutions.

#3 Identify Use Cases: Find the specific areas within your business where AI can effectively be implemented. This might be by optimising a process, or helping to write templates.

#4 Invest in Data Management: Effective AI use relies heavily on excellent data management. Invest in data management solutions to ensure your data is clean and organised.

#5 Develop Workforce Skills: Upskill your employees to work with AI tools like Copilot. This may involve training in data analysis, machine learning, and cyber security, or simply showing them what AI can do. A confident and knowledgeable workforce is more likely to embrace change effectively.

#6 Adopt In Bite Sized Chunks: Begin with pilot projects in your business and assess their success. AI adoption should gradually happen over time with lots of learning and adapting along the way – not a sudden overnight switch.

Preparing from a Security Perspective

As AI becomes an integral part of your business, ensuring robust cyber security is paramount. AI systems often handle sensitive data, making them attractive targets for cybercriminals. Implementing strong encryption protocols is essential to safeguard data processed by AI systems. This ensures that data is stored securely and access is restricted to authorised personnel only. Establishing stringent access controls, such as multi-factor authentication, helps prevent unauthorised access to AI tools and data. These cyber security measures are inherent in Microsoft’s Copilot for Business because it lives in the Microsoft environment, but external tools such as Chat GPT won’t have the same stringent security measures in place.

Conducting regular security audits is another critical step. These audits help identify and address vulnerabilities in your AI infrastructure, allowing you to mitigate potential risks before they become significant. Educating your staff on cyber security best practices and the specific risks associated with AI is equally important.

We talk a lot about having a comprehensive, tried and tested Disaster Recovery plan. If you’re changing the way you work, the tools you use and where your data is accessible from, this all needs to be accounted for in your Disaster Recovery plan.

Effective Data Management

Data management is a cornerstone of AI readiness. As AI systems process vast amounts of data, protecting this data from breaches and unauthorised access is critical.

Poor data management can expose your business to a multitude of risks. One of the most immediate dangers is the potential for data breaches. As with all data breaches, whether AI is involved or not, this can lead to significant financial losses, legal penalties, and damage to your business’s reputation.

Internally, poor data management can lead to unauthorised access to confidential documents, which could compromise business operations or lead to HR issues for example. A zero trust approach is essential in the cyber security world, meaning you assume threats exist both inside and outside your organisation. Zero trust needs to apply to AI usage as well.

Additionally, failing to comply with data protection regulations can result in severe legal consequences. Regulatory bodies impose hefty fines on businesses that do not adhere to data security standards. Ensuring robust data security is not just about protecting information though; it’s about maintaining the trust of your customers, partners, and stakeholders.

Conclusion

AI readiness is not just about technology. It’s about preparing your business holistically to embrace the future. By focusing on infrastructure, data management, workforce skills, and cyber security, businesses can position themselves to reap the benefits of AI while safeguarding their operations.

If you’d like to discuss how to embrace AI in your organisation, please fill in the form below and we’ll be in touch.