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A recent Salesforce report found that 53% of Australian employees are actively deploying generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) during their working day. This is up from 36% last year and is predicted to increase again over the next 12 months. Currently, McKinsey & Co asserts the most significant GenAI increase in adoption can be found in professional services and the four industries poised to adopt GenAI at a fast rate and to be the most impacted are banking, information and communications technology (ICT) and media, professional services, and education, according to Deloitte.
There is no doubt that GenAI solutions, such as Microsoft Copilot, can positively transform and streamline an enterprises’ operations delivering significant benefits and enhancing overall business performance. However, it’s crucial to apply AI tools in accordance with the organisation’s strategic goals, supported by clear policies to guide employees on their appropriate use. This ensures that AI deployment is carefully planned and considered, aiming to maximise benefits while minimising risks.
GenAI adoption and investing well underway
Despite the emerging risks, many leaders are forging ahead with investing in GenAI to remain competitive, automate key business tasks and optimise operations and workflows. Frances Karamouzis, Distinguished VP Analyst at Gartner, says businesses must invest in GenAI as a priority, and act now or face the consequences, “Business and IT leaders understand that the ‘wait and see’ approach is riskier than investing.”
Gartner also finds that businesses are rushing to deploy GenAI with their latest survey data finding that 55% of businesses are actively piloting GenAI solutions and 78% deem that the gains of GenAI outweigh its risks, up from 68%.
In terms of where companies are investing, according to Salesforce, the top GenAI investments are focused into three categories:
1. Growth initiatives (30%)
2. Cost optimisation (26%)
3. Customer experience and retention (24%)
Workers employing GenAI without transparency or guidelines
While AI solutions can drive incredible innovation and business results, without clear parameters or guidelines of business use around GenAI, businesses face considerable risk. According to a Berlin-based business consultant, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) reported that he was one of the first to use ChatGPT in a work capacity.
“It was like discovering a video game cheat,” he said. “I asked a really technical question from my PhD thesis, and it provided an answer that no one would be able to find without consulting people with very specific expertise. I knew it would be a game changer.”
Globally, employees have a tool at their fingertips that can quickly perform tasks for them in seconds, making it irresistible not to use. According to a recent study, 68% of respondents admitted they used some form of AI for work functions but did not disclose this information to their boss. For this and a variety of reasons, some enterprises have considered banning AI altogether, according to the BBC.
What are the main GenAI risks to businesses?
Securing data and protecting sensitive information is a critical aspect of deployment using AI tools. In its Managing the Risks of Generative AI, PwC’s playbook for enterprises indicates that there are four main risk areas companies cannot ignore. These include:
1. Data risks:
Erroneous data use or generation, sharing intellectual property (IP) or contractual issues can all stem from GenAI. Misleading and harmful content could also inadvertently be made with the low-quality data used to train generative AI models.
2. Model and bias risks:
Flawed and biased algorithms are highly problematic and risk-leaden, potentially leading to a violation of ethical AI standards, and prejudiced or unfair outputs.
3. Prompt or input risks:
Distorted, incorrect or harmful answers stemming from unsophisticated prompts or questions inputted into the AI model can add to reputational risk.
4. User risks:
Everything AI or GenAI produces must be checked by a human, or misinformation or harmful content may inadvertently be created. For example, “AI-generated hallucinations” that are not based in fact or are nonsensical may be presented as fact.
Knowing the risks before moving forward with applying GenAI is critical for any business leader. As part of getting ready for AI, organisations must prioritise defining and building suitable frameworks to deploy responsibly GenAI tools within, but what should this roadmap include? This is where many leaders are stumbling as essentially AI governance is largely an unchartered terrain.
A roadmap to GenAI deployment success
Crafting a strategic governance framework to oversee AI and GenAI projects is critical to ensure that they not only adhere to ethical standards but align with business policies. Compliance should also be a key focus, with organisations taking both local and international data protection laws into consideration, upholding legal and social responsibility standards at the highest degree.
The top 5 AI business roadmap essentials are:
1. Educating employees:
Explore the capabilities and constraints of AI tools for amplifying effectiveness and guaranteeing proper business use.
2. Integrating AI tools responsibly:
Ensure AI improves human capabilities rather than replacing them, thereby promoting a more effective and harmonious working environment. Intellectual property considerations when using GenAI are also crucial.
3. Maintaining transparency:
Accountability is key, and there is significant value in ensuring that all AI operations and decision-making processes are transparent to maintain and increase confidence and trust among stakeholders.
4. Active monitoring and evaluation of AI systems:
This is needed to guarantee a high performance and that operational efficiency and effectiveness are sustained.
5. Comprehensive risk assessments:
With a thorough assessment, leaders can identify and mitigate potential threats associated with deploying AI technologies, protecting the organisation from unforeseen vulnerabilities.
With the proper GenAI strategy, businesses will benefit from a return on investment with AI technologies driving innovation, aiding businesses to remain competitive by streamlining processes, boosting creativity, and providing actionable insights that can support informed decision-making. Further, the potential to customise and adapt AI systems, like Microsoft Copilot, is noteworthy, allowing businesses to meet specific business requirements and environments, thereby adding to their utility and relevance.
Lean on your roadmap and tailored solutions
Balancing GenAI with ethical and secure deployment is one of the biggest challenges for businesses to date, but according to PwC, only 35% of executives indicated their company would focus on improving the governance of AI systems. However, this is a miscalculation that could harm businesses that do not heed the need to protect themselves from potentially damaging events stemming from GenAI use, such as biased outputs, sharing IP, etc.
To ensure that GenAI is deployed to supplement business goals without creating unnecessary risk, leaders must heed the warnings in terms of GenAI use and develop a concise framework, allowing employees and organisations to thrive.
It is also critical businesses stay informed about AI advancements to continuously leverage new opportunities and revise policies, accordingly, and safeguarding the organisation remains at the forefront of technology innovation. Ultimately, an organisation’s strategic roadmap must consider AI limitations and its human workforce, because the promise of GenAI, though unprecedented, must be tempered with human reasoning.
To learn how Experteq services can guide you through a workplace transformation and harness the power of GenAI, contact us today for a consultation.