Artificial intelligence is poised to revolutionize how businesses operate across every industry. But making the leap to become an “AI-powered” organization isn’t easy. As a new report from ServiceNow and Oxford Economics reveals, most companies are still in the early stages of AI adoption and integration.
However, the report also identified an elite group of “AI Pacesetters” that are setting the pace for the rest of the pack. By analyzing the approaches of these trailblazers, we can uncover a playbook for driving successful AI transformation.
The State of Enterprise AI: Uneven Progress According to the Enterprise AI Maturity Index 2024, over a third of organizations (38%) are still in the experimental stage with AI, just identifying automation opportunities. Only 18% say they are leveraging the full transformational power of the technology.
The top-performing Pacesetters, who scored 50 or higher on the 100-point maturity index, are the exception. They are much more likely to be transforming and innovating with AI (33% vs. 14% for others).
What sets the Pacesetters Apart? The report highlights four key factors that distinguish the leaders from the rest:
- Strong Executive Leadership and Vision Pacesetters have buy-in and active engagement from the C-suite. They are twice as likely as others to have a clear, shared AI vision for business transformation. This top-down alignment is foundational for driving organization-wide AI adoption.
- Seamless Workflow Integration Pacesetters have made significant progress in breaking down functional silos and connecting data and processes across the enterprise. They are more likely to have invented new workflows that leverage human-AI collaboration to boost efficiency.
- Robust Talent and Reskilling Efforts Pacesetters are aggressively hiring for specialized AI roles like data scientists, machine learning engineers, and AI configurators. They also prioritize internal reskilling and training programs to build an AI-literate workforce.
- Proactive Governance and Risk Management Pacesetters have made more progress in establishing data governance frameworks, integrating data sources, and addressing evolving AI-specific risks like cybersecurity and compliance. This helps them avoid costly mistakes as they scale AI capabilities.
The Path Forward for All Organizations While the Pacesetters are leading the charge, the report makes it clear that there is still time for other organizations to catch up. The key is to learn from the Pacesetters’ playbook and apply those lessons to your own AI strategy.
As the report concludes, the four critical steps are:
- Use AI to connect people, data, and processes across the organization.
- Leverage AI to scale process improvements and accelerate innovation.
- Implement thoughtful governance frameworks to mitigate AI risks.
- Ensure strong leadership engagement and a clear AI vision from the top.
Becoming an AI-powered enterprise won’t happen overnight. But by following the lead of the Pacesetters, organizations can position themselves to capitalize on the transformative potential of this technology. The race is on – will your company be left behind, or will you join the AI leaders of tomorrow?
To learn more, read the full Enterprise AI Maturity Index 2024 report from ServiceNow and Oxford Economics.