Only a tiny proportion of businesses in Jersey and Guernsey are seeing both revenue growth and cost savings from AI, raising a difficult question… what are the successful ones doing differently?
After PwC research showed six out of ten Channel Islands business leaders are worried their organisations are not moving fast enough to keep up with artificial intelligence, the firm brought together AI specialists, business leaders and technology experts for an event earlier this month to discuss what the hurdles are… and practical ways to move forward.
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Here are five lessons from Advisory Council Chair Leo Johnson, Data, AI and Tech Lead Lilia Christofi, Chief Technology Officer Chris Eaton and Partner Lisa McClure for organisations looking to move beyond experimentation and start using AI more effectively…
1. Stop asking how to automate – start asking what outcome you want
One of the strongest themes to emerge from the event was that businesses often approach AI the wrong way around.
Instead of asking how a process can be automated, organisations should first define the outcome they are trying to achieve. Speakers argued that firms should focus on solving customer problems and improving experiences, rather than simply replacing manual tasks with technology.
Pictured: One of the slides in the presentation encouraged teams to think carefully about the outcomes they wanted to achieve with AI.
Attendees were told the question should shift from, “Which team owns this workflow?” to, “What outcome or risk is present?”
2. Get your data in order
Business leaders must realise that AI is only as useful as the information it can access.
Businesses should start by mapping processes and improving the quality of their data before pursuing more ambitious AI projects.
It was noted that many Channel Islands firms still have work to do in this area, particularly around ensuring AI tools can access relevant information and documents.
Pictured: Some of the findings from PwC’s recent CEO survey.
The firm’s latest CEO survey found data readiness remains one of the weakest foundations for AI adoption locally.
3. Build a strategy before chasing the latest tools
Businesses are increasingly experimenting with AI products, but the PwC event warned that isolated pilots and one-off projects rarely deliver lasting value.
Instead, firms were encouraged to create a clear enterprise-wide strategy that links AI investment to business objectives.
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According to speakers, the organisations most likely to succeed will not necessarily be those with the most AI tools, but those with the most coherent strategy.
“Winning organisations will not have the most AI agents, they will have the most coherent strategy,” attendees were told.
4. Don’t forget the human element
While much of the discussion centred on technology, it was stressed that AI is ultimately about people.
Technology was described as an “amplifier of intent”, with leaders urged to think carefully about what they want AI to achieve rather than focusing solely on the technology itself.
The event also highlighted the growing importance of softer skills, including creativity, critical thinking, experimentation and entrepreneurship.
In the long term, it was argued, technology alone will not be a competitive advantage, people will.
5. Move now – but move sensibly
The overall message was not that every organisation needs to rush headlong into AI.
Pictured: One of the “five imperatives” of a business’s AI journey should be redesigning human work around judgment.
Instead, businesses were urged to take a proportionate approach, focusing on areas where AI can genuinely transform operations or customer experience while maintaining appropriate governance and controls.
There was also a warning against standing still, though it was noted at the event – appropriately titled ‘Reinvention in the age of AI’ – that the Channel Islands have a long history of adaptation.
And, it was heard, Jersey and Guernsey’s “Goldilocks” size – not too big, not too small, able to experiment but small enough to move as a community – may well be a “strategic advantage”.
It’s a point that has repeatedly been made by Digital Jersey CEO Tony Moretta, who shared what to expect from Jersey’s AI future in the latest episode of The Interview from Bailiwick Podcasts – watch it on YouTube or listen wherever you get your podcasts.
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Want to know more about what to expect from Jersey’s AI future? Bailiwick Express and Connect Editor Fiona Potigny caught up with Digital Jersey CEO Tony Moretta…
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