95% of AI projects fail (we all know the stat).
And a huge chunk of those failures happens right after the pilot phase.
Firstly, because we’re automating the wrong things. Something seems obvious to automate - maybe it’s a paper process, maybe it just “makes sense.” But if it doesn’t actually matter to the business, we’ve failed even if the technology works perfectly.
Secondly, we’re not building champions. Every AI success should be creating mindset in the organization that this is helping, that it’s driving real results. When people see wins, they contribute more ideas. Suddenly, everyone wants to use AI.
Third, we’re thinking too big. If your AI project is going to take six months, it’s way too big. Even three months is probably too much to start with.
Every organization has muscles to grow around AI - thinking about it, implementing it, managing it. Start bite-sized. Prove value quickly. Build momentum.
But make sure that the bite-sized project has a why attached to it. Otherwise, you’re just practicing technology without driving business results.
And start by asking yourself: What’s the project you can get live in 60 to 90 days?