Maximizing AI in Business: A Strategic Approach to Risk & ROI

If you are reading this article, dear reader, you are probably curious about artificial intelligence and the impact it could have on your business. I will be blunt; it is an exciting time to introduce AI into the workplace. However, your excitement should be tempered with a focus on risk avoidance to maximize the return on your investment.

Artificial intelligence continues to evolve, with new products entering the market almost daily to improve how we work. While most AI products are still far from something like Skynet, in this author's opinion, we are closer to true machine intelligence today than ever before.

There is a great deal of excitement around AI adoption, but before flipping the switch, there are key considerations that must be addressed:

Define Your Value Proposition AI is a jack of many trades, but general AI, especially tools like ChatGPT, is a master of none. To truly maximize your AI investment, it's important to understand your use cases and pinpoint the ways AI will bring real value to your organization.
Consider Data Security AI has extensive reach, and if it is not configured properly or if your data security is insufficient, it may access information it shouldn't. Once AI gains access to sensitive data, it becomes difficult, if not impossible, to prevent unauthorized individuals inside or outside your organization from accessing it as well.
Define a Policy Consider the bigger picture and the appropriateness of using AI in your business. Ensure that your defined use cases do not cross ethical boundaries or create regulatory challenges for your organization.

A Tactical Approach to AI Adoption

The best way to integrate AI effectively is to identify key use cases that are complex from an effort perspective but have well-tested AI solutions available. Starting with a tight scope and a tailored tool will provide valuable lessons on how AI can be used in your organization and the benefits it brings. This approach also helps convince stakeholders, both today and in the future, of AI’s investment value.

One common challenge we encounter in our work is the issue of content classification. Many businesses that have been operating for years accumulate mountains of unstructured data that are difficult to manage and classify. As a result, the default approach is often to hold onto it rather than deal with it. Some organizations with ample manpower opt for manual classification, but this is rarely realistic, making AI an excellent solution for driving efficiency and value.

Cadence Solutions has developed Peregrine Classify, a tool that uses local, private instances of large language models to classify and extract information from unstructured documents. In testing, we have achieved accuracy rates of 80% or higher, an excellent benchmark overall. The hours saved are significant, and for a relatively low investment, AI can help organizations clean up their data efficiently. In fact, we are currently assisting a large energy client with this exact challenge, cleaning up legacy data and ensuring key documents are properly organized for ease of use.

Steps to Maximize Your AI ROI

To fully capitalize on AI, IT leaders should take the following steps:

Find Your Use Case Identify a narrow, labor-intensive scope where AI can provide significant efficiency gains.
Select the Right Tool Choose a vendor with a proven AI solution tailored to your specific needs. Avoid forcing a general tool into a specialized use case unless it can easily meet your requirements.
Scope a Pilot Select a small section of your use case and test it with the AI tool. Consider discussing pilot licensing options with the vendor to validate whether the tool is a good fit.
Structure for Risk Avoidance Ensure security best practices are in place and that each component of the solution meets your security and compliance requirements. Use a well-defined scope to mitigate risks.
Execute and Track Define key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure the AI model’s effectiveness. Monitor its performance throughout the pilot and report on the results.

As experts in data protection and governance, Cadence Solutions has guided many clients through the early stages of AI adoption. While we aim to remain at the forefront of innovative AI use cases, our strong foundation in data governance and protection ensures a risk-averse and cautious approach to implementation. We have found a middle ground, one that balances innovation with security.

If you’re looking for inspiration on where to start your AI journey, we’re happy to share our learnings and success stories. Feel free to reach out with any questions!