FOREWORD

Organisations face a myriad of challenges in their ‘race’ to adopt and implement AI tools. How can organisations navigate AI adoption while ensuring human factors are properly considered? Advisory boards play an important role in getting it right. We brought together global experts to discuss the topic at our recent Executive Insights webinar with Helen Zeitoun, Benedcite Hennebo, Raihan Islam, Dr. Magali Azema-Barac and Deborrah Lambourne. We’ve wrapped up the key points below.

At a Glance

The key message was clear: successful AI adoption is not just about technology. It’s about people, purpose, data, and governance. The panel highlighted that many AI initiatives fall short because organisations focus on tools rather than strategy. True value comes from starting with clear commercial goals, fixing underlying processes, and ensuring data is fit for purpose. Just as importantly, AI must be human-led and built on trust, supported by the right skills, and aligned to organisational culture. The bottom line? AI delivers value when it is human-centric, commercially grounded, and well governed. Advisory boards play an important role in getting it right.

Key Insights

1. AI Adoption Is a Human-Centric Transformation

Evidence cited shows that only a small proportion of GenAI use cases currently deliver profits, largely due to insufficient attention to culture, skills, and processes. Advisory boards are there to challenge management and address:

• Clear articulation of why AI is being pursued and how it aligns to the organisation’s mission
• Human fears, trust, and ethical considerations, not merely compliance
• New skills and roles created by AI, not just automation-driven cost reduction

2. Start with Clear Commercial Purpose, Not Technology

Applying AI to broken or poorly understood processes simply accelerates failure (“garbage in, garbage out”). Commercial lessons included:

• Begin with customer problems and value creation, not internal excitement or investor pressure
• Fix and simplify processes before layering AI on top
• Avoid “big bang” rollouts; instead use pilots, proofs of concept, and tight feedback loops

3. Rethinking ROI in AI Initiatives

Organisations and their advisory boards must ensure that chosen metrics are genuinely linked to strategic outcomes (and are validated early) rather than celebrating local improvements that fail to deliver enterprise value. While revenue growth, cost efficiency, and productivity remain important, the panel highlighted broader value indicators, including:

• Customer satisfaction, loyalty, and reduced friction across journeys
• Employee engagement, retention, and empowerment
• Quality, speed, and consistency of decision-making

4. Data and Implementation: “Fit for Purpose” Before Scale

Organisations frequently underestimate the work required to prepare trustworthy and usable data. It is important to understand what data exists, what is relevant, and what can legally and ethically be used. Advisory boards add value by helping organisations learn from others’ mistakes rather than repeating them internally.

5. Advisory Boards Play a Critical Role

By providing independent perspective and real-world experience, advisory boards help organisations challenge “AI for AI’s sake,” avoid costly missteps, and stay focused on outcomes that matter. They also support stronger governance, better decision-making, and more confident scaling from pilot to enterprise-wide adoption.

That’s a Wrap!

If your organisation is keen to explore what advisory boards could do for your business, get in touch here.