Suzanne Hill is the founder of AI for SMEs, a Northern Ireland consultancy and training company dedicated to making AI accessible to non-technical business leaders.
In the past year AI has moved to the forefront of business discussions.
From construction sites to boardrooms, AI tools now promise to automate the routine, accelerate the complex, and help us do more with less. The pace of development is relentless.
We currently have a short (18-24 months) window of opportunity, where companies who are early movers at implementing AI, can take advantage of the competitive advantage that this will give them in productivity, efficiency, engagement and insights.
However, this window of opportunity from early-mover advantage is closing rapidly. What happens after this? How do you build competitive advantage for when everyone is using the AI tools?
Let me talk you through two different scenarios of how I see this playing out.
Imagine two construction firms of similar size, both beginning their AI journey at the same time. Both are well-regarded, both have capable teams, and both see the potential in using AI across their business processes from document control to estimating workflows.
But their decisions will take them down very different paths.
The first company – let’s call them QuickBuild, takes a technology-led approach without a strategy. They move quickly and implement AI-powered assistants for bids and reports, automation in time tracking and early pilots in document search. Uptake is sporadic but enthusiastic.
At first, it looks like momentum, but without a guiding strategy, enthusiasm fragments. Tools are adopted in silos, not scaled. Knowledge doesn’t move across teams. People remain unsure where AI fits into their job, or whether it’s quietly replacing it.
Related: EY’s Richard Thompson on AI's Next Evolutionary Leap
Training for staff has centred around the individual AI tools, but staff are still unaware of the governance, ethical, compliance and cyber implications of using AI.
Regular GDPR breaches are taking place, staff don’t know not to upload commercially sensitive information into the tools. There is no formal process in place for assessing the tools, and whether they have enterprise-grade security. The company’s information governance is like a leaky sieve.
There’s no change in how decisions are made. Insights sit idle because the systems still require multiple levels of sign-off.
After 18 months, some of the tools are still there, but the business isn’t more efficient, or more competitive. It’s busier - digitised, yes. Transformed? Not at all.
The second company – let’s call them FutureBuild, have taken a strategy-first approach.
They start by going back to their business objectives in their business plan and ask ‘how can we use AI to help us achieve our business objectives?
Related: Northern Ireland at the Crossroads: Seizing the AI Opportunity
What challenges are standing in the way of us achieving our business objectives? Where do we need to work smarter?’ They identify three areas where inefficiencies are costing time and margin. AI is introduced purposefully, tied to clear outcomes.
Most important of all, they invest in their people. Basic AI literacy training is given to every member of staff, to make them aware of the implications of using AI from an ethical, governance, compliance and cyber perspective.
FutureBuild has clear AI policies, and internal champions in each department.
As confidence grows, something shifts.
People begin to challenge legacy processes. They stop asking how to speed up old ways of working and start reimagining entirely new ones.
The tools haven’t just changed how work gets done. They’ve changed how people think and it is embedding this mindset shift that makes the crucial difference.
Now the company is exploring new business models. They’re offering real-time insights to clients. They’re rethinking revenue streams that haven’t evolved in decades. AI has become the lens through which the business sees opportunity.
By the time 18 months have passed, both companies have AI embedded in their operations but only one of them has moved forward.
FutureBuild has compounded its advantage. Every insight has informed the next, every team has contributed to the learning curve. Now when competitors are just beginning to rethink their approach, FutureBuild has already laid the groundwork for the next phase: new services, new efficiencies, and a business model that is not only digitally enabled, but strategically agile.
Related: Why Nine Out of Ten AI Projects end in failure
The gap is now in trajectory, not just capability. One company is digitising the past. The other is building the future.
If you’re responsible for strategy in your business, AI implementation isn’t about keeping pace with the latest tools. This is about how your company adapts to an operating environment that’s changing faster than your systems, structures, and in many cases your assumptions.
The greatest risk from AI is that of falling behind in the future because you failed to build the capability to adapt.
If you are starting your AI journey, the single most important decision you can take at this moment, is whether you take a tech-first or a strategy-first approach.
I often talk about ‘organisational transformation’ – but what is that exactly? Essentially it is building your internal capabilities and support structures to future-proof your company.
The only way to build competitive advantage and keep it, is through your people, your systems, and your willingness to lead.
Read the Big Data Special Edition free online →
Stay connected with NI's tech community:
Subscribe to our newsletter – Get the latest tech news, job opportunities, and events delivered to your inbox
Visit Sync NI – Your daily source for Northern Ireland technology news
