20 Tips to Boost Productivity With AI While Managing Its Risks

Start With Internal Pilot Projects and Develop Robust Measurement Systems to Get the Most Out of AI While Mitigating Risks.

Many companies are using AI to increase efficiency and reduce costs. However, because this technology is still evolving, it can create disruptions in your organization’s culture and workflow if not used effectively.

Below, members of Fast Company Executive Board share their tips for using AI to increase growth while managing the potential risks involved. With a well-planned approach that focuses on organizational goals and measurements for success, your company can leverage AI sustainably to support your team.

1. Be Slow and Steady

To effectively leverage AI and automation, companies should adopt an incremental approach, balancing innovation with thoughtful implementation. Regularly recalibrating AI strategies and investing in employee education ensures that growth is sustainable and ethical. This approach mitigates risks while fostering long-term, responsible innovation. – Eddy Azad, Parsec Automation Corp.

2. Build Systems for AI

Invest in AI and automation holistically across entire processes rather than in fragments for minor productivity gains. View applied AI, generative AI, and traditional automation as a collective toolkit to create substantial value. Redesign processes with these technologies, rather than simply replicating them, and ensure the availability of quality data for reliable outcomes. – Traci Gusher, EY

3. Use AI to Support Relationships

Wealth management firms balance risks such as privacy and AI-powered disruptions with a very high-touch, relationship-based experience. Our successful clients win by automating the obvious such as scheduling, note-taking, and other tasks while using AI-assisted experiences for financial advisors to better prepare for client meetings using AI copilots. – Sindhu Joseph, CogniCor

4. Test and Measure ROI

I recommend establishing a Center of Excellence (COE) to prioritize and measure ROI across enterprise-wide use cases. Start with pilot projects to test and refine approaches. Understand the business impact, including ROI, customer experience, and risk. Involve stakeholders early and update the strategic roadmap regularly for sustained growth and agility. – Mukesh Kumar, Slalom

5. Ensure Internal Alignment

To drive growth with AI, teams must be philosophically aligned. For example, marketing and contact center sales often operate in silos, despite playing overlapping roles in the consumer journey. AI can improve these critical functions, but both teams must first align on common goals and measures of success. Without a shared philosophy, technology alone won’t maximize ROI. – Gregg Johnson, Invoca

6. Apply Tech to Support Your People

You can’t just put AI on autopilot and expect a favorable outcome. Meaningful advancements in AI that drive actual efficiency and productivity are only possible with humans in the loop. You’ve got to consider not just the implications of a “hands-off” approach but whether it’s ultimately even desirable. AI should always augment people—it should really be called “augmented intelligence.” – Rahul Roy-Chowdhury, Grammarly

7. Focus on Outcomes

Companies don’t buy AI. They buy solutions to improve their businesses. If AI means better solutions, they will invest in it. Otherwise, it’s just a buzzword. Each use case will take time and effort to launch. Companies need frameworks and scorecards to evaluate ROI versus the cost of acquiring, implementing, and maintaining solutions. – Ronald M. Razmi, Zoi Capital

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