AI Strategy Framework

When planning your AI strategy, it’s crucial to take an outside-in perspective and employ a future-back approach.

• Outside-In Perspective: Instead of focusing on your current way of working, start by analyzing external AI market drivers. Ask, “What will AI change in your industry? What will remain constant?” This approach ensures your strategy is driven by the broader landscape.
• Future-Back Approach: Envision what the next evolution of your business could look like—your “wave three” transformation. Picture an AI-powered future and work backward to determine how to get there. This ensures today’s actions build towards the long-term vision, rather than optimizing processes that may become obsolete.

Define your ambition with AI. This ambition must align with your overall corporate strategy—it cannot exist in isolation. AI should evolve and contribute to your broader strategic goals, especially as you consider competitive advantage.

Once you identify key areas where AI can reinforce your strengths, set clear objectives which will shape your investment strategy and guide how AI integrates into your corporate goals. For example, will AI be used for margin optimization, efficiency gains, or to drive growth?

Build a roadmap to drive your transformation through the three waves of AI adoption with a starting point in your future organizational jobs-to-be-done.

For example, in product development, AI might initially be used to analyze customer insights faster (Wave 1) or generate better insights for product innovation (Wave 2). Looking ahead to Wave 3, you could envision an AI-powered system autonomously generating and testing new products, bypassing traditional consumer insight cycles. Maintain a vision for Wave 3 and evaluate whether your current investments will still be relevant in the future. Your investments today should build towards what matters tomorrow.

Deploying AI successfully requires more than technology—it involves Talent and Capabilities, Technology and Data Stack, Operating Models, AI Ethics and Sustainability, and AI Governance.

We’re witnessing shifts from siloed decision-making to integrated systems, from executive-led to real-time insights, and from short-term ROI to long-term transformation. Understanding these enablers is critical to support a successful AI strategy.