Five Critical Mindshifts To Supercharge Growth With Agentic AI
IBM says pay-off will come when courageous CEOs embrace risk as opportunity
This is my daily post. I write daily but send my newsletter to your email only on Sundays. Go HERE to see my past newsletters.
HAND-CURATED FOR YOU
IBM just released a superb guide to help CEOs and their companies thrive in unpredictable times by embracing the greater efficiency and productivity gains brought by AI adoption, but it’s only for the brave!
What makes this paper special is that it contextualizes AI and its transformative power within our unpredictable and uncertain times. IBM is correct that CEOs and their companies are bombarded by uncertainty, but the brave will see this as a time to turn “turbulence into opportunity.”
IBM rightly advises against “playing it safe” and that “leaders who aren’t leveraging AI and their own data to move forward are making a conscious business decision -not to compete.-
Without further ado, the five mindshifts:
1️⃣ Make courage your core
2️⃣ Embrace AI-fueled creative destruction
3️⃣ Cultivate a vibrant data environment
4️⃣ Ignore the FOMO, lean into ROI
5️⃣ Borrow the talent you can’t buy
As the author of a book on Innovation, IBM is on target with its mind shifts, as AI can be viewed through the lens of innovation, even if it is far more impactful than the digital innovations that preceded it.
As to “creative destruction,” a full 68% of CEOs say AI changes aspects of their business that they consider core.
Unlike prior digital technologies that could be bolted on to an existing business, AI requires destruction and a rethink of everything from products and services to how to run the business.
As an ex-IBMer who worked pitching its Watson AI to banks, I’m pleased that IBM has avoided AI hype in this report.
What it did well was to impress Agentic AI's profound impact on long-term growth strategies upon business leaders, not despite but because of uncertainty.
This is a great read! Enjoy!
👉What CEOs Should Do:
🔹 Get rid of “good enough.”
Inspire teams to think bigger with the boldness of your ambitions. Cut through complexity by setting goals so sharp that everyone understands them—and silos must crumble to meet them. Break big-picture transformation into manageable chunks to build momentum for massive change.
🔹 Create innovation liquidity.
Connect the dots between today’s business demands and the future talent, tech, and other resources that will be required to meet them. Seed transformation through earmarked investment. Fund the innovations that have the greatest potential to drive long-term growth. Make real-time adjustments as needs change and shift budgets accordingly.
🔹 Expect imperfection.
Don’t over-optimize your budgeting process or technical infrastructure for today’s business environment. Prioritize adaptability over efficiency to avoid painting your business into a corner. Arm teams with tools that help them visualize how changes in one area could affect others. Track the domino effect each change has on the organization’s reputation, customer relationships, and employee engagement to improve models, inform future decision-making, and avoid surprises.
Interested in Agentic AI?
Check out my other great articles:
If you know someone who would like this newsletter, please share it with them and help grow our Asia, CBDC, and AI aficionados community!
