Study highlights blind spots in organizations' AI strategies

While organizations are showing overconfidence in their artificial intelligence (AI) plans, fragmented AI strategies and poor execution is failing to leverage the technology, revealed a new research report published today.

According to the findings of the report commissioned by Hewlett Packard Enterprise, nearly half (44%) of IT leaders surveyed believe their organizations are fully set up to realize the benefits of AI. The report however reveals critical gaps in their strategies, such as a lack of alignment between processes and metrics, resulting in consequential fragmentation in approach, which will further exacerbate delivery issues.

The report, ‘Architect an AI Advantage’, which surveyed more than 2,000 IT leaders from 14 countries, including India, found that while global commitment to AI shows growing investments, businesses are overlooking key areas that will have a bearing on their ability to deliver successful AI outcomes.

For example, the report underscores the critical role of data quality in driving effective AI performance. Despite acknowledging data management’s significance, organizations’ data maturity levels remain low. Only a small fraction (7%) of respondents can execute real-time data pushes/pulls for innovation and external data monetization, while a mere 26% have established data governance models for advanced analytics.

Furthermore, gaps persist in compute and networking requirements throughout the AI lifecycle, raising concerns about provisioning accuracy. Despite high confidence levels in network infrastructure and compute capacity flexibility, less than half of IT leaders claim a full understanding of AI workload demands across different stages, indicating potential provisioning inaccuracies.

Notably, the report highlights organizational silos and neglect of ethics and compliance as key challenges. Fragmented AI approaches and inadequate consideration of ethics and compliance pose risks, including exposure of proprietary data and the development of non-compliant AI models, impacting brand reputation, sales, and legal ramifications.

Sylvia Hooks, vice president at HPE Aruba Networking, said, “There’s no doubt AI adoption is picking up pace, with nearly all IT leaders planning to increase their AI spend over the next 12 months. These findings demonstrate the appetite for AI, but they also highlight very real blind spots that could see progress stagnate if a more holistic approach is not followed.” 

“Misalignment on strategy and department involvement – for example – can impede organizations from leveraging critical areas of expertise, making effective and efficient decisions, and ensuring a holistic AI roadmap benefits all areas of the business congruently,” added Hooks.

To be sure, a study by data analytics firm Qlik and Enterprise Strategy Group (ESG) published last week also identified gaps in AI underscoring the need for robust ethical frameworks and transparent AI operations to navigate the complexities of AI integration into business processes. It said while firms are investing significantly in AI, 74% of organizations lack a comprehensive, organization-wide approach to responsible AI. A significant 86% face challenges with ensuring transparency and explainability in AI systems, and nearly all organizations (99%) encounter hurdles in staying compliant with AI regulations and standards.