Many companies are sprinting toward AI implementation, but feels like some are doing so with the wrong lens. Whether it’s chasing “cool” tech experiments or relying solely on data logs, there is a massive part of the picture they might be missing.
I might be biased, but I believe we need to change how we identify AI opportunities. If you are only looking at your dashboards, you aren’t seeing the whole truth.
The Problem: Data Tells You “What,” Not “Why”
Traditional approaches to automation often fall into two camps:
- The Tech-First Approach: Launching projects because the technology is impressive, rather than solving a concrete business problem.
- The Data-Only Approach: Relying exclusively on Process Mining and system logs to find inefficiencies.
While data is a powerful tool, it has a significant limitation: it only tells you what is happening within your systems. It cannot tell you where your employees are struggling, where they are frustrated, or where they’ve created “invisible” workarounds to bypass broken processes.
Introducing the AI Iceberg of Ignorance
In leadership, we often talk about the “Iceberg of Ignorance.” In the context of AI and automation, this concept is more relevant than ever.
- The Tip (20%): These are the processes management can see. They show up in KPIs, ERP systems, and dashboards.
- The Bottom (80%): This is where the real work happens. It’s the informal workarounds, the manual “fixes,” and the invisible bottlenecks that never leave a digital footprint.
If you only automate the top 20%, you are leaving the majority of your potential ROI under the surface.
Why the Most Successful AI Projects Flip the Iceberg
The most successful AI initiatives I’ve seen do the exact opposite of the “top-down” approach. They start by involving the people who actually have their hands on the keyboard every day.
By giving your employees a voice in the automation journey, you gain two critical advantages:
1. Business Value Over Tech Enthusiasm
When you listen to the people doing the work, you stop automating for the sake of automation. Instead, you identify the processes that actually free up time and create tangible business value. You solve real-world problems rather than technical curiosities.
2. Ownership Over Resistance
Let’s be honest: AI can be intimidating. When a solution is forced from the top down, it often meets resistance. But when employees are the ones identifying the “busy work” they want to get rid of, fear turns into empowerment. It’s no longer about being replaced—it’s about being unburdened.
A Smarter Way to Map Your AI Journey
This philosophy is the core of our AI & Automation Workshop. We don’t just look at your data; we unlock the hidden knowledge of your team.
By using intelligent AI interviews, we systematically gather insights, ideas, and pain points from your employees. This allows us to create a prioritized roadmap of initiatives that are not only technically feasible but also business-critical and organizationally supported.
I might be biased, but the results speak for themselves. If you’re open to a dialogue about how to look beneath the surface of your own “AI Iceberg,” I am happy to explain further.