I've been seeing a trend I thought I'd share — about how companies are thinking about AI in their orgs. I think the Chief AI role may become an evolved version of the CPO/COO, partnered with the CTO.
If AI is working at your company, the KPIs you already care about start moving. The execution engine runs faster and more completely — velocity up, margins better — and the business improves: active customers, revenue, retention, whatever your top-line metric is.
AI replaces your pickaxe with an excavator, yes — but at the end of the day you're still setting a strategy and then driving toward outcomes.
What an AI rollout looks like, tactically
- A platform gets rolled out and maintained — procured, secured, and matured: token-budgeted, hooked up to the company's systems, reliable data, a skills marketplace, harnesses, and a spine of every plugin, agent, and workflow, so people can see what exists and what's being maintained.
- The workforce gets adept at using it.
- The execution engine is multiplied; workflows are reimagined and automated; teams are reshaped for the new norm.
- Customer experience improves in ways customers can actually feel.
- Employee satisfaction climbs — more time on the work we're good at, and less on the tedious stuff.
A natural split of ownership
- Procuring, securing, and maintaining the platform — classic CTO responsibility.
- Applying AI to internal tools, process, and the customer experience — classic CPO/COO work.
My guess is the hunt will be on for CTOs and CPO/COOs whose skillset is deep enough to be hands-on — so they can assemble the right teams and drive real change in their company. (And I'm not underestimating the importance of data or design here — those are vital too.)