Follow the Leaders: What Competencies are Required to Get AI Right?

Leentje Chavatte

Leentje Chavatte

Microsoft, Data & AI and Digital Transformation

Read Time, 3 min.

Every technology goes through an age of discovery and an age of implementation. Today, AI is hurtling full speed through its age of implementation. Companies are applying this technology to empower employees, engage with customers and transform their businesses.

“All the big tech companies are spending money on AI capabilities. They have explicit visions to master human thinking and behaviour. When you combine it with computing power, it will be inevitable.” – Skandia

Microsoft and EY surveyed 277 companies, across 7 sectors and 15 countries to understand how AI is being used by businesses across Europe. We identified the eight most recognised capabilities needed to successfully create value from AI. Company executives who are leading the way in AI were asked to rank the importance of these capabilities.

 The Eight Most Important Capabilities

Realising the Potential of AI

Advanced Analytics came out as the most important AI capability among the companies surveyed.

This is perhaps not surprising. The backbone of AI is made up of skilled, intelligent minds capable of understanding business problems at the granular level and deploying AI to effectively solve these problems.

This survey reveals a major lack of technical data skills to meet the drastically rising demand for AI. Finding and hiring AI experts has become extremely competitive. Functional AI experts are now often paid higher salaries than their superiors. In some cases, new HR policies are even being drafted to reflect evolving requirements.

Data Management is second. This survey found a significant proportion of the time companies dedicate to AI is spent on data management related tasks. Companies reported that they are spending 2-3 years building the necessary data infrastructure for AI. Companies with the most ambitious AI visions are still spending the majority of their time fine-tuning their infrastructure.

The third most important capability was AI Leadership. This underscores the need for leaders to understand and articulate a clear AI vision.

Fostering an Open Culture came next. To do this successfully leaders must be transparent with ongoing AI projects and their desired outcomes.

Understanding how to deploy the right Emerging Technologies came fifth, followed by Agile Development. Fast experimentation and iterative processes using evolving technology should promote quick internal learning.

External Alliances ranks second to last in terms of importance. Perhaps this is because it’s an area where leaders already perceive themselves be the most in control. Bringing behavioural science into play via Emotional Intelligence is seen as the least important AI enabling capability. This may be due to companies still getting to grips with the complex technical skills before moving onto more advanced human cognitive skills.

The Leading Sectors

Sectors that are more mature in using AI report higher competency in Advanced Analytics – particularly TMT (Telecom, Media/Entertainment and Technology). Life Sciences companies (including Healthcare & Pharma) report lower competency in AI Leadership. A possibility is that in the pharmaceutical industry, AI chiefly resides in R&D, and has yet to affect the broader organization on the wider strategic level.

Free AI report: Artificial Intelligence in Western Europe - How 277 major European companies benefit from AI

Discover how your Western European peers use AI to digitally transform their organization

Discover more related articles per industry:

Education

Finance & Insurance

  • a large building

    Luxembourg Stock Exchange: building a transparent, agile and innovative cloud infrastructure

    “We are proud to be the first financial institution in Luxembourg to migrate its entire financial core system to the cloud.” Laurent Pulinckx, CIO at Luxembourg Stock Exchange and his team have helped their company reach a significant milestone this year. By becoming the first financial institution in Luxembourg to be approved by the regulator […]

  • External shot of Fire Group offices building

    The Fire Group: how data-driven processes are reshaping sustainable credit management

    “We want to change the way credit management is perceived, because we play an important social role in this sector. Data and technology allow us to show the critical role that we play in a more direct way.” Sonia Di Nuzzo, Corporate Communication Leader at Fire is outlining the ambitious goal the company is setting for the industry it operates in with data. As Italy’s largest independent credit management solutions provider, Fire plays a pivotal role […]

Government

Healthcare

  • Scientist looking at a screen with data

    European Health Data Space aims to unleash the full potential of health data

    Background A key challenge in healthcare today is that both patients and clinicians have difficulty accessing the health data they need. This has multiple implications. For patients, it prevents them playing a more proactive role in their own care.  For clinicians, it affects their productivity and the quality of the care they can provide. In […]

  • Two people working together

    Making Every Day Better with Microsoft Teams

    Finland’s second-largest public sector employer, HUS Helsinki University Hospital, deployed Microsoft Teams extensively in its organization of 27,000 employees. Microsoft Teams provides HUS with a foundation for customer-oriented digital transformation, which acts as a part of its vision to be a trendsetter in healthcare. The deployed Microsoft services offer an easy-to-use solution for remote appointments […]

Manufacturing

Retail

  • How to Stay Competitive in Retail and Accelerate Business Growth?

    How to Stay Competitive in Retail and Accelerate Business Growth?

    The rise of ecommerce has been a major factor in the shift towards digital in retail with the high street increasingly becoming a less regular destination for consumers. Customers have come to expect a superior experience across multiple channels (including in-store). Maximizing customer insights requires unifying your data sources across the end-to-end buyer journey to […]

  • man and woman in a store looking at a large touch screen

    The road to business resilience: What it is and why it matters to retailers

    I think most of us are familiar with the saying of “fall seven times – rise up eight”. Not only is it applicable to life itself but also to the perseverance and resilience that the last couple of years has brought to all types businesses around the world. Let’s recap some of the challenges the […]

Discover more related articles per dossier:

Customer Stories

Digital Transformation

  • Potato producers benefit from sensors (IoT) and AVR’s technological innovations

    Potato producers benefit from sensors (IoT) and AVR’s technological innovations

    In Roeslare (Roulers in French), better known by the name “Potato Valley,” potato producers have a particular fondness for AVR’s machines and technologies, which mean they can plant and harvest potatoes more efficiently. More and more of AVR’s machines are equipped with sensors that are connected to the internet (IoT This technology provides farmers with […]

Security & Privacy

Tips

  • Asian woman looking at a tablet

    Microsoft Cloud for Retail: Connect your customers, people, and data

    Retailers have experienced times of tremendous uncertainty. It’s time to lean into change and thrive by becoming a resilient retailer that drives sustainable profitability and growth. We work closely with our partner ecosystem to offer proven solutions that help retailers in 4 key areas to become resilient and experience sustainable success:  Maximize the value of […]