Optimizing Beyond Excel: Industries GRC’s Success Story
Find out how one metal products manufacturer optimized production planning and boosted operational efficiency with a tailor-made solution.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is no longer just a futuristic technology—it’s now an essential component for optimizing processes, improving efficiency, and staying competitive. However, integrating AI into an organization can seem complex. How should you proceed? Here are 8 simple steps to create an AI integration plan tailored to your business needs.
Before considering which AI tools to use or developing new custom solutions, start by clarifying your company’s strategic objectives. What do you aim to achieve with AI? Are you looking to:
Example: A steel company might aim to reduce manual processing of compliance documents (e.g., mill test reports) or anticipate raw material needs for strategic purchasing.
Tip: Ensure that AI aligns with your business objectives to maximize its impact.
Once your objectives are established, conduct a comprehensive review of your internal processes. Which areas could benefit from automation or optimization? AI should address specific needs, not just be implemented for novelty.
Identify operational pain points such as:
Example: AI could be used to automate supplier invoice processing or improve production scheduling.
Based on your assessment, select a few use cases where AI can have an immediate impact. It’s crucial to start with projects that demonstrate quick and tangible results.
Examples:
Tip: Don’t start too big. Focus on quick wins to showcase AI’s benefits and build internal support.
Successful AI integration requires forming a dedicated innovation team. This team should include both technology experts and staff familiar with operational challenges.
Team composition:
Example: In a steel manufacturing company, the innovation team might include a production engineer, the operations manager, the logistics head, and an AI expert.
With the team in place, choose the AI tools that best suit your needs. You might use existing AI solutions to automate routine tasks (e.g., automated invoicing software or AI-integrated CRM tools) while developing custom features for processes specific to your business. Collaborating with specialized external partners can accelerate AI integration and maximize its impact.
Tip: Balance existing software for partial automation with custom coding to extend automation capabilities. The more tailored code your business uses, the faster you can infuse AI into your processes and gain a competitive edge.
Find out how one metal products manufacturer optimized production planning and boosted operational efficiency with a tailor-made solution.
Before deploying AI across the company, establish a clear usage policy. AI can raise concerns about data security, privacy, and task automation. Your policy should guide responsible AI use while protecting the company.
Key elements of an AI policy:
Example: Employees might be required to activate the ChatGPT setting that prevents their input data from being used to train the public model, ensuring that confidential submission documents remain secure.
For a smooth transition, train your teams to use AI tools effectively. Every employee should understand how to incorporate AI into their daily tasks, and the innovation team must provide ongoing support.
Example: Train teams to use AI for automating invoice entry or leveraging ChatGPT to draft business proposals.
Tip: Schedule regular follow-ups to measure results, identify issues, and adjust the strategy as needed.
Once AI is implemented, track results regularly. The metrics to monitor will depend on your initial goals: productivity gains, error reduction, increased sales, etc. Use this data to refine your AI strategy.
Example: If AI used for inventory management doesn’t yield expected results, the innovation team could tweak the algorithm’s parameters or explore alternative tools.
Tip: Stay flexible. AI implementation is a continuous learning process.
AI integration doesn’t have to be an intimidating project. It’s about taking one manageable step at a time. By following these simple steps—from defining objectives to measuring results—you can make AI a driver of transformation and efficiency in your company. Start small, ensure AI addresses real needs, and support your teams throughout the transition. With the right plan and approach, AI can become a significant asset for your competitiveness.
At Openmind and Code&Steel, we understand the unique challenges of the steel industry and have extensive expertise in integrating AI to maximize our clients’ efficiency and competitiveness. As a strategic partner, we guide you through every step, from assessing needs to implementing custom solutions. Our deep industry knowledge and mastery of AI technologies enable us to identify high-ROI solutions and ensure a smooth, secure transition to advanced automation.
Together, let’s make AI and custom coding a sustainable lever for your growth and competitiveness.
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1
During the brainstorming phase, we work with you to identify potential solutions to your business challenges to generate the technology response that aligns with your business objectives.
2
Through our requirements gathering process, we work closely with you to define and prioritize your needs, ensuring that our solutions are tailored to meet your specific requirements.
3
This phase marks the beginning of our partnership. We’ll finalize the project plan and establish clear communication channels to ensure a smooth and successful project execution.