How can AI professionals demonstrate leadership potential?

In the realm of effective leadership within AI, it all comes down to the ability to unravel intricate AI algorithms and concepts, making them comprehensible to a diverse audience. Mastery of this art empowers AI professionals to bridge the chasm that separates the technical experts from those less initiated in the ways of AI. Moreover, emphasizing a resolute commitment to data-centric AI, where insights are extracted from data and tactically employed, offers an additional pathway for showcasing leadership potential. This necessitates the ability to harness the formidable might of data to foster innovation and facilitate well-informed decision-making, thus establishing a fundamental pillar of leadership in the AI domain.

Let’s take a lesson from history. Ada Lovelace, born in 1815, was a mathematician who made groundbreaking contributions to computing. Collaborating with Charles Babbage on the Analytical Engine, a mechanical general-purpose computer, she developed algorithms and laid the foundation for modern computing. She showed us: 1. Vision: Envision AI's future possibilities and align them with business goals. 2. Collaboration: Build multidisciplinary teams to combine technical expertise with business acumen. 3. Education: Share AI knowledge to bridge the gap between technology and business. 4. Execution: Turn strategic visions into actionable tasks and projects. 5. Adaptability: Stay agile and pivot strategies in response to evolving technology.

As an AI DigiTransform strategist, I bring outside opinions to the Boardroom and CSuite for AI projects of various kinds. Since every situation is unique, I need to know my audience (the company executives and their culture, as well as their overall business goals) to then bring forward future-proof AI strategies for their consideration. These proposals should address the current and future expectations and needs of all stakeholders.

Communication of estimated costs and benefits is key. While solving for innovation or perceived client need, I often see the AI community overselling. For example, I see a lot of marketing literature on creating a company-specific LLM. There are indeed a number of good case studies (e.g., client support chat), but the cost to build and maintain a bespoke LLM needs to be understood up front. Be sure to clearly communicate both sides of the value proposition.

🤝 Brand trust is more fragile yet essential in the AI age. Recent Pew research finds that 70% of consumers don't trust brands to integrate AI responsibly. But this also presents an opportunity for brands to distinguish themselves and outpace competitors. How? 🧠 Lead with Empathy: Ensure your strategy reflects and addresses top consumer fears and about AI: data misuse, impersonal interactions and potential misinformation. 🗨️ Clear Communication and Messaging: Highlight the real-world problems your AI solutions solve, emphasizing AI's role in adding value and enhancing consumer experience. 🔒 Data & Operational Transparency: Proactively share how, why, and what data is collected and used. Ensure data polices are easily accessible.

As an AI professional, you rarely work on a project purely in isolation. There is typically a stakeholder or stakeholder group who will use the model or application that you are building. The more you can understand about *their* tasks and *their* problems, the better your foundation for what’s next. If these stakeholders are within your own company, look them up and ask for an introduction — approach it with genuine curiosity. Think about questions to ask (ChatGPT can be a good helper here). And as you are learning about *them* listen to how your contribution fits into their work or accomplishing a goal they have. So the next time you speak about your work, you can relate it back to your stakeholders.

Profissionais de IA, assim como profissionais de outras áreas, devem demonstrar capacidade de colaborar com equipes multidisciplinares, comunicar ideias técnicas complexas e fomentar uma cultura de cooperação. Também é importante assumir o papel de mentor para membros juniores da equipe, demonstrando potencial de liderança.

In the early days of my venture, SensViz, I collaborated with a cross-functional team to develop an AI-driven product for real-time data visualization. The mix of expertise from different domains initially led to varied opinions and approaches. However, by encouraging a culture of open dialogue, valuing everyone's input, and aligning our goals, we were able to innovate efficiently. This experience taught me that effective collaboration, not just within AI teams but across different functional areas, is crucial for driving innovative solutions and displaying leadership potential in the AI sector.

AI/ML delivery is a very collaborative engagement. Sometimes engineers work in silos on specific components and may not be involved in end to end nature (full stack) either by the organisational design or chose to be specific. While there is no right or wrong; the specific intent of the individual getting a better understanding of the model usage and implications helps build a lot of value. Apart from collaboration, learning on understandin delivery and usage is key. Key aspects to be kept in mind. 1. Understand the domain/ use case 2. Work with consumption on the ground / operational usage 3. Attend some of the meetings to see how the model is working on the ground 4. Engage with model metrics and explore improvement areas

- Enterprise-wide AI project needs data engineers, ML engineers, data scientists, visualisation experts, business SME, platform engineer (platforms like Databricks etc.) & project manager - Multiple teams from different departments collaborate to deliver AI project. business team (for whom project is being done), data team (who own database/data lake where data is present), AI team (data scientists, ML engineers), PMO (providing project managers) etc - Since professionals have different technical/business background, their perspectives are different - Their department goals are different - However, team members need to collaborate to create win win situations, share success, understand each other & keep project success the primary goal.

With AI, it's about people, their problems, and their needs—not just about algorithms and code. The models and applications that AI professionals build are tools for someone else's toolkit, designed to solve their challenges, and streamline their tasks. Creative problem solving starts with pausing and considering: “Who is on the other side of this model? What's their day-to-day pain?” To demonstrate leadership, dive deeper down that path. Engage with the very people who rely on your creations. Shoot them a message, grab a coffee, immerse in their world. The insights? Priceless. Both for the project and as a AI leader. Once you truly understand the problem space, you can collaborate and innovate with creative solutions.

Problem-solving is indeed a crucial skill for AI professionals and leaders in the field. AI professionals are often tasked with addressing complex, novel challenges that demand creativity, innovation, and analytical thinking. Here's why problem-solving is essential in the AI domain: Complex Data Challenges: AI often involves working with vast and diverse datasets. Professionals must develop innovative solutions to extract valuable insights, make predictions, or automate processes from these data. Algorithm Development: Creating and fine-tuning AI algorithms and models requires problem-solving skills. AI professionals must optimize algorithms to achieve the desired performance metrics and adapt them to changing requirements.

Creative problem-solving is a cornerstone of leadership in AI. It's not just about technical fixes, but about exploring solutions from various angles and learning through the process. Encountering a challenge is an invitation to think outside the box, collaborate, and improve. This approach not only leads to better solutions but also fosters a culture of continual learning and improvement, essential for any leader in the dynamic field of AI. Over time, this proactive problem-solving stance is what differentiates a good professional from a great leader.

Innovation is art. Leadership is a skill. Solving problems takes both especially with the adoption of new technologies like AI/ML. It takes vision to see the potential of an AI tool. The developer lacks your skills and experiences to fully appreciate the value that a particual tool could bring to a problem set. Need an example? Look no farther than the Graphical Processing Unit. It was born in a niche industry for cinema and video production...it took that innovation and leadership model to actualize value in crypto currency computations...and it took addtional innovation and leadership to realize computational advantages in AI. Alway look at your "box" from different perspective and say "What if...?"

AI professionals should combine their analytical, logical and critical thinking with creativity to develop robust and efficient AI systems, infuse creativity into their problem-solving approach, fostering unconventional ideas and novel solutions. This creative mindset, when combined with flexibility and adaptability, enables them to adapt to the ever-changing landscape of AI. Their willingness to experiment and learn from failures is very important, as it fosters growth and continuous improvement in their AI solutions, ultimately ensuring success in this dynamic and evolving field.

With the speed at which AI tools and use cases are developing, being able to continuously learn is going to a critical skill to build. To really stand out as a leader in this space, it is equally important to stay up to date on the innovations in the field, but also embrace the unglamorous parts of AI adoption - ethics, privacy, legal. The responsible application of AI will separate an AI leader from an AI enthusiast.

Continuous learning is essential in any profession, and in the rapidly evolving domain of AI, professionals must regularly update their skill sets to keep up with latest updates and evolving best practices, ensuring they stay at the forefront of AI innovation. This can be achieved by upskilling through activities such as enrolling for open courses, reading blogs, press releases, attending webinars, conferences, and listening to podcasts, seek guidance and follow posts from experts in the field on professional networks etc..

Absolutely, the landscape of AI is always evolving with new techniques, tools, and best practices constantly emerging. It's crucial for AI professionals aspiring to be leaders to adopt a growth mindset and indulge in lifelong learning. Leveraging various educational resources and networking opportunities not only sharpens their skills but also keeps them at the forefront of the field. This continual learning habit demonstrates a commitment to excellence and leadership potential as it often translates into better problem-solving and decision-making abilities within their professional roles.

Continuous Learning through AI is inevitable, we, the humans are naturally curious in nature and use ChatGPT type tools for learning everyday. The future of AI is a Personal AI. Lenovo CEO Yuanqing Yang sees the next iteration of generative AI in the form of a ‘personal foundation model’ that only knows you and resides in your smart device. “In the future, your PC may be an AI PC. Your phone may be an AI phone, and your workstation may be an AI workstation,”

I recommend you also invest in the growth and development of your team members as well. Show that you care about their success and career advancement in AI as well.

Three aspects I felt very important in this ever emerging AI scenario and a)Foster an inclusive environment where diverse perspectives are valued and everyone feels included. b)Understand and consider the emotions and needs of others. Emotional intelligence is crucial for building strong relationships, managing conflicts, and creating a positive team culture. c)Use storytelling to communicate complex ideas in a relatable and engaging way. Stories can be powerful tools for conveying the value and impact of AI.

Being transparent and clear in all aspects of the lifecycle is important. Understanding the different stake holders and working in granular levels with the team is key. Leaders must work to help team grow and in turn learn and evolve. Self respect and respecting others is key. In some cases taking clear decisions with rationale is key. When engaging with nontechnical collaborators, one needs to be careful to ensure the outcomes are clear, they may not understand the technical depth. Leaders must manage this interface. Authenticity and actual knowledge is the only accepted approach.

Here's why inspiration is important in the context of AI leadership: Motivation: Inspired teams tend to be more motivated and committed to their work. When leaders convey a compelling vision and a sense of purpose, it can energize their teams to tackle challenging AI projects with enthusiasm. Attracting Talent: The AI field is highly competitive, and inspirational leaders are more likely to attract and retain top talent. Prospective employees are drawn to organizations where they feel inspired and can contribute to meaningful work. Creativity and Innovation: Inspiration can fuel creativity and innovation. AI professionals who are inspired by a grand vision.

That's the same as all the other things you do as a manager! You should invest in yourself and train yourself in the field of leadership. Then you will have a better chance of getting a management position.

While inspiration is indeed a powerful trait, the ability to maintain a level of transparency could also be viewed as a fundamental leadership skill. AI professionals should strive to create a culture of openness where team members feel comfortable sharing their ideas and concerns. This includes being transparent about both successes and failures, and how they plan to address challenges. A transparent approach fosters trust, encourages honest communication, and demonstrates a leader's integrity and reliability. This, in turn, can motivate team members and create a positive, collaborative environment conducive to achieving shared goals.

Consider building your leadership profile by gaining board advisory experience. The integration of AI expertise at the board level is becoming increasingly critical in today's business landscape. AI professionals who seek board advisory roles can leverage their knowledge and skills to contribute to strategic decision-making, risk management, innovation, and ultimately, the long-term success of their organizations. In turn, gaining experience as a board advisor in AI-related matters can significantly enhance an AI professional's professional reputation. It demonstrates a commitment to leadership and a willingness to take on roles of responsibility and influence. It also offers great networking opportunities for future leadership roles.

Make things easy by breaking down complex ideas, showing data clearly, giving reasons for decisions, & asking for feedback. To be better at communicating, AI professionals should keep it simple, avoid using technical words, use pictures & comparisons, & adjust what they say to fit the situation & goal. To lead in artificial intelligence (AI), communicate well, collaborate seamlessly, solve problems collectively, & commit to continuous learning. Inspire others, adapt to changing tech, & manage time effectively. Share success stories, navigate ethical considerations, & uphold diversity. Effective communication, collaborative problem-solving, continuous learning, inspiration, adaptability, & ethical considerations define leadership in AI.

Rather than focusing only on immediate gains, emphasize your long-term vision as well, showing where you aim to be several years from now. To effectively convey the potential of AI to leadership, it's crucial to also present the associated investment costs and the expected returns on these opportunities. You should be able to provide a comprehensive analysis that includes both the advantages and disadvantages. When done correctly, you can outline a suitable timeline for the transformation of these disadvantages into advantages.

Leadership in AI has evolved over time. A few years ago, leadership in AI meant understanding the technical details of neural networks and how to build, modify, train and deploy AI models. Today, leadership is moving towards the ability to identify, utilise and communicate the advantages of leveraging AI models and solutions. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but it does put technical expertise in the backseat of other skillset AI professionals should have. Communication and interaction skills are driving...for now. So one advice I would give to professionals is that you should not be afraid to evolve when leading within the AI field. The field evolves at a rapid pace, and so should you.

I feel an outstanding way to demonstrate expertise and leadership with AI is by identifying concrete, widely leveragable, methods that deliver real value (and would for nearly anyone) and creating youtubes and the sort guiding and empowering the analytics collective to deliver for their corporations this outsized, technically otherwise complex value. Some people see the treasures that lie everywhere have the AI acumen wisdom and experience or synergies of experiences to see and identify with effort such concrete out of the box methodologies and that sharing expanding value confidence and endeavoring so far truly leads whole flocks of admiring aspiring analysts to new potentials.