Why are your AI engineers still pushing the car? This analogy resonated during my workshop at the 3rd CPOs Workshop in Newcastle
The car represents AI. The drivers are the engineers. The road is the organisation they are trying to move forward.
Imagine investing heavily in the car and hiring excellent drivers, only to discover that the road can barely support them. In procurement, that might mean an agent comparing suppliers while finance and purchasing disagree on which records are current. The recommendation arrives in seconds. Someone still spends the afternoon working out which information to trust.
Experienced employees often keep these gaps manageable through calls, checks and workarounds. Introducing AI brings those weaknesses into view. It can also spread the same mistakes faster.
For me, preparing the road belongs in the AI investment. Reliable data, processes people can actually follow, and clarity about who owns a decision when something goes wrong. Otherwise, capable engineers can spend their days pushing a very expensive car, while everyone wonders why it isn't going faster.
Where would that car get stuck in your organisation?
Thank you to Abdulrhman S. Al Dalaan and the team at Elite Training Services ECS for the invitation, and to Stephen Kavanagh, Alexander Borg and Abdullah Saleh AL Tasan IoSCM expert (CExACSI) for their contributions to the programme and all attendence of the workshop.