Before buying more AI, define the work it needs to improve

AI is becoming easier to buy. Deciding where it improves the business remains harder. A new assistant, an AI receptionist or an agent-assist feature may solve a real problem—but the product label does not tell you which problem to start with.

In research released October 20, 2026, Gartner reported that 44% of CEOs struggle to demonstrate AI financial returns. Its survey covered 203 global CEOs and senior business executives in April and May. That is a signal to make the business case clearer, not a reason to assume every AI project fails.

Start with a workflow you can describe

Choose a specific piece of work: routing a customer request, finding information during a call, preparing a response or moving a completed request into the next system. Identify the owner, inputs, handoffs, exceptions and the result the business actually needs. If nobody can describe the current work, an automation demonstration can hide more than it reveals.

Then ask what makes the work difficult. Missing information, unclear authority and broken handoffs may call for a process change. Repetitive, predictable steps may suit conventional automation. AI becomes worth evaluating when the task and its uncertainty justify it.

For customer experience, measure resolution

A shorter interaction is not automatically a better one. A customer who abandons a bot and calls again may generate more work even if the first channel reports a successful deflection. Agent assist, better knowledge access and a useful human handoff may be more valuable than putting an autonomous agent in front of every customer.

Gartner’s July customer-service research highlights changing customer behavior and expectations of access to a human. Its customer survey and separate leader survey are different samples; neither establishes what your customers will accept. Test the actual journey.

Check what you already have

Your contact center, communications or productivity platform may already contain capabilities worth evaluating. Compare improving the current platform with an add-on, a provider change or a custom build. Include integration limits and data access in that comparison. An existing feature is not free if enabling it creates a large operating burden, but another product is not automatically better.

Define the pilot before the purchase

Agree a baseline and a small set of measures: successful task completion, repeat contact, rework, time to resolution or cost per completed task. Define where a person reviews the output and what happens when the system is unsure. Include licenses, usage, integration, maintenance and review time in the economic case.

Give the pilot an owner and an explicit decision at the end: expand, revise or stop. A bounded test is useful when it answers a business question. A demonstration that only shows the tool can produce an answer is not the same thing.

How StrategIQ IT can help

Work directly with Brian to frame the decision, examine the current environment and compare practical options. CX, AI and automation are core strengths. Where a provider solution makes sense, StrategIQ can help evaluate sourcing options through its Sandler Partners relationship. Any further assessment, implementation and ongoing support need an agreed scope and responsible party.