Fit for the future: how organisations can set themselves up to move at the speed of AI
It's easy to forget it's only two years since generative AI (GenAI) burst into the mainstream. In less time than it takes most people to complete a university degree, we've seen it move from working quietly in the background of our devices to reinventing life and work as we know it.
For many of us, the rapid nature of AI's rise is exciting. Yet, for business leaders, it's also made for a dizzying, future-defining ride. As recently as 2023, they were probably considering whether or not to invest in developing an AI strategy at all. Now in 2025, the more pressing issue for boardrooms is how quickly they can use AI to deliver impact for their organisation at scale.
Small step, giant leap
The answer to that question will look different for everyone, depending on the unique nature of their operating environment, workforce and stakeholder relationships. In each case, the first step to delivering true AI impact is looking beyond marginal gains in worker productivity and efficiency. Instead, the organisations that lead the AI era will be those that use it to completely transform the way they do business.
'AI is not just a tool for efficiency; it's the catalyst for a transformative leap in how organisations innovate and secure their future,' says Chris Perkins, Microsoft UK's General Manager for Enterprise Commercial. 'Taking that leap means being willing to reshape and improve entire systems and processes around AI.'
The good news is it's starting to happen – Perkins points to telecoms giant Vodafone as a great case in point. The company has ambitious plans to use AI to enhance its customer relationships and has signed a strategic partnership with Microsoft, which includes a commitment to embed Microsoft GenAI into its contact centres. The aim is to help agents deliver a more personalised service to its 350 million customers worldwide, including supercharging TOBi, a multilingual online chatbot operating in 13 countries.
Already, this has seen a 20-point rise in the company's net promoter score (a metric used to gauge customer loyalty and satisfaction) – a key differentiator in a highly competitive market. It's also freeing up time spent on monotonous tasks to allow employees to focus on more varied and interesting work. 'A great example of creating value by aligning your AI strategy with your overall business goals,' says Perkins.
Going beyond technology
Yet success with AI is not only about investing in the technology itself. Establishing the right data infrastructure to support it is key too. By giving their GenAI tools high-quality, well-organised data to reason over, leaders can use them to inform smarter, more insights-driven decisions and, ultimately, take more meaningful actions for their stakeholders and bottom line.
Better still, creating this infrastructure needn't be a complex process of advanced data engineering. Instead, practical, easy-to-use solutions like Microsoft Fabric can enable organisations to consolidate their data, create centralised knowledge repositories and let staff quickly and securely access the information they need to perform at their best.
Equally important is the need to focus on people. 'It may sound strange but the speed of AI advancement means it's a great time to be a human worker too,' says Perkins. 'Not just because it can make us more efficient or productive in our jobs; that's table stakes. But because it opens the door to all kinds of innovation and creativity. The fun stuff that allows us to be more ambitious and courageous in the work we do and the careers we pursue.'
Delivering on this very human promise requires organisations to invest in learning and development programmes that teach employees how to harness new AI tools in their job. But more than that, it means creating a culture in which workers feel inspired and engaged enough to help shape the AI journey for themselves – regardless of their job role, level or location.
Clear communication is, therefore, paramount. In fact, the more proactively and transparently leaders show staff how AI applications will generate better outcomes and experiences, the more confident and empowered workers will feel in using them to enhance their work today – and reinvent it tomorrow.
A great way to do this is by starting with small, proof-of-concept projects tied to business goals that let employees experiment with AI, fail fast and continually improve. This iterative approach carries the added bonus of enabling CIOs, CDOs and their teams to demonstrate measurable outcomes to the board, which, in turn, makes it easier to inspire investment in implementing AI initiatives at scale.
No standing still
Of course, more change is coming. If 2024 was all about using copilots and personal productivity assistants to redefine the modern workplace, this year will see the most forward-thinking organisations shift focus to deploying autonomous digital agents capable of implementing business transformation at scale. Having a common platform like Microsoft Azure that can support this ever-expanding range of AI use cases will therefore become increasingly important.
Yet, regardless of where their organisation is on its AI journey, the most important thing for any leader right now is action. Whether they are seeking to accelerate innovation or unlock new markets, strengthen customer relationships or enhance worker experiences, now is the time to ensure their AI strategy is fit to deliver the future value that they and their stakeholders want. The greatest risk isn't over-investing in AI, it's not investing fast enough.
To learn more about accelerating your AI journey, please visit the Microsoft Azure UK home page. This content is paid for and supplied by the advertiser. Find out more with our
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