Early in my career, the phrase “operating system” referred to something quite specific: the software layer that sat between hardware and applications, allocating resources and ensuring that each component did its work in an orderly fashion. Today I find the term increasingly useful as a description of something broader. In the modern enterprise, workflow automation […]
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For most of the past two years, enterprise generative AI has been largely conversational. A user asks a question, and a model produces an answer. That is useful, but it is also limited. The answer must still be read, interpreted and acted upon by a person. AI agents represent a meaningful shift. An agent does […]
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Over the past two years, I have observed a familiar pattern in organizations of almost every size. A small team builds a generative AI prototype. It performs impressively in a demonstration. Senior leadership is enthusiastic, and a budget is approved. Then, some months later, the project is quietly still a pilot, serving a handful of […]
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The demo was polished, the references were glowing, and the price looks reasonable. Then the contract arrives, and the details that decide whether this purchase pays off or becomes a problem are buried in the fine print. Before you sign, press on these seven questions. 1. What is the true total cost? Start with the […]
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Ask any manager where time disappears in their organization and approvals will feature prominently in the answer. A purchase request waits for a signature. A software license sits in someone’s inbox. A contract exception circulates by email until someone remembers to chase it. Each individual delay may seem minor, but collectively they slow the business […]
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When executives first consider applying generative AI to their own business, a common assumption follows: the model must be trained on the company’s data. It seems intuitive. If we want the AI to understand our products, policies and customers, surely we must teach it. For the great majority of enterprise use cases, however, that assumption […]
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Every IT organization maintains a backlog of requests for small applications and workflow improvements that never quite rise to the top of the priority list. Low-code platforms offer a way to address that backlog by allowing people outside IT, often called citizen developers, to build workflows and simple applications themselves. The opportunity is considerable. So, […]
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There was a time, not very long ago, when selecting an AI model was a relatively simple matter. A handful of options existed, and most organizations defaulted to whichever was considered the most capable. That period has passed. Enterprises now face a wide and rapidly changing landscape of large and small models, proprietary and open […]
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Some years ago, I was asked to examine why a mid-sized organization took nearly three weeks to provide a new employee with a working laptop and system access. Each department involved insisted that its own part of the process took only a day or two. They were correct. The problem was not the work itself. […]
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Governance is rarely the most exciting part of any technology program. Yet it is often the factor that determines whether a promising initiative earns lasting trust or becomes a cautionary tale. With generative AI, the stakes are higher than usual. These systems produce content and, increasingly, take actions on behalf of the organization. Their outputs […]
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Once an organization commits to workflow automation, an immediate question arises: where should it begin? Nearly every department can produce a list of processes it would like automated, and the combined list quickly exceeds any reasonable capacity. Choosing poorly can consume a year of effort on a process that delivers little value. Choosing well builds […]
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