Setting the AI Strategic Compass for 2027 | Leadership AI Strategy Sessions in Belfast & Northern Ireland
Your Business Is Using AI. But Who Is Setting the Direction?
Why every leadership team needs an AI Strategic Compass before 2027
The Business AI Toolkit | AI for Business – Northern Ireland
Imagine setting off on a journey with several members of your leadership team, each holding a different map.
Finance wants to reduce costs. Operations wants to improve productivity. HR wants to develop employee skills. IT wants secure systems. Sales wants better customer insights.
Everyone wants the business to succeed.
But nobody has agreed on the direction.
That is exactly what is happening with AI in many businesses across Northern Ireland and the wider UK.
Employees are experimenting with ChatGPT and Microsoft Copilot. Departments are testing automation tools. Managers are attending AI events, and suppliers are promising extraordinary results.
There is enthusiasm, there is investment, and there is activity.
But where is the strategy?
And more importantly, who is making sure all this activity is moving the business towards the same objectives?
AI Adoption Is Growing. But Is Business Strategy Keeping Up?
The latest research raises some important questions for business leaders.
According to the Office for National Statistics, 30% of UK businesses reported using at least one form of AI in September 2026, compared with just 9% when the question was first introduced in September 2023.
Among businesses with 100 or more employees, adoption had reached 51%.
Yet adoption does not necessarily mean successful implementation.
The UK government's 2026 AI Adoption Research identified several barriers, including limited AI skills, difficulty identifying suitable business needs, concerns about cost, and uncertainty around governance.
Meanwhile, the government's UK Business Data Survey 2026 found that only 17% of businesses using AI had either formal or informal AI policies or guidance.
Think about that.
Businesses are introducing technology that can influence how information is processed, how employees work and how decisions are supported, yet many have not established the policies or leadership direction needed to manage it consistently.
The challenge is no longer simply getting businesses to try AI. It is helping leadership teams turn AI activity into measurable business improvement.
The Six Problems an AI Strategy Should Solve
1. Departments are moving in different directions
One department buys software. Another develops its own AI processes. A third continues working manually.
Without an agreed approach, businesses risk duplicated spending, incompatible solutions and disconnected initiatives.
An AI strategy establishes shared priorities, ownership and decision-making responsibilities.
2. Businesses are buying technology before understanding the problem
This is one I feel particularly strongly about.
With more than 20 years working in business process improvement, Lean and operational excellence, I have seen what happens when organisations invest in solutions before understanding how work actually happens.
AI does not automatically fix an inefficient process.
In some cases, it simply allows an inefficient process to operate faster.
Before asking, "What could we automate?", leadership teams should be asking:
"What are our biggest business problems, what is causing them, and where could AI genuinely make a difference?"
Sometimes the answer is AI. Sometimes it is process improvement. Sometimes it is a combination of both.
And sometimes the right decision is not to automate at all.
That is what good strategy looks like.
3. Nobody can demonstrate a return on investment
How many AI licences are being paid for?
How many employees are actually using them?
What time is being saved? Are costs reducing? Is quality improving? Are customers benefiting?
Without baseline measures and agreed performance indicators, even promising AI initiatives can become difficult to justify.
A strong strategy connects AI investment to business results, including productivity, cost, quality, customer service, capacity and growth.
4. Employees are being trained without a clear purpose
Generic AI training can introduce employees to tools.
But what happens afterwards?
If people return to the same processes, systems and management expectations, much of that initial enthusiasm can disappear.
Leadership needs to determine which roles require training, which tasks offer the greatest opportunities, where human oversight is essential, and how new skills will be applied.
Training should support the business strategy, not become the strategy itself.
5. AI is being used without clear governance
What company information can employees enter into AI tools?
Who approves AI systems? Who checks accuracy? Who is accountable when something goes wrong?
How does the business manage data protection, cybersecurity, supplier risks and relevant regulatory requirements?
These are leadership questions.
Governance should enable responsible innovation, not become an obstacle to it.
6. There are too many ideas and no clear starting point
When everything looks like an opportunity, prioritisation becomes difficult.
Businesses can spend months researching tools, attending demonstrations and discussing possibilities without implementing anything meaningful.
An AI strategy helps distinguish quick wins from longer-term transformation, and identifies what the organisation is genuinely ready to deliver.
So What Does Setting the AI Strategic Compass Actually Mean?
It means getting the people responsible for the organisation's future together and agreeing where AI fits into that future.
Not starting with a software demonstration.
Not beginning with a list of AI tools.
And certainly not assuming every department needs an AI agent.
It starts with understanding the business itself.
- Business direction: What are the organisation's strategic objectives, challenges and growth ambitions?
- Current position: Where is AI already being used, officially or unofficially, and how mature are existing processes, systems and data?
- Opportunities: Which business problems and workflows offer the strongest potential for AI, automation or process improvement?
- People and capability: What skills, confidence, leadership support and change management will be required?
- Governance: What policies, controls, accountabilities and human oversight need to be established?
- Investment and measurement: What resources are required, what funding might be available, and how will success be measured?
These discussions create a shared direction rather than a collection of unrelated AI projects.
What Can a Half-Day or Full-Day Leadership Strategy Session Achieve?
At AI for Business – Northern Ireland, my Setting the AI Strategic Compass session is designed to bring leadership teams together to examine the organisation's priorities and turn AI conversations into a practical direction.
The session can be tailored to a half day or full day, depending on the organisation's size, complexity and existing AI maturity.
A half-day session focuses on strategic alignment, the most pressing challenges, high-level opportunities and immediate next steps.
A full-day session allows deeper exploration of departments, operational processes, investment priorities, governance requirements and a phased implementation roadmap.
The aim is to leave with a clear foundation for action, including:
- A shared leadership vision for AI.
- An understanding of current AI activity, readiness and key risks.
- A prioritised shortlist of business opportunities.
- Agreed responsibilities and governance actions.
- An initial 90-day action plan with milestones and measures of success.
It is about making informed business decisions before committing significant time and money.
Who Should Be Involved?
AI strategy is not something that should sit exclusively with IT.
The most valuable discussions involve the people who understand how the organisation operates and where its challenges lie.
That may include the CEO, Managing Director, business owner, Finance Director, Operations Director, HR leadership, IT, commercial leadership and those responsible for quality, risk or compliance.
The approach is relevant to:
SMEs and growing businesses that need a sensible, affordable starting point.
Manufacturing and engineering businesses looking to improve operational performance, quality, maintenance and productivity.
Professional services firms dealing with document-heavy processes, client information, administration and knowledge management.
Larger corporate organisations trying to bring consistency to AI adoption across multiple departments.
Charities and public sector organisations seeking to improve service delivery while managing budgets, sensitive information and accountability.
Different organisations will have different priorities.
But they all benefit from knowing where they are, where they want to go and how they intend to get there.
There May Also Be Funding Available to Support Your AI Ambitions
One important consideration that can be overlooked during AI planning is external funding.
Businesses sometimes assume they must finance every innovation project entirely from their own budgets.
In reality, there are funding programmes across Northern Ireland and the UK that can support eligible innovation, research, process development and AI-related projects.
For example:
Northern Ireland – Invest NI Innovation Vouchers
Eligible businesses can access up to £10,000 of specialist knowledge through participating universities, colleges and research organisations to help develop innovative products, services or processes.
Northern Ireland – Invest NI Project Definition
Eligible Invest NI clients may be able to access support of up to £100,000 towards defining and de-risking ambitious research and development projects, including relevant digital process transformation.
Northern Ireland – Technical Development Incentive
Eligible Invest NI client SMEs can access support towards external technical expertise for qualifying product and process innovation projects, with grants of up to £25,000.
UK – Innovate UK BridgeAI Deployment Catalyst
Competitions opening on 21 October 2026 include funding for eligible collaborative projects involving operational AI, decision-critical systems, and AI assurance and compliance.
The competitions collectively offer opportunities for businesses developing and deploying appropriate AI solutions, subject to their specific consortium and technical eligibility rules.
UK – Frontier AI: SME Champions
A current Innovate UK competition is supporting eligible SMEs undertaking feasibility studies for innovative frontier AI technologies, with applications closing on 11 November 2026.
Great Britain – Made Smarter
Made Smarter provides regional support for eligible manufacturing SMEs to explore and adopt industrial digital technologies, potentially including AI, robotics and automation. Availability and financial support depend on the relevant regional programme.
Not every funding programme covers general AI training, software subscriptions or consultancy. Some are specifically intended for research, development, technical innovation or collaborative projects.
That makes identifying the right opportunity, and clearly defining the business problem and proposed outcome, especially important.
I also help businesses identify relevant grant opportunities and prepare applications, offering a 48-hour application preparation service for eligible, clearly scoped applications once the necessary information and supporting documents have been received.
Funding decisions always remain with the awarding body.
Why Setting the Direction Before January Matters
We are approaching the final quarter of 2026.
For many organisations, this is when budgets are being reviewed, business plans are being finalised, and priorities are being agreed for the year ahead.
Yet AI can easily become something that is pushed into January's already busy agenda.
Then January arrives.
Teams return, operational pressures take over, and decisions that should have been made earlier are delayed.
What if your leadership team entered January with its AI direction already agreed?
Imagine starting the year knowing:
- Which business problems you intend to address first.
- Which AI opportunities deserve investment.
- What should remain human-led.
- Which employees need support or training.
- Who is accountable for delivery and governance.
- What results you expect within the first 90 days.
Instead of spending the first quarter deciding where to begin, you could be using it to make meaningful progress.
That is the opportunity available to businesses willing to set their direction now.
AI Should Support People, Not Replace Them
My approach to AI has always been grounded in one principle:
AI should not replace people. It should support them.
The goal is not to introduce technology everywhere simply because it exists.
It is to help organisations improve how work gets done, reduce unnecessary effort, make better use of their people's knowledge and create stronger, more resilient businesses.
And that begins with leadership.
Technology will continue to change. New tools will emerge. The capabilities of AI will keep developing.
But businesses that understand their objectives, their processes, their people and their priorities will be in a stronger position to make good decisions as that change happens.
Before You Accelerate, Make Sure You Are Heading in the Right Direction
For leadership teams across Northern Ireland and the UK, my question is simple:
If I asked every member of your leadership team to describe your organisation's AI strategy today, would they all give me the same answer?
If not, perhaps that is the conversation worth having before the year ends.
I am taking bookings for Setting the AI Strategic Compass half-day and full-day leadership sessions in November 2026, January 2027 and February 2027.
November is an ideal opportunity to agree the direction before 2027 planning turns into delivery. For teams scheduling January or February sessions, now is also the time to reserve the discussion in leadership calendars and begin identifying the business priorities that matter.
If your organisation wants to approach AI with greater clarity, confidence and a practical plan, I would welcome a conversation.
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