Infusing AI to governments

Digital transformation is one of the main objectives for governments around the globe. Even though, public sector organizations see digital technologies as a top priority, the majority has not embraced Artificial Intelligence (AI), yet.

AI has already demonstrated benefits beyond process optimization, with the potential to deliver even better and more efficient public services. Techniques like machine learning, computer vision, speech recognition and automation are at the heart of AI in the public sector. When implemented, these techniques turn into real, tangible benefits. Especially during the pandemic, various AI-enabled solutions, such as virtual assistants and chatbots have been deployed to help governments and healthcare organizations provide to people reliable information about COVID-19.

Recently, governments launched important initiatives towards the development of national AI strategies and regulatory policies, also driven by European Commission (e.g. Coordinated plan on AI, April 2021), aiming at creating leadership in trustworthy AI. Through the development of guidelines and principles on the ethical use of AI in public administration, governments want to ensure safe, reliable, and fair outcomes for all citizens and businesses. This will help reduce the risks of negative impacts and ensure, at the same time, that businesses and governments will set up the highest ethical standards when designing, developing, and implementing AI solutions.

In order for the governments to be able to operationalize their AI strategies and capture full value from any AI solutions that are developed within the public sector sphere, there is crucial need for the standardization of tools, processes and governance.

HOW

This could happen using an agile change approach which aligns with digital transformation, by building AI assets and capabilities, to accelerate adoption of good practices in the governmental entities. The starting point is the generation of business and technology blueprints, by developing and embedding in public organizations the necessary AI capabilities for people, processes, and technology. This way, public organizations would be able to repeatedly bring data and AI scenarios successfully from first idea and experiment to full and organization-wide business adoption and value, against minimized investments and time-to-market.

Active sponsorship from leadership

The change demands continuous innovation and AI driven culture. This could be achieved through the enablement of data driven decision making and the establishment of a strategic AI portfolio of solutions based on business priorities and values. Senior leadership support and sponsorship, structured approach and an experimental mindset hold the key to embedding AI at scale.

AI Core team and AI Ambassadors

The establishment of an AI Core team, with distinct roles and responsibilities who work on the standards, guidelines, to evangelize good practices to the AI ambassadors’ community and measure success, is also a fundamental factor of change. The AI ambassadors’ community will be a cross functional team which will consist of AI enthusiasts who will be able to spread the change and get feedback, acting as a valuable hub of ideas and opinions, towards this agile change.

Ethical AI Framework

Data governance, data privacy and AI ethics are prerequisites that require great collaboration between legal, compliance and privacy, IT and data science from the foundation stage.

Phases of change

Indicative phases of change, which will follow the establishment of leadership sponsorship, AI Core team and the settlement of Ethical AI framework are:

1.?????Training all relevant stakeholders.

2.?????Defining and prioritizing AI business scenarios.

3.?????Modeling and measuring business value.

4.?????Establishing structured data and models for development of scenarios.

5.?????Implementing early pilots to unblock technical barriers and generating quick wins.

6.?????Launching and ensuring adoption of AI practices across teams.

7.?????Evangelizing AI practices using AI ambassadors to spread the change, scale and get feedback for continuous improvement.

8.?????Developing a catalog of AI Services.

Following the settlement of country AI strategies and plans, operationalization is the most important step forward. Agile change management focusing on people, process and technology transformation is the way-to-go towards this direction.

#AI #Government #DigitalTransformation #ChangeManagement