3 crucial AI priorities

Hello,

One of the things that I love most about my work is that it connects me not only to the front end of innovation across sectors and geographies, but to thought leaders in these spaces  as well.

Recently, two amazing thought leaders, including Greg Sattell, Co-Founder of ChangeOS, a transformation & change advisory, have shared their hard-won expertise with my students. In my strategic advocacy course at the Columbia Technology Management MS program, Greg posed this question: How do you overcome resistance to change?

This is a common leadership challenge, and the more complex the business and stakeholder map, the more sources of resistance there are likely to be. 

Greg’s first recommendation: Start with a majority, like getting three of the five critical team leaders on board. After all, only 10-20% buy-in is needed to trigger a transformation. 

What change are you pursuing in your organization? How can you begin the process with small, but impactful support? I’d be interested in hearing your thoughts.

Please read on to learn about important AI marketing priorities, my thoughts on how to be a change maker right now, and more.

Three Crucial AI Marketing Priorities

Lately, I’ve been fielding this question: How can brands cut through AI buzz to focus on priorities that are practical, customer-centered, impact the bottom line, and prepare for all that AI is enabling for marketers? This is a great question to ask especially while finalizing 2025 plans.

To gain clarity, I consulted Aditya Saxena, SVP Consulting & Solutions at iQuanti, a leader in digital performance marketing, with whom I’m proud to partner. His perspective zeroed in on three essential priorities:

1. Personalize the Customer Journey – Use AI to tailor experiences that resonate at every touchpoint.
2. Enhance Analytics – Elevate your data game for sharper insights and better decision-making.
3. Streamline Workflows – Leverage AI tools to simplify processes and boost efficiency.

These steps aren’t just trendy — they will grow in importance to stay competitive and genuinely connect with your audience. Watch our short video for more.

How to Be a Change Maker at this Moment

One attribute that sets change makers apart: resilience — strengthened by focusing on skills, mindset, and leadership capabilities that are at the foundation of an effective transformation effort.

Do you have what it takes to not only weather the changes but also create the changes that you would like to see? Here are my top five recommendations to strengthen your change making execution muscle:

1. Harness Incremental Wins: Break big goals into manageable actions, such as “V1.0” use cases. Small victories build active support and can neutralize resistance.
2. Develop Strategic Framing for Broad Appeal: Focus on delighting customers, improving productivity, and creating a positive culture to foster connection and find common ground.
3. Engage Early Adopters: Influential, early supporters can amplify impact and accelerate momentum.
4. Adapt Tactics to Power Shifts: Flexibility is essential. Be prepared to adjust and apply creative approaches when needed.
5. Cultivate Resilience: Change produces failures along the path towards your vision. Build personal and collective resilience to maintain progress through inevitable challenges.

In times of change, optimism, community, and taking action to understand and motivate stakeholders are especially crucial. It’s also a time when learning, unlearning, and relearning become critical to your ability to adapt.

I’m grateful to surround myself with ambitious, forward-thinking individuals who seek change for good, and to guide emerging and executive leaders on creating, derisking, and accelerating pathways to the future with immediately useful tools, frameworks and, of course, inspiration.

If you’re interested in learning how you can prepare your team for the inevitable technology-driven intensification, get in touch. I’d love to help navigate the way.

Warm regards,