It may sound straightforward, but as with every change in a business, it’s important to implement with purpose. For those needing a reminder, a quick win is the intersection between maximum impact and minimal effort. They are typically modest changes that can be implemented quickly and easily, with immediate results.

The concept of a quick win is not a new one, but it’s worth a refresh to ensure businesses aren’t biting off more than they can chew when it comes to technology implementation.

Practical value

Quick wins come in many shapes and sizes and are not restricted to operational solutions like improving client satisfaction or process optimisation. Take AI, currently the most tempting technology on the market. More and more, we are seeing the implementation of intricate, self-governing agentic AI models that can transform how a business operates. Many businesses are rushing to implement this type of complex solution to ensure they stay ahead of the curve. But with no strategic justification behind the technology choices, the solutions can be set up to fail.

Instead, turning to an AI ‘quick win’ can help ensure even the simplest solutions are implemented with the business needs in mind. These are some smaller-scale (yet highly effective) solutions that many may not be aware of or have discounted as too minor a change to make. This is your starting point, where the business can begin to benefit from AI and stay ahead of the curve without a huge amount of groundwork.

Thought about AI web translations? A solution that leverages machine learning algorithms to translate your website in real time is a perfect gateway into AI for any business. Another option could be ‘retrieval-augmented generation’ (RAG), which creates a way of engaging with a website or channel through conversational interface. These are examples of AI quick wins, as long as you can demonstrate a positive impact.

Within the key value drivers that we would typically use to evaluate a solution – revenue uplift, operational efficiency, customer satisfaction (i.e. lifetime value), and brand equity – a quick win is most likely to generate value when it comes to operational efficiency.

Once you clarify the value that your chosen solution delivers in the business, it is critical to find a way to track these benefits and ensure the technology will provide long-term return on investment (ROI) for the business, whatever that may look like.

There are generally two ways to identify where a quick win adds value: a challenge-led or solution-led approach. Spoiler alert – this route is similar to how you would approach any transformation, but it’s the scale that matters.

Challenge v solution

The traditional methodology to ground a solution in business reality and pinpoint an opportunity area before deciding on the technology typically involves four steps: situation, complication, resolution, and proof of concept (PoC).

Firstly, define the problem statement with extensive use case and journey mapping. Secondly, identify potential opportunities to target the root cause(s) of the business challenges. Thirdly, map the proposed solutions to the key problem statement. And lastly, create a PoC based on the selected solution.

Although this approach seems thorough, quick wins may organically fall out at any stage of an existing challenge-led transformation. For example, when identifying opportunities, you may find some solutions that seamlessly align with the business challenges you have already recognised and are minor changes that can be made without the need for a full PoC.

A simpler approach is to have a solution in mind and then find a logical place for it to sit in your business. Typically, it is best to err on the side of caution with this approach, but in the case of a quick win, this may be the preferred method.

To do this, you should still define your problem statement, identify opportunities based on core business challenges, and evaluate the solution to understand value gained versus anticipated effort to implement. However, this methodology will be lighter and more flexible than a challenge-led approach, the perfect environment to find and implement some AI quick wins.

Operationalisation

So how can we bring this into reality? Implementations for new technology can fail if they are not operationalised properly – they must be supported with the right business structures and operating models. This is particularly important if opting for an AI quick win, given the impact of the technology on how we work as people.

A quick win will require less effort to bring to life, but a supported implementation will be key to boosting the positive impact and guaranteeing the solution is not a short-lived novelty in the business.

Don’t get me wrong, there is a place in the world for big transformations and implementing exciting, complex solutions at scale, but there is always also an option for those who want to take one tech step at a time, or who may be unsure where to begin with newer technology such as the iceberg that is AI.

Who knows – what was seemingly a quick win could grow and scale into something that transforms how your business works or the service that you offer to customers.

 

This article originally featured on The Drum and is available here.