Blog written by Arun Bala, CEO, ProsperoGS 

Artificial intelligence (AI) and Generative AI (Gen AI) have become the cornerstone of modern business operations, offering unparalleled opportunities for CEOs, COOs, CFOs, and other C-suite executives of mid-size companies to govern effectively, enhance decision-making, execute on the strategy, and drive growth through enhanced performance and productivity. 

In contrast to small companies, where founders and partners are intimately involved in all facets of operations, CXOs and Directors of midsize companies often lack comprehensive visibility into internal operations. This lack of insight affects decision-making and governance, as key stakeholders face challenges in automating strategically significant use cases for both leadership and the Board. 

In mid-sized companies, where resources may be more limited compared to larger enterprises, leveraging AI effectively can provide a significant competitive advantage and much needed agility.

AI can be a game changer for CXOs, the Board and other executives involved in governance, strategic planning and decision making. AI powered business intelligence can process vast amounts of data from internal and external sources to forecast, predict, understand customer preferences, prioritise requirements, understand market trends and even to perform risk management.

While AI offers numerous benefits to businesses, this article focuses on what we deem as the six most crucial ways it positively impacts business.

1. AI enhances the Board’s and leadership’s strategic decision-making ability thereby improving agility and competitiveness of the business:

We would argue that the most important benefit of AI powered systems is it’s ability to help the Board and leadership take strategic decisions effectively and quickly. Taking instant and effective decisions delivers agility and competitiveness to mid-size business. 

AI-powered analytics enable mid-sized companies to extract valuable insights from large volumes of data. AI can analyse vast amounts of data quickly and accurately, providing insights that can inform strategic decision-making. This includes insights into the operations, cost analysis, market trends, customer spend, financial metrics, and more. AI can forecast future scenarios based on historical data and trends, assisting boards in making informed decisions about resource allocation, investment strategies, and business growth. AI-driven predictive modelling can simulate various scenarios and their potential outcomes, enabling executives and Boards to make more informed decisions and anticipate risks effectively.

AI powered analytical systems have the ability to conduct in-depth analysis and deliver insights related to market dynamics, customer behaviour and competitor activities, thereby empowering the Board and leadership to stake strategic decisions outpacing competition.

2. AI helps with comprehensive and effective risk management by the Board and leadership thereby improving governance: 

Especially for midsize companies, recognizing and managing risks can often determine their fate. Failure to identify risks early on and address them promptly can result in missed opportunities, revenue loss, increased expenses, and even depletion of crucial resources, potentially leading to failure. AI algorithms can identify potential risks by analysing various factors and can predict potential outcomes. They can simulate various scenarios and outcomes based on historical data. This helps boards and leadership teams in assessing and mitigating risks effectively.

3. Scenario modelling & recommendation engine to help data driven and objectively guided decisions: 

AI powered decision support systems can model multiple scenarios and provide recommendations to boards and leadership teams by analysing data and considering various factors. These recommendations can help in optimizing the decision-making process. 

By leveraging historical data and real-time information, recommendation engines enable boards to anticipate emerging opportunities and mitigate potential risks effectively. Moreover, they facilitate evidence-based decision-making by presenting actionable insights in a clear and intuitive manner, empowering board members to make informed choices with confidence. AI recommendation engines can also enhance collaboration among board members and the leadership by providing a common platform for sharing insights, discussing alternatives, and reaching consensus. Ultimately, these powerful tools enable boards to optimize resource allocation, enhance performance, and drive sustainable growth in an increasingly complex and competitive business environment.

D. Automate and streamline strategic planning & forecasting: 

AI algorithms can support strategic planning and forecasting in ways unimaginable. In addition to automating revenue forecast, profitability forecast & cash forecast, AI can help decision making based on 

• strategic insights from data analysis, 
• predict future scenarios, market trends and potential risk, 
• simulate various scenarios based on different assumptions and inputs, 
• helping the CXOs and the Board evaluate various options and take decisions, 
• help optimise resource allocation and manage demand to improve operational efficiencies

A company’s Board and leadership’s capacity for planning and forecasting can arguably distinguish between average companies and the most competitive and successful ones.

5. Transformative opportunity for the CFO:

Finance executives including CFOs, can leverage AI to streamline financial processes, improve decision making and mitigate risks. AI-powered algorithms can analyse financial data in real-time, identifying trends, anomalies, and potential areas for cost savings or revenue generation. AI-driven forecasting models can provide accurate predictions of future financial performance, helping CFOs develop more informed budgeting and investment strategies. By leveraging AI for financial management, mid-sized companies can achieve greater transparency, efficiency, and profitability in their operations.

6. Aligning the performance of the business at all levels with the goals of the company:

Midsize companies often encounter challenges in aligning senior managers, mid-level managers, and all employees with the company’s goals. In many instances, we’ve noticed that accountability for the company’s goals primarily rests with the CXOs, while the rest of the organization operates in disparate directions.

AI systems can help agree and define a structure, define KPIs at multiple levels that fold up into the goals and define the performance tracking mechanism. AI systems can automate performance tracking ensure that variances in performance are clearly flagged explained to fix performance issues proactively.

Overall, AI presents a significant opportunity for mid-size companies to enhance efficiency, competitiveness and innovation helping deliver sustainable growth and success. With the power of AI, Boards and leadership can gain a deeper understanding of their business and their resources and operations. AI also helps Boards anticipate future trends and challenges, helps them plan and prepare for the future and manage with foresight as well as insight.