Leaders can use GenAI to organise evidence and compare options. They still need to decide what counts as adequate evidence, which actions are authorised and how competing business priorities will be resolved.
Does a supplier comparison settle the choice?
One supplier has the lower quoted price; another offers stronger support for a critical operation. AI has extracted the terms accurately. The procurement criteria do not say how to resolve this trade-off. What remains for the leader to decide?
Separate comparison from judgement
The comparison establishes what the suppliers offer. The leader must decide whether the criteria cover the business's dependence on support and what the consequences of weaker support would be.
If an existing rule settles the choice, apply it. If the guidance leaves a consequential conflict unresolved, the accountable leader must explain the priorities used to decide. Asking AI for a preference does not supply that authority.
Information required
Supplier proposals, mandatory requirements, approved comparison criteria and evidence about operational dependence.
AI-assisted task
Compare the offers, cite the relevant terms and identify requirements or priorities that the documents leave unresolved.
Review criteria
Verify the comparison and decide how unresolved consequential trade-offs should be handled. Record who approves the commitment.
How to use AI for business decisions
Start with a recurring business decision and its approved source material. Use AI to prepare the evidence and compare options against agreed criteria. Check whether existing policy settles the choice. Consequential conflicts that the guidance cannot resolve require a responsible person's judgement.
How can leaders use AI for business decisions?
Choose a recurring decision, such as evaluating a supplier proposal. Provide the approved requirements, source documents and comparison criteria. Ask AI to organise the evidence and identify differences between the options, with references to the relevant documents.
The manager checks the evidence and decides whether the criteria adequately cover the choice. If important priorities conflict, the task also requires deciding how to resolve that conflict. Producing a comparison does not settle that decision.
How should leaders assess AI ROI?
Measure the complete process before and during the trial. Include preparation, system costs, checking and rework. Compare the volume, quality and service level of completed work.
Then identify what the organisation actually does with any released capacity. Financial return depends on a change such as avoided spend or additional contribution. Time saved on a task can support a capacity or service improvement without becoming a cash saving.
How does AI change managerial work?
Map the workflow and distinguish execution from decisions, accountability and maintenance. Assign an agent only the actions it is authorised and equipped to perform.
Examine human decision workload after routine steps change. Staffing and reporting lines should be reviewed against that workload, rather than against the number of steps assigned to an agent.
The leave-request example distinguishes routine checks, policy-resolvable exceptions and consequential choices that guidance cannot settle. It keeps agent execution, managerial accountability and system maintenance separate.
I hold a PhD from IIM Ahmedabad, am former faculty at XLRI and lead product at Rehearsal AI. My executive education work examines how managers evaluate and apply AI in their organisations.
Programme work
View topics and practice
In the leave-request example on the homepage, an agent checks the policy and records. An unusual request can still follow a policy rule. A manager must exercise judgement when the guidance cannot settle a conflict and getting the decision wrong would have serious consequences. These are different reasons for involving a person.
AI capabilities and limitations in business workflows
Use-case selection and business value
Managerial judgement and decision rights
Agent execution, accountability and maintenance
ROI measurement including review and rework
Implementation choices for the organisation
Questions about implementation
How can business leaders use AI without coding?
Start with a recurring workflow, provide approved source material and clear criteria, and use AI to draft or compare evidence. Review the result before acting. Coding is not required for these exercises; technical and data requirements depend on the implementation.
Who leads the AI strategy programme?
Dr. Shiva Kakkar leads the programme. He holds a PhD from IIM Ahmedabad, is former faculty at XLRI and is Head of Product at Rehearsal AI.
What formats are available for a leadership team?
Formats include a half-day or one-day working session, a 1–3 day workshop and a multi-session executive programme. The organisation’s question, audience and required outputs determine the format.
