Evaluating Workflows for Efficiency

Too many AI strategies are being built around the technology instead of the business challenges they should solve. The real value of AI comes when it is directly tied to your goals. I have arrived at seven lessons on how to align your AI strategy directly with your business goals: 1. Start with the "why," not the "what." Before discussing models or tools, ask what business problem you need to solve. It could be speeding up product development, or cutting operational costs. Let that answer be your guide. 2. Think in terms of business outcomes. Measure AI success by its impact on metrics like revenue growth or employee productivity not by technical accuracy. 3. Build a cross-functional team. AI can't live solely in the IT department. Include leaders from all relevant departments from day one to ensure the strategy serves the entire business. 4. Prioritize quick wins to build momentum. Identify a few small, high-impact projects that can deliver results quickly. This builds organizational confidence and makes people ready to take on larger initiatives. 5. Invest in data foundations. The best AI strategy will fail without clean and well-governed data. A disciplined approach to data quality is non-negotiable. 6. Focus on change management. Technology is the easy part. Prepare your people for new workflows and equip them with the skills to work alongside AI effectively. 7. Create a feedback loop. An AI strategy is not a one-time plan. Continuously gather feedback from users and analyze performance data to adapt and refine your approach. The goal is to make AI a part of how you achieve your objectives, not a separate project. #AIStrategy #BusinessGoals #DigitalTransformation #Leadership #ArtificialIntelligence

Most change initiatives don't fail because of the change that's happening, they fail because of how the change is communicated. I've watched brilliant restructurings collapse and transformative acquisitions unravel… Not because the plan was flawed, but because leaders were more focused on explaining the "what" and "why" than on how they were addressing the fears and concerns of the people on their team. People don't resist change because they don't understand it. They resist because they haven't been given a compelling story about their role in it. This is where the Venture Scape framework becomes invaluable. The framework maps your team's journey through five distinct stages of change: The Dream - When you envision something better and need to spark belief The Leap - When you commit to action and need to build confidence The Fight - When you face resistance and need to inspire bravery The Climb - When progress feels slow and you need to fuel endurance The Arrival - When you achieve success and need to honor the journey The key is knowing exactly where your team is in this journey and tailoring your communication accordingly. If you're announcing a merger during the Leap stage, don't deliver a message about endurance. Your team needs a moment of commitment–stories and symbols that anchor them in the decision and clarify the values that remain unchanged. You can’t know where your team is on this spectrum without talking to them. Don’t just guess. Have real conversations. Listen to their specific concerns. Then craft messages that speak directly to those fears while calling on their courage. Your job isn't just to announce change, but to walk beside your team and help your team understand what role they play in the story at each stage. #LeadershipCommunication #Illuminate

Harvard report: 71% of meetings are unproductive. 65% keep people from doing real work. The best leaders don’t run more meetings. They run the ones that matter. The goal: Keep teams aligned, focused, and moving fast. Without wasting time. Here’s how to run the meetings that actually move the business forward: Weekly 1:1 ↳ Let them drive the agenda ↳ Listen first, coach second ↳ End with 2–3 clear next steps Leadership Team Meeting ↳ Review key metrics in 10 minutes ↳ Focus on 2–3 high-impact issues ↳ End with clear decisions and owners Weekly Operating Review ↳ Review KPIs by exception ↳ Flag risks in revenue, churn, or ops ↳ Assign fixes with owners and due dates Quarterly Planning Session ↳ Review last quarter’s goals ↳ Debate and choose top 3 priorities ↳ Assign clear owners and resources Voice-of-Customer Session ↳ Bring 3 real pain points ↳ Let customers talk 70% of the time ↳ Follow up within 30 days Board or Investor Update ↳ Share the hard stuff first ↳ Highlight 1–2 metrics that matter ↳ Ask for help with specific challenges All-Hands ↳ Explain the why, not just the what ↳ Take live, unscripted questions ↳ End with one clear message You may not need all of these. Some might add a daily standup. But chances are, your company doesn’t need half the meetings on the calendar now. Use this list to audit what’s working. Cut what’s not. Your team will thank you for their time back. Better meetings = faster decisions, sharper focus, and real momentum. P.S. Does your company have too many meetings or just right? ♻️ Repost to help a leader in your network. Follow Eric Partaker for more productivity insights. — 📌 Want PDFs of this and 100+ free leadership resources? Get them here: https://lnkd.in/ekhxjakK

Over the last year, I’ve seen many people fall into the same trap: They launch an AI-powered agent (chatbot, assistant, support tool, etc.)… But only track surface-level KPIs — like response time or number of users. That’s not enough. To create AI systems that actually deliver value, we need 𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗰, 𝗵𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗻-𝗰𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰 𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘀 that reflect: • User trust • Task success • Business impact • Experience quality    This infographic highlights 15 𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘢𝘭 dimensions to consider: ↳ 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗲 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘆 — Are your AI answers actually useful and correct? ↳ 𝗧𝗮𝘀𝗸 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗲 — Can the agent complete full workflows, not just answer trivia? ↳ 𝗟𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆 — Response speed still matters, especially in production. ↳ 𝗨𝘀𝗲𝗿 𝗘𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 — How often are users returning or interacting meaningfully? ↳ 𝗦𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗲 — Did the user achieve their goal? This is your north star. ↳ 𝗘𝗿𝗿𝗼𝗿 𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗲 — Irrelevant or wrong responses? That’s friction. ↳ 𝗦𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗗𝘂𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 — Longer isn’t always better — it depends on the goal. ↳ 𝗨𝘀𝗲𝗿 𝗥𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 — Are users coming back 𝘢𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 the first experience? ↳ 𝗖𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗽𝗲𝗿 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 — Especially critical at scale. Budget-wise agents win. ↳ 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗗𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗵 — Can the agent handle follow-ups and multi-turn dialogue? ↳ 𝗨𝘀𝗲𝗿 𝗦𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗳𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗦𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗲 — Feedback from actual users is gold. ↳ 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝘅𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹 𝗨𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 — Can your AI 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘦𝘳 to earlier inputs? ↳ 𝗦𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 — Can it handle volume 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵 degrading performance? ↳ 𝗞𝗻𝗼𝘄𝗹𝗲𝗱𝗴𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗮𝗹 𝗘𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆 — This is key for RAG-based agents. ↳ 𝗔𝗱𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗦𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗲 — Is your AI learning and improving over time? If you're building or managing AI agents — bookmark this. Whether it's a support bot, GenAI assistant, or a multi-agent system — these are the metrics that will shape real-world success. 𝗗𝗶𝗱 𝗜 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗰𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘀? Let’s make this list even stronger — drop your thoughts 👇

Once, we built a machine learning model that was expected to drive a 15% lift in conversions. The result? A shocking 0.01%. What went wrong? The model worked perfectly, but the business process behind it was too long and complex. By the time the offer reached the clients, most leads were lost. And the kicker? The business case was literally giving money to the clients! This experience taught us a crucial lesson: even the best machine learning model can fail without an aligned, efficient business process. The model had identified high-value leads, but the operational workflow to turn those leads into conversions was cumbersome and slow. It involved multiple handoffs, redundant steps, and delays that made it nearly impossible for the offer to reach the client in time. In this case, the problem wasn’t technical—it was systemic. The gap between predictive insights and actionable outcomes created friction that nullified the model's value. When we revisited the process, we streamlined the journey from the model’s output to client interaction. By reducing the time and steps involved, we saw significant improvements—not just in conversion rates but also in the trust clients placed in the business. This is why aligning AI models with business operations is just as critical as building accurate models. Are your machine learning projects driving real business impact, or are they stuck in the pipeline? Let’s discuss strategies to close the gap and unlock the full potential of your AI investments. Share your thoughts or experiences below!

Are 80% of your meetings effective? Do people have at least four 2+ hour blocks of focus time every week? Scaling effective meetings, asynchronous collaboration and time for "deep work" across thousands of employees is challenging. Too many leaders shrug and give up: "it's just the way things are." ⭐ It might be hard, but it's totally possible to scale better use of time: 📅 Dropbox employees say 69% of meetings are effective, impressive vs research showing both executives and employees told Future Forum that ~50% of all meetings should be eliminated entirely. 🕖 Dropbox also got to >80% compliance with core collaboration hours around the globe -- a massive win, especially when you realize "one size doesn't fit all" on almost any work practice. 💪 Atlassian saw a 31% increase in progress against weekly goals when combining better calendar management with weekly goal-setting. 🔎 Slack got to 85% of employees saying Focus Fridays and No Meeting Weeks were a significant benefit to them -- higher than many monetary or services benefits. What's the secret sauce? 1️⃣ Aligned Executives: in both cases, the executive suite from CEO on down understood that excessive meetings and a lack of time for deep work were leading to burnout and lower quality work. 2️⃣ Pilot then Expand: We experimented with No Meeting Weeks in the Product, Design & Eng team at Slack, refined it, then partnered with functional leaders to translate specific meeting types and workflows in order to roll it out. 3️⃣ Measure Progress: A quarterly pulse survey with results by function and Spotify's meetings cost calculator are examples of pretty straightforward ways to measure progress. Tools like Microsoft Viva also help! 4️⃣ Reinforce Regularly: Discuss survey results in exec staff quarterly, build reinforcement into leadership conversations, All Hands meetings and comms. A cross-functional task force can bring ownership closer to functions. ❓ What practices have you scaled in your organization? Where have you seen programs fail to take hold? 🏗️ Dig deeper: 🔗 Links to Atlassian's time boxing and goal setting experiments by Molly Sands, PhD and team, Dropbox's virtual-first toolkit by Allison Vendt, Melanie Rosenwasser and Alastair Simpson and the Slack Focus Friday and Maker Week content I did with Christina Janzer and Kristen Swanson in comments. Would also recommend Kasia Triantafelo's collection of insights from the Running Remote community, linked as well. This is Part 2 of a series on 2025 Resolution: Make Better Use of Time. Thanks Karrah Phillips, Dave O'Neill, the folks listed above and Kevin Delaney, Tim Glowa (IBDC.D, GCB.D) & Nick Petrie for inspiring me to pick this back up! #Meetings #Productivity #Focus #DeepWork #FocusTime #Collaboration #Leadership #ChangeManagement #EmployeeExperience #EX

These days, many CROs and sales leaders reflect upon the past 12 months and come up with resolutions for the new year. I personally find one task particularly helpful - reflecting about projects, tasks, or activities to stop immediately. In other words, to back up our strategies as leaders we need to apply focus by giving our teams permission to stop irrelevant activities. We demonstrate authentic #leadership by reinforcing words with actions, and stop projects and initiatives that do no longer align with our priorities. The benefits? Focus. Distractions and excuses are removed. Employee engagement is improved, and life should become more fun for people who see friction removed from their role. Here are some specific tactics I have found most helpful to make this happen: 💡Describe the vision with clear supporting goals. It’s impossible to align the team against specific tasks and tactics if there’s no line of sight to the overall objectives of the business. CROs need a vision that their sales teams can rally around which is inspirational, simple and clear. It needs to demonstrate believable impacts on the customer experience which link to measurable economic outcomes. In other words, “if we behave in this way, we create value for our customers and value for us”. 💡Formally audit current initiatives and activities. businesses are a chamber of ‘great ideas’, many of which sprout arms and legs in the form of informal or formal projects. And, often, these projects have loose (if any) goals, lack project management and dilute critical resources. 💡 Review KPIs: is every KPIs you set and review aligned to the goals and activities you said were important? If not, cease their existence immediately! there is no point painting a compelling vision for the business, ceasing initiatives and activities, but still reporting KPIs that reflect deprioritised topics. 💡Walk the talk: it’s critical for CROs to be acting and communicating in ways that are aligned with desired changes. As role models, and in a similar vein to KPI setting, CROs should act as a reinforcing mechanism by personally ceasing activities and aligning to the overall agenda. More ideas and practical tips for Spring Cleaning in the Forbes expert collection attached in the comments below.

Rolling out a WFM tool in a company with hundreds or thousands of seats across multiple locations? Here are the common mistakes and how you can avoid them. Common Mistakes: ❗️Not involving major stakeholders in the decision process ❗️Getting overly ambitious with the implementation plan ❗️Being eager to have the system implemented yesterday, which leads to skipping major steps in the process ❗️Having all hands on deck until business realities kick in, at which point there are no hands on deck ❗️Focusing solely on the implementation and disregarding post-implementation activities Implementation Survival Kit: ✅ Conduct a thorough discovery before deciding on a vendor. This includes documenting your requirements, sharing them with the vendor, and ensuring there is a documented understanding of what can and cannot be done. ✅ Prepare a realistic timeline that accounts for your business activities, plans, known events, absences, etc. It's unrealistic to think you can pull everyone into the implementation and still run the business smoothly. ✅ Change management is a crucial part of the process—not just a PowerPoint slide with the new vendor's name. Pay attention to communicating and discussing “What will this change mean for ME?” for every affected role. ✅ The system is live—great! But you'll still need time to adjust and provide ongoing support. While the switch flips in the tech sense, people will make mistakes until they learn the system. Looking for someone to support your global rollout? I’d love to take this journey with you 💜 And as the post became too lenghty to fit in everything, what other struggles you have seen and how do you suggest to resolve them? Happy Monday! #workforcemanagement #resourcemanagement #wfm #resourceplanning

Dear LinkedIn Friends, I can't stress this enough... NEVER value games over the teams that create them. I love data. And the data from my recent poll is fascinating: • 46% said crunch is a “mixed bag.” • 29% called it outdated and harmful. • Only 6% said it’s absolutely necessary. It’s not a “necessary evil.” It’s a SYSTEM FAILURE. Be on the lookout for it. Even better, spot when crunch is starting to creep in. Here are 10 signs to look out for: 1. Deadlines without context. ↳ Leadership sets dates without consulting the team. It’s not inspiring - it’s reckless. 2. No room for the unexpected. ↳ Every project has surprises. If your timeline doesn’t account for them, crunch is inevitable. 3. “More hours” as the solution. ↳ Working harder isn’t a plan - it’s a sign the system isn’t scalable. 4. Burnout celebrated as “passion.” ↳ If you’re rewarding people for working late nights, you’re encouraging a toxic cycle. 5. Team feedback is ignored. ↳ When the people closest to the work say, “This isn’t realistic,” listen. 6. Heroics replace planning. ↳ Last-minute saves should be rare exceptions, not the norm. 7. No post-crunch recovery. ↳ If you don’t give your team time to recharge after a push, you’re killing morale. 8. Team stops pushing back. ↳ When teams give up on voicing concerns, it signals lost trust. 9. Pressure from external stakeholders. ↳ If marketing hype drive every deadline, you’ve lost sight of what matters. 10. Managers overpromise externally. ↳ When leadership commits to unrealistic deliverables, crunch is inevitable for the team. Let me make this simple: Great leaders don’t demand more hours. They build better systems. Do you agree? ♻️ Share this to encourage more studios to think this way And follow Sergei Vasiuk for more LinkedIn content like this!

The gap between a project estimate and kick-off can be a killer. (Automation Tip Tuesday 👇) For service-based businesses (any business, really!), friction is the ultimate profit killer. A client agrees to the scope, but then… paperwork, approvals, deposits — it all creates delay and destroys momentum. One of our recent automation projects tackled this head-on. Our client, a high-end home remodeling firm, was using a host of tools to manage their workflows, but the process of moving from an estimate to a signed agreement (with a deposit) was still manual and disjointed. We streamlined it. Now: ✅ Estimates auto-generate in Airtable, pulling project details from a structured pricing database. ✅ Signed agreements trigger deposits automatically — Dubsado sends the contract, collects e-signatures, and instantly generates an invoice in QBO. ✅ Once the deposit is paid, the project kicks off in Google Calendar and updates the team’s task board. The result? Faster approvals, fewer dropped leads, and a smoother experience for homeowners eager to begin their renovations. Software should work for you, not slow you down. If your business has gaps in its process, automation might be the missing piece. What’s killing your momentum? -- Hi, I’m Nathan Weill, a business process automation expert. ⚡️ These tips I share every Tuesday are drawn from real-world projects we've worked on with our clients at Flow Digital. We help businesses unlock the power of automation with customized solutions so they can run better, faster and smarter — and we can help you too! #automationtiptuesday #automation #workflow #efficiency