New developments in artificial intelligence can bring real benefits to businesses, especially small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) that have fewer resources and fewer employees than larger enterprises. But for SMBs to realize AI’s full potential, they need to approach it in a thoughtful and measured way that’s right for their unique business.
In a recent fireside chat, Katie Evans, senior research director, Worldwide SMB research at IDC, and Richard Kreuser, SSG director, Services AI Center of Excellence at Lenovo, outline clear steps SMBs can take, questions to ask, and AI services they may not have considered to ensure successful AI adoption.
Evans, who not only analyzes trends at IDC but also has the role of directly interacting with small and medium-sized businesses, said,
Many small businesses have been cautious about future-proofing technologies in the past because they have relatively small IT staffs. In fact, according to IDC data, 40% of small businesses worldwide (and 50% of small businesses in the U.S.) don't have any full-time in-house IT staff, and those that do have fewer than five people.
From her perspective, SMEs with limited resources have a better chance of implementing AI by partnering with a trusted vendor. “Turn on technology suppliers and MSPs who already work with and understand your business and ask them for advice on where to start,” she says. “SMEs can be overwhelmed by all the features on the market, so ask them what use cases they think would best suit your business. Start small, where your business has the most inefficiencies or time-consuming manual tasks, and build from there.”
Kreuzer agrees, and believes Lenovo is especially well-positioned to help thanks to its AI ecosystem. “A lot of our customers get stuck at the proof of concept or technology deployment,” Kreuzer says. “But it doesn't stop there. We help companies see the bigger picture, accelerate their efforts, and improve outcomes. We help them get unstuck.”
Lenovo achieves this through a focus on security, people, technology and process.
In this webinar, we discuss how small and medium-sized businesses can benefit from AI and how Lenovo can help.
Lenovo helps organizations future-proof their business with personalized automation, innovation and efficiency powered by AI. Lenovo AI PCs like the ThinkPad Z16 with AMD Ryzen™ PRO 7040 Series with Ryzen™ AI, deployed with Lenovo Care of One hyper-personalization and AI-powered services for small and medium-sized businesses, help automate and offer intelligent improvements. Create content faster, collaborate better and keep your devices and business running at peak performance.
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