When it comes to deploying daunting new technologies like AI, leaders in media, sports and entertainment shouldn’t be afraid to do hard things.
That was a key takeaway from the Variety “Strictly Business” Podcast Live presented by AWS & Deloitte, held this week at Cannes Lions (under a blazing-hot sun!). The special recording of “Strictly Business” was joined by Deloitte’s Michelle McGuire, principal, chief data and AI officer, Olympic and Paralympic partnerships; Ruba Borno, VP, AWS Specialists, Partners and AWS Marketplace; and Pete Wood, executive VP of consumer platforms and services at Sony Pictures Entertainment.
“I would say don’t be scared of AI and the technology, right?” said McGuire. “Start to upskill your folks so they engage with it, they understand it, they’re getting their hands dirty and using it.” Her advice is for companies to “start tackling hard problems” — so they can not only see the benefits of optimizing existing processes, but start to apply AI to do things that weren’t possible before.
Watch the full video:
Borno made this point: “If you tackle a difficult problem versus [using AI to go after] low-hanging fruit, it solves your figuring out your data foundation.” She said that once an organization has the underlying infrastructure like security and governance in place, and its leaders have figured out their change management processes, “then the rest becomes a lot easier.”
