- Chief AI Officer is one of the hottest AI roles in the corporate world.
- This role ideally bridges the gap between AI technical expertise and business acumen.
- But leaders say finding suitable candidates can be difficult and many do not understand the role.
There’s a new seat at the executive table, and it’s for the chief AI officer.
Broadly speaking, this role requires bridging the gap between the important micro-details of leveraging AI and the macro-strategy of large companies. These days, this has become a much more familiar task to the corporate world, as companies seek guidance on how to use AI, a relatively new technology, to save time and improve productivity. became.
Companies in industries ranging from staffing to semiconductors are aggressively hiring chief AI executives, and as the AI landscape continues to rapidly evolve, they are looking at key roles in guiding companies toward AI adoption. expected to play a role. Many CEOs don't seem to know how to implement, invest in, or use this technology effectively, and sometimes it's sorely needed. In a recent Accenture survey of 3,400 executives, only 27% said their companies were ready to scale with generative AI.
But some companies aren't sure what the role entails and whether they need it. What's more, finding the right person for the role can be a daunting task, recruiters say.
Technical skills are not enough to become an AI chief executive
Companies interested in investing further in AI may be wondering, “Do I really want to do this?” need Why hire a chief AI officer when you already have data scientists and machine learning engineers with deep knowledge?
Most experts' answer is yes. Skills related to data analysis and machine learning are another popular technology job that involves designing, building, and training AI systems, and eventually becoming more than enough to start making your own decisions. Not.
Greg Selker, managing director at executive search firm Stanton Chase, believes the ideal chief AI officer would have a wide range of responsibilities, including understanding the details of large-scale language models and how to create them. I am. You also need to know how these AI models can be applied across your business.
“You can't be a data scientist who spends their time creating algorithms,” Selker told Business Insider. “The chief AI officer will be more involved in creating applications that leverage LLM.”
Chris Daigle, CEO of ChiefAIOfficer.com, an AI consulting service, says most small and medium-sized business customers don't need machine learning engineers or data analysts to build their own LLM. said. All you need is a leader who understands the AI tools that currently exist and how to apply them to different parts of the business.
This job requires skills beyond computer science. Justin Kinsey, president of recruitment firm SBT Industries, said clients need leaders who can navigate the ethical minefield of AI implementation. With that knowledge, he says, you can increase your productivity in a safe way. SBT Industries is currently working with two semiconductor companies to hire chief AI officers.
Many say that strategic thinking is key to this role, along with leadership skills.
For example, even ChatGPT experts who have mastered some automation techniques don't necessarily know how to use AI chatbots to transform their business, Daigle said. Instead, chief AI officers need to understand the business at a macro and micro level before overlaying generative AI onto the business.
Ideally, it's a “fusion of technical expertise, strategic vision, and executive-level leadership,” Kinsey told BI.
Hiring a chief AI officer is a difficult task.
Business leaders told BI that finding the perfect candidate for the role of chief AI officer can be difficult.
“The brand newness of this field means it is difficult to identify leaders who have already demonstrated a wide range of abilities to succeed in such roles,” Kinsey said.
Companies may also need to invest in this role, which Stanton Chase's Selker says can come at a significant cost.
“It remains to be seen how many companies are actually going to fund the implementation of their strategies and at what level,” the executive search consultant said regarding AI.
Businesses need AI expertise — or risk being left behind
Nevertheless, if companies are serious about becoming AI-first, they should consider hiring a chief AI officer, recruiters say.
At the very least, the role of the chief data officer or chief information officer should be expanded to understand how to use AI at the system level, Selker said.
Developing an AI strategy that applies across the business may be the difference between companies being left behind, he said.
“If you haven't thought about it yet, you're kind of screwed,” Selker says.
