AI Roadmap Workbook for Non-Technical Business Leaders
A clear, hype-free workbook showing where AI can actually help your business — and where it won’t.
Dev Guys Team — Smart thinking. Simple execution. Fast delivery.
The Need for This Workbook
In today’s business world, leaders are often told they must have an AI strategy. All around, people are piloting, selling, or hyping AI solutions. But business heads often struggle between two bad decisions:
• Agreeing to all AI suggestions blindly, expecting results.
• Rejecting all ideas out of fear or uncertainty.
It guides you to make rational decisions about AI adoption without hype or hesitation.
Forget models and parameters — focus on how your business works. AI should serve your systems, not the other way around.
Using This Workbook Effectively
Work through this individually or with your leadership team. The purpose is reflection, not speed. By the end, you’ll have:
• A prioritised list of AI use cases linked to your business goals.
• A visible list of areas where AI won’t help — and that’s acceptable.
• A realistic, step-by-step project plan.
Treat it as a lens, not a checklist. If your CFO can understand it in a minute, you’re doing it right.
AI strategy is just business strategy — minus the buzzwords.
Starting Point: Business Objectives
Start With Outcomes, Not Algorithms
Too often, leaders ask about tools instead of outcomes — that’s the wrong start. Non-technical leaders should start from business outcomes instead.
Ask:
• Which few outcomes will define success this year?
• Where are mistakes common or workloads heavy?
• Which decisions are delayed because information is hard to find?
AI matters when it affects measurable outcomes like profit or efficiency. Ideas without measurable outcomes belong in the experiment bucket.
Start here, and you’ll invest in leverage — not novelty.
Understand How Work Actually Happens
Understand the Flow Before Applying AI
AI fits only once you understand the real workflow. Ask: “What happens from start to finish in this process?”.
Examples include:
• Lead comes in ? assigned ? follow-up ? quote ? revision ? close/lost.
• Customer issue logged ? categorised ? responded ? closed.
• Invoice issued ? tracked ? escalated ? payment confirmed.
Inputs, actions, outputs — that’s the simple structure. Ideal AI zones: messy inputs, repeatable steps, consistent outputs.
Step Three — Choose What Matters
Score AI Use Cases by Impact, Effort, and Risk
Not every use case deserves action; prioritise by impact and feasibility.
Map your ideas to see where to start.
• Quick Wins: easy and powerful.
• Strategic Bets — high impact, high effort.
• Optional improvements with minimal value.
• High cost, low reward — skip them.
Always judge the safety of automation before scaling.
Your roadmap starts with safe, effective wins.
Balancing Systems and People
Get the Basics Right First
Without clean systems, AI will mirror your chaos. Ask yourself: Is the data 70–80% complete? Are processes well defined?.
Human Oversight Builds Trust
Let AI assist, not replace, your team. Over time, increase automation responsibly.
Avoid Common AI Pitfalls
Learn from Others’ Missteps
01. The Shiny Demo Trap — getting impressed Enterprise Automation by flashy demos with no purpose.
02. The Pilot Graveyard — endless pilots that never scale.
03. The Automation Mirage — expecting overnight change.
Fewer, focused projects with clear owners and goals beat scattered enthusiasm.
Working with Experts
Non-tech leaders guide direction, not coding. Focus on measurable results, not buzzwords. Expose real examples, not just ideal scenarios. Clarify success early and plan stepwise rollouts.
Transparency about failures reveals true expertise.
Signs of a Strong AI Roadmap
How to Know Your AI Strategy Works
It’s simple, measurable, and owned.
Buzzword-free alignment is visible.
Ownership and clarity drive results.
Essential Pre-Launch AI Questions
Before any project, confirm:
• What measurable result does it support?
• Which workflow is involved, and can it be described simply?
• Do we have data and process clarity?
• Where will humans remain in control?
• What is the 3-month metric?
• What’s the fallback insight?
Conclusion
AI should make your business calmer, clearer, and more controlled — not noisier or chaotic. A real roadmap is a disciplined sequence of high-value projects that strengthen your best people. When AI becomes part of your workflow quietly, it stops being hype — it becomes infrastructure.