A useful AI strategy document is short enough that people actually read it - ideally a single page. Its job is to record the decisions you have made about AI, not to explain the technology. Seven concise sections cover everything that matters.
The seven sections
- Purpose - why the business is engaging with AI at all
- Goals - the specific outcomes AI should support
- Priorities - the one or two use cases you will trial first
- Guardrails - data rules, human oversight and what is off-limits
- Roles - who owns AI decisions and pilots
- Measures - how success and failure will be judged
- Review - when you will revisit and update the plan
If a section cannot be filled in, that is a decision still to make - which is itself useful to know.
Keep it living, not laminated
A strategy document should change as you learn. Treat it as a working page you update after each pilot, in step with staying current with AI strategy changes, not a report filed and forgotten.
Why one page beats fifty
A long document signals thoroughness but rarely drives action. A single page forces the hard choices - priorities, guardrails, measures - and gets read, which is the opposite of pilot purgatory.
The bottom line
An AI strategy document records decisions - goals, priorities, guardrails, measures - on a single readable page. Learning to write and maintain one is part of the Strategic Application of AI in Business course at London School of Business UK. Enquire today.