Questions & answers

The questions I hear most often

These are real questions from conversations with business owners and directors. I answer them as I would on a call: the opening paragraph gives you the answer; the rest explains the reasoning and the steps to take.

Group 01What is holding your business back today

Problems you may recognise

  1. We have an ERP, yet everything still runs through Excel. Are we doing something wrong?No.
  2. Every department has different figures. How do we know which ones to trust?Different figures across departments almost never mean that someone has calculated them incorrectly.
  3. What is digital debt, and how can you recognise it in a manufacturing company?Digital debt is the gap between how many systems a company has and how well they work together.
  4. Should we replace our ERP, or are we simply using it badly?In the manufacturing companies I work with, the problem is not that the ERP lacks the necessary capabilities.
  5. How do you stop being the bottleneck in your own company?The owner becomes the bottleneck when they are the only place in the company where all the information comes together.
  6. Is AI worthwhile in a manufacturing company, or is it still just hype?AI makes sense in a manufacturing company when the company has its data in order and its processes documented.
  7. Why do our morning meetings take two hours and still lead nowhere?Long meetings with no decisions almost always have one cause: people use them to exchange information they should have received beforehand.
  8. Do we need a dashboard, or something else?A dashboard addresses the last mile, not the first.
  9. Why do digitalisation projects in manufacturing end up on the shelf?Projects in manufacturing most often fail because they began with choosing technology rather than asking how the company should make decisions.
  10. How do you choose a consultant to digitalise a manufacturing company?The key question when choosing a consultant is whether they earn money from the recommendation or from the delivery.
  11. What is a Digital Business Review for manufacturers, and how does it work?A Digital Business Review for manufacturers is a one-day diagnostic in which I map on site how information flows, where it gets lost and what to do about it, in what order.
  12. Why doesn't an AI assistant understand my company even when it has access to our documents?An AI assistant usually fails to understand a company because the documents do not describe the entire real-world process, have no clear owner or conflict with current data in other systems.
  13. How are the Digital Business Review and a company's readiness for AI connected?The Digital Business Review assesses a company's readiness for AI as part of a broader diagnosis of its processes, data, systems and decision-making.
  14. What is the difference between automation, an AI assistant and an AI agent?Traditional automation carries out predefined steps according to fixed rules.
  15. When does an AI agent need human approval?An AI agent needs human approval whenever a decision creates a contractual commitment, changes a price or deadline, has a significant financial impact, involves sensitive data or concerns a case outside clearly defined rules.
  16. What is a company Digital Business Review, and what does it reveal?A company Digital Business Review is an initial diagnostic that maps the actual flow of work and information, manual activities, systems, data, business knowledge and decision-making rules.
Group 02Processes, data, business context and preparing for AI

What a better way of working looks like

  1. What is business context for AI, and why does a company need it?Business context for AI connects the processes, data, knowledge, permissions and decision rules that govern how a company actually operates.
  2. How do you prepare a manufacturing company for artificial intelligence?You prepare a manufacturing company for AI by first choosing a specific business task and verifying the process, data, knowledge, permissions and human approval involved.
  3. What data does an AI assistant need to prepare quotes?An AI assistant preparing quotes needs current information about the customer and enquiry, pricing rules, a history of comparable quotes, material and capacity availability, and clear approval limits.
  4. How do you ensure that AI follows company rules?AI will follow company rules only when the rules are explicitly documented, linked to verified sources, limited by permissions and supported by human approval for important exceptions.
  5. How do you choose the first worthwhile use of AI in a manufacturing company?Choose the first use of AI based on its value to the company, the reliability of the available inputs, the scope for human review and the limited impact of a potential error.
  6. What does it mean for a company to be ready for artificial intelligence?A company that is ready for AI has a clear process for a specific task, trusted data sources, accessible knowledge, documented decision rules and a defined boundary between what AI may do and what a person must approve.
  7. How do you prepare a company for AI assistants and agents?You prepare a company for AI assistants and agents by choosing a specific task, documenting the real process, verifying data and knowledge sources, and setting permissions, exceptions and human approval.
  8. How do you identify which business processes to automate first?Start by automating processes that are repeated frequently, take up a measurable amount of people's time, follow sufficiently clear rules and use available data.
  9. How do you prepare company data for artificial intelligence?You prepare company data for AI by identifying, for a specific task, the information required, its valid source, owner, currency and access rights.
  10. How do you transfer company know-how from people's heads into AI?You can make company know-how usable by AI by capturing real procedures, the reasons behind decisions, common exceptions and the responsibilities of experienced staff.
  11. How do you connect AI to an existing ERP or CRM system?Connect AI to an existing ERP or CRM through precisely defined data and permitted actions, rather than giving it unrestricted access to the entire system.

Can’t find your question?

Email me or book a 30-minute call. You will hear directly from me.

Book a free 30-minute call →Email me
Michal PlačekIndependent technology consultant for manufacturing businesses