Implementing Aila

Phase 1 - Pilot Phase

The Pilot Phase of implementing the Aila AI learning assistant is designed to be a lower-risk, highly informative experience for clients. This phase focuses on the rapid capture of the knowledge set and showcasing the value of Aila through hands-on use and problem-solving. Here’s an in-depth look at the goals, activities, and decision points within this critical phase.

Goals

1. Rapid Capture of Knowledge Set: Quickly gather and document existing knowledge and processes to form a comprehensive baseline for further curation.

2. Experience the Value of Aila: Enable clients to see the potential and practical benefits of using Aila in their environment.

Lower Risk - Guaranteed Pilot

Guaranteed Pilot: Following a pre-qualification process, the guaranteed pilot phase is designed as a lower-risk way for you to experience working with Aila and see the value promised. This phase involves minimal upfront investment while providing significant insights and benefits.

Clean Language and Messy Verbal Start

Clean Language: Developed by David Grove and popularized by experts like Judy Rees and Steve McCann, Clean Language is a method of inquiry that uses simple, non-directive questions to elicit information. It is designed to minimize bias and assumptions, allowing individuals to express their thoughts and experiences with clarity and precision. This technique is particularly valuable in contexts where understanding the nuanced, often unspoken knowledge of experts is crucial.

Key Benefits of Clean Language:

• Precision Inquiry: Enables detailed and accurate information capture without leading or influencing the respondent.

• Expert Decision-Making: Helps make implicit knowledge explicit, supporting better decision-making processes.

• Clarity Extraction: Facilitates clear and comprehensive articulation of thoughts and processes, minimizing bias and assumptions.

• Revealing Unknown unknowns: Uncovers subconscious knowledge that individuals may not have articulated.

Messy Verbal Start: We propose a 'messy verbal start' to capture the knowledge set, supplemented by formal content. This approach simplifies the initial knowledge capture, forming the baseline for future improvements.

Key Activities for Phase 1 - Pilot Phase

Clients get hands-on experience with Aila, understanding its potential impact on their operations. An initial plan and business case are developed based on the pilot phase findings, guiding the next steps in the implementation process.

The key activities described below include i) the rapid capture of the knowledge set, ii) iteratively curating the knowledge set using Aila, and iii) developing an outline business case and plan.

Rapid Capture of the Knowledge Set

Know-How Matrix Creation:

• Objective: Map existing documentation, identify gaps, and categorize knowledge by complexity.

• Activities:

• Integrating Existing Documentation: Review relevant documents, manuals, and procedural guides to identify key aspects/steps into a single cohesive matrix

• Identifying Knowledge Gaps: Use Clean Language techniques to walk through the matrix, potentially conducting detailed interviews and performing workshops. This all with the intent of building a collective understanding and revealing any potential knowledge gaps.

• Categorize complexity of steps: This helps identify steps that have nuance and may be where tacit knowledge is most important and can be explored. 

• Detailing Best Practices and Improvement Steps: Document proven methods and practices while outlining actionable steps to address identified gaps and enhance definition and quality of processes.

Messy Verbal Start:

• Objective: Gather verbal inputs and supplementary content to form a comprehensive initial knowledge base for curation.

• Activities:

• Recording Videos: Capture detailed video recordings of key processes, including interviews with subject matter experts and real-time operations.

• Capturing Images: Take high-quality photos and diagrams that illustrate critical steps and components of processes.

• Documenting Verbal Explanations: Record and transcribe verbal explanations and discussions to capture nuanced, tacit knowledge.

Iterative Knowledge Curation using Aila

Using the Knowledge Set in Aila:

• Objective: Implement the captured knowledge in Aila to start receiving feedback. Curate the data by identifying inconsistencies and gaps, which may be fixed by updates to the knowledge or enhanced with additional videos, graphics, and detailed descriptions.

• Activities:

• Uploading Content to Aila: Integrate all captured videos, images, and documents into Aila's knowledge management system.

• Structuring input: Use AI & data from prior conversations to organize and structure the data in Aila. This includes structured steps, competency definitions and questions lists to prepare for the feedback and iteration processes.

• Define prompts: Develop initial prompt designs also for the next step.

Feedback and Iteration:

• Objective: Gather feedback to identify gaps, inconsistencies, and areas for improvement.

• Activities:

• Collecting user feedback: Use learning sessions and direct observation to gather feedback from coaches, SMEs and learners interacting with Aila.

• Analyzing feedback: Review and analyze feedback to pinpoint specific areas that require enhancement or clarification. Iterate quickly testing and resolving.

• Curating content: Update and refine the knowledge base in Aila based on feedback, adding to its accuracy and comprehensiveness.

Outline Business Case and Plan

To work in parallel on a business case to support the plan, and the plan that provides the scope for the business case.

Building the Business Case:

• Objective: Develop a business case for implementing Aila based on the plan.

• Activities:

• Identify success criteria (Benefits): Identify potential benefits of Aila as SMART success criteria

• Estimating Costs: Outline potential costs associated with the scope of the implementation, including technology, learning, and ongoing support.

• Risk Assessment: Identify potential risks and mitigation strategies to ensure a smooth rollout, including roles and responsibilities by phase (as clients move to self-sustainability)

Outline the Implementation Plan:

• Objective: Use insights from the pilot to develop an outline plan for implementation. And build incrementally with the business case.

• Activities:

• Synthesizing insights: Compile key learnings and insights from the pilot phase, highlighting successes and areas needing improvement.

• Creating a roadmap: outlining the steps, timelines, and resources required for deployment.

Agreement:

• Objective: Reach agreement on way forward 

• Activities

• Engaging Stakeholders: Present the roadmap, plan and business case to key stakeholders, ensuring alignment and support for the next phases.

• Agreement: build agreement for the roadmap, plan and targeted outcomes, with senior management and decision-makers.

Summary of key activities

The implementation of Aila follows a structured process that ensures rapid and thorough knowledge capture, effective use of the knowledge set within Aila, and iterative improvements based on user feedback. By being clear about targeted outcomes and a plan to achieve this success criteria, organizations can work towards a smooth transition to full deployment, ultimately achieving capability improvements targets in capacity, efficiency, knowledge management, and process optimization. 

Conclusion

The Pilot Phase is a crucial step in implementing Aila, designed to be a lower-risk, high-value experience that rapidly captures the client's knowledge set and demonstrates the potential of Aila. By focusing on key activities like Clean Language techniques, a messy verbal start, and creating a Know-How Matrix, we ensure a comprehensive and effective initial implementation. The feedback and iterative process help in refining the knowledge base, ultimately leading to a well-informed business case and plan for moving forward. For more details on our implementation process and support services, visit aicuratedlearning.com.