Jeff Mills

One of the areas that is under represented in this section, and is important to be considering, what are the Expert in the Loop integration points needed to ensure that what you are building is working in production. Yes, AI is here to create efficiencies and bring down costs, but you still need to ensure the quality of the output is very high. Two things - first, make sure you have an Expert in the Loop component ensuring the quality of the data going into your AI is best of breed. "you are what you eat" - second, make sure you have Expert in the Loop ensuring the output in production is highest quality. You only get one chance to build trust, but many chances to lose it!

As you look to create new opportunities in AI, you need to become a power user. This will help you identify the gaps and see what problems you can solve with technology. I advise companies to start by using AI with internal data. A great place you could start with is just creating a simple RAG process leveraging your companies data (in a secure environment!) Maybe start with your CRM data as an example and being with the ability to query your client data leveraging an LLM. As you start engaging with processes like this, you will start to identify ways to increase efficiencies internally. Once you have mastered a process and identified the efficiencies that have helped you - you now have identified a need for the market. Keep going!

AI is going to be a major buzzword for all marketing this year and you will need to figure out if what you are looking at is a Market Trend or just Marketing. I am attending more conferences this year versus the past couple years, but you need to select conferences with specific focus on the markets you are interested in learning about, or you may not get what you want out of the event. Also, make sure you spend more time educating yourself on the topics that will be covered at the event before attending. This will give you enough expertise to better understand the content when you go to see it. Examples: Nvidia GTC (trend EdgeAI), Google Next (trend RAG), GENAI Summit SF (trend omni-modal), next on my list - CVPR in Seattle on June 19th.

Power in Negotiation Like any negotiation, it is good to be in a strong position as you enter the conversation. Having an offer in hand, puts you in a position of strength as you have an offer that shows your current market value. That should give most people a bit more confidence and hopefully put them in a position to ask for what they want. However, my advice is to use the offer for clarity vs negotiation. Is the job you are still trying to get the one you really want? The greatest part is YOU get to make the choice. YOU get to make the decision. You may end up taking a different job even though the offer was less. Now you are not a victim, you chose to take less salary to work at the company you really wanted to be at. That is power!

There are 3 important characteristics that I keep an eye out for with employees. Before negotiating ask yourself, how would my peers rate me on the following: 1. Work ethic Are you known to be someone that goes above and beyond to make things happen? You don't have to be first in and first out, but are you looked at by others as someone that is in the thick of it with them. 2. Company Culture How do you add to the company culture each day? Do people love to work with you? Do you pick up others around you? 3. Measurable Results At the end of the day, do you have a proven record for reaching and exceeding the milestones put in front of you? If the answer isn't a big yes for all three, you have some work before negotiating.