Embracing AI with Google Gemini
Google Gemini integrates AI capabilities into Google Workspace, offering a unique opportunity to improve productivity. Ocado Retail, for example, uses Gemini to help marketers gain insight into customer segments. But here’s the thing: with what adoption? Employees may not “have time” to learn or can even be a bit hesitant to try new tech. So, how do you encourage staff to use AI features that used to be costly but now available to all your users? How do you make using Gemini, well, easy? To get everyone on board, and get the most out of it, this article provides a checklist and some expert tips. How to make AI work for you, not against you. Let’s fix the challenges of integrating AI in a busy work environment.
What you’ll read in this article
To truly leverage AI, it’s not just about deploying the tools, but enabling your team to discover innovative applications within their daily workflows. That’s where real transformation begins.
Pablo Savva,
Head of AI and Innovation at Devoteam UK
?What is Google Workspace with Gemini?
Google Workspace seamlessly integrates Gemini. Google Workspace with Gemini can help you write, communicate, understand data, and collaborate. It changes how you work. Gemini is like an assistant that does everyday tasks and helps you generate new ideas. Helping you work smarter, not harder, across all your Google apps. Whether you’re a marketer or work in sales, HR, or procurement, Gemini has features to help you do your job better. It will change how you use Gmail, Docs, Sheets, Slides, and Meet.
Want to free up your time? Read more in this Gemini for Google Workspace Ebook or replay the Google AI in Workspace online panel discussion.
The Gemini Adoption Checklist: A Step-by-Step Guide
Step 1: Assess Your Organisation’s Readiness
Don’t just jump in blind. Take a second. Look around. Who is going to use Gemini?
- Ocado Retail, for example, found that many new employees were unfamiliar with Google Workspace. Some employees only used Microsoft Office primarily. It’s a good reminder that you have to get everyone up to speed. How? Assess your employees’ digital skills and provide adequate training. Devoteam realised the importance of basic Google Workspace training, irrespective of Gemini, to achieve productivity gains.
- Identify Key Stakeholders: Basically, round up the usual suspects. IT? Management? Absolutely. And don’t forget the people from different departments. The ones who do the work. Get their opinions. Why? Because you want everyone on board, not just the tech geeks. You want everyone saying, ‘Yes, this makes sense.’”
Employees in Developer and Data roles were quick to jump on the tools, while sales and leaders were looking for guidance on where they would get the best value & time-saving benefits for their investment in learning.
Simon Ruszala,
Group Learning Director at Devoteam
Step 2: Define Clear Objectives and KPIs
Clearly defined goals are essential for measuring the success of your AI adoption. Think about how Gemini can help you level up. More productive? Happier customers?
- Align AI Goals with Business Strategy: Consider how Gemini can help achieve specific goals, such as increasing productivity, improving customer engagement, or driving innovation.
- Define SMART KPIs (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound) to track Gemini’s impact. Examples include time saved per employee, increased project completion rates, or improved customer satisfaction scores.
When trying to measure productivity, Simon Ruszala from Devoteam notes the importance of getting employees to share their perspective on productivity, “We didn’t want to calculate it from a business perspective. We wanted our employees to tell us what it is”.
When measuring productivity gains, it’s key to get employee perspectives. We didn’t want to calculate it from a top-down perspective; we wanted our employees to tell us what gains they were getting.
Simon Ruszala,
Group Learning Director at Devoteam
Step 3: Keep it ethical and protect your data
- Set some ground rules. Create ethical guidelines to govern the use of AI within your organisation. Address bias, transparency, and accountability. Why? It will ensure that AI is used fairly and responsibly.
- Implement stringent data protection measures to safeguard sensitive information. Ensure compliance with relevant regulations, such as GDPR, and establish clear protocols for data handling and storage.
The real threat is often beyond your control. Shadow IT poses a greater risk of unethical or non-compliant data use than in-house AI tools. This occurs when employees use AI tools outside the organisation’s control.
Step 4: Create Effective AI Adoption Programs and Training
Nobody wants to sit through a boring lecture about AI. So, let’s make it fun, ok?
- Let people experiment. Let them mess around. How? Cultivate a culture of learning and provide a safe environment.
- Consider using a persona-based approach. Not everyone uses AI the same way. Think about who is going to use it most. Sales? Marketing? Developers? Tailor the training to them. Show them how they can use it. Keep it relevant. Keep it practical
- Get people excited! Show them the cool stuff AI can do. Share real examples. Start a Google Chat Group, a club, a Slack channel, whatever works for you. Make it a place where people want to be.
Think about personas and then which areas of the business are likely to benefit most and focus onboarding activities with them. Check your firewall/proxy logs and see how much your colleagues are already using AI tools in their daily lives. Embrace that enthusiasm, create a special interest group, share great use cases with each other and then collate these for the wider cohort.
Kieren Johnson
Head of IT at Ocado Retail
Step 5: Address Implementation Challenges and Resistance to Change
Be prepared to tackle challenges and resistance to ensure smooth implementation.
- Heads-up: People might be sceptical. Tech might not work. Stuff might not integrate perfectly. Think about these problems before they happen. Have a “what if” plan.
- Keep Talking: Encourage open communication. Listen to their worries. Set up a way for people to give feedback—a suggestion box, a chat group, a contact person. Make it easy. If people feel heard, it builds trust. And it makes sure this whole AI adoption process works for them.
Step 6: Measure the Impact of AI and Demonstrate Its Value
You have to show people it is working, right? Quantifying the benefits of AI is crucial for justifying the investment and securing ongoing support.
- The numbers don’t lie: Monitor key usage and productivity metrics to assess Gemini’s impact. Use data analytics tools to track time savings, efficiency gains, and other relevant indicators.
- Do you have a success story? Share it! Did someone save a ton of time? Did a project get done faster? Let everyone know. It builds the hype and gets people on board. Show them that Gemini is worth it.
Step 7: Partnering for AI Transformation
Sometimes, just call in the pros. Use external experts to speed up your AI adoption journey. They are the ones who do this all day. They have seen it all and know the tricks. Guide you on strategy, implementation, training and ensuring success. Devoteam creates impact from day one. We are an awarded Google AI and Google Workspace partner.
Step 8: Ongoing Support and Iteration
AI is an evolving field. So continuous improvement is essential.
- Review and refine your AI strategies regularly based on performance data and user feedback. Embrace a culture of experimentation and be willing to adapt your approach as needed.
- What are the latest AI trends? Attend IT industry events, participate in online communities, and invest in ongoing training to ensure your organisation remains at the forefront of AI innovation.
In the whirlwind of AI advancements, training can become obsolete almost overnight. It’s not enough to just attend an introductory training session; it’s about creating a culture of continuous learning and adaptation. That’s why, like Ocado Retail, Devoteam has fostered ongoing support and training to ensure our teams remain updated, effective and empowered.
Simone French,
Head of Google Workspace at Devoteam
Real-World Examples of Successful Google AI Integration
How Ocado Retail structured its training approach
Ocado Retail’s initial experience with Google AI started with Duet AI. Early trials with Duet AI, now Gemini, had limited capabilities and low usage. What made Ocado Retail want to improve it? Leadership asked questions about what AI meant for the company. A Slack AI trial showed that people wanted AI tools at work. And they wanted to control how AI tools were used and keep data safe.
Ocado Retail opted for a six-week adoption program to embrace Google Workspace with Gemini in collaboration with Devoteam. The program nurtured enthusiasm for AI and informed users about new features. The aim? To encourage active participation rather than passive absorption. Key Components of the program are:
- Super Champions: Identifying and supporting super users who are enthusiastic about the products.
- Creating a special interest group in Slack for sharing use cases.
- Receiving regular updates from Google about upcoming features.
- Providing monthly inductions for new staff and existing employees to familiarise them with Google Workspace.
The partnership with Devoteam was valuable because of the “One Team approach”—cliche but very true for our experience. Slack is key for us, and having Devoteam in our Slack channels talking about Google AI and responding to our teams’ questions was key.
Ocado Retail even encountered unexpected benefits. Getting everyone on board with Gemini was like a secret Google Workspace boot camp. People who used to work with Microsoft Office are now Google pros.
How Devoteam structured its training approach
Devoteam recently deployed Gemini to over 4,000 of its employees. Devoteam’s training program for Gemini focuses on upskilling and reskilling its 11,000 employees. The company treats its internal training as if it were a client project to ensure the best ROI.
Key components and characteristics of the program include:
- Levelled Approach: They have different levels of AI training, with Level 1 running across all employees. Level 2 is around specialist jobs such as project managers and solution engineers.
- Level 1 consists of a five-hour online training program covering ethical training, company policies, and Gemini itself.
- Access to Gemini is granted upon completion of the level 1 training.
The program emphasises:
- The program focuses on embedding AI capabilities into daily tasks and workflows rather than just using AI as an additional tool.
- Devoteam set up communities to share insights and provide support. The expert team also answer questions and sends internal newsletters about the platform, product roadmaps, and upcoming features to prevent users from seeking alternative solutions.
- Devoteam provides activities to help people build a “Gemini Gem,” an AI agent focused on helping them in their roles.
- Iterative Approach: By using feedback loops, Devoteam can learn and adapt quickly. Devoteam continuously refreshes the training program to keep up with the rapid pace of change.
The result? A recent internal survey showed that over 40% of people felt a significant productivity increase.
Google Workspace with Gemini? It’s a game-changer when adopted well.
Discover how our proven change management and adoption program ensures your teams adopt the tools to obtain productivity gains.
Learn how we build engagement, foster a culture of learning, and provide the ongoing support needed for sustainable AI adoption. Contact us today to explore a tailored adoption program designed to maximise the value of your Google Workspace investment.
If you’re interested in understanding the broader impact and accessibility of Google’s AI, our article ‘Gemini for Google Workspace: AI for Everyone‘ provides a comprehensive overview of how Gemini is transforming everyday work.
Work Smarter & Faster with Gemini
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