How to Build a Dedicated AI Team in 7 Strategic Steps

Powering your business processes with the help of AI is quite a winning strategy that can promise an effectiveness boost and cost-cutting opportunities. To create a custom AI solution for your business, you need to hire a dedicated development team. In this article, we will share a step-by-step strategy to do it correctly.

1.   Focus on Your Business Challenge and Goal

Artificial intelligence is a versatile technology, and when used in the correct manner, can be tailored to almost any use case, business challenge, and goal. Before hiring a dedicated team, you should state a clear problem or requirement that you need to address with the help of AI since it would be at the heart of your future AI solution.

2.   Discover the Opportunities AI Can Promise

As you know, there are two stages of AI evolution – machine learning and deep learning. While the same operation principle powers them, the tasks they can solve for business are quite different. Machine learning algorithms can analyze substantial data arrays and make accurate conclusions and predictions, while deep learning is a technology that is gaining knowledge and improving itself continuously. The latter is at the core of conversational AI chatbots, security solutions with image capturing and recognition, automatic trading platforms, and much more.

Depending on your business goals, you have to decide what kind of an AI solution you require and the essential features that you need to make it work.

3.   Outline the Skills and Competencies You Need for Your AI Project

Depending on the AI application specifics you would like to develop, at this stage, you have to outline the primary skills, competencies, tech knowledge scope, and experience for the development of your AI solution.

For example, suppose your app has to be powered by deep learning. In that case, you need to look for talents with experience in deep learning algorithms programming and the usage of corresponding programming languages, libraries, and platforms.

4.   Compare In-House Development vs. Outsourcing

At this stage, you are almost ready to hire a dedicated AI development team. There are two ways to do it, and each of the strategies has its pros and cons.

  1. Hire an in-house development team. This is a costly approach that promises many expenses related to talent search, working space equipping, taxation, and other legal requirements. As for the benefits of this strategy, having a development team under your roof is an opportunity for ongoing control of the process, plus instant communication and quick switch in case the development course changes.
  2. Outsource your development tasks. In AI, software development outsourcing is another effective tactic to create your solution. With the right choice of the outsourcing destination and the development vendor, you can expect huge cost and time savings, instant access to the talents pool, and the opportunity to get started with the development process almost instantly. Still, this strategy requires clear and well-established communication practices, and ensures mutual understanding and cultural fit.

5. Get in Touch with an AI-Savvy Development Vendor

Outsourcing your AI development tasks is a more practical approach compared to building an in-house team. The main benefit of this tactic is the opportunity to hire a ready-made team with well-established development, communication, control, and reporting practices sourced by the development vendor. Still, the choice of the company is essential.

To make the right choice, decide on the outsourcing destination and shortlist the companies experienced in developing AI solutions for your niche. For example, if you want to develop a fraud prevention AI system for your financial institution, it is always better to hire a company with practical cases in fintech.

Such a smart approach will allow you to utilize their knowledge in AI development and ensure your app security and legal compliance.  You will also be able to avoid costly mistakes since the development team already has numerous practical insights on how to optimize the process of your software building and tailor it to your business specifics.

6. Make Sure You Are on The Same Page

Using the services of a remote team for your AI development means you have to spend some time achieving mutual understanding and making sure you are on the same page with the vendor and the team sourced by them. As a rule, trusted software development companies have well-established communication, control, and reporting practices developed, taking the time zone difference into account.

At this stage, you are welcome to ask as many questions as possible, making sure that the development process will be transparent, well-documented, reported, and controllable, plus focused on improving your business processes, boosting their effectiveness, saving your resources, and mitigating main risks.

7. Choose the Right Type of Contract

Your dedicated development team should be ready to get started with your AI solution at this stage.  Before launching the process, make sure the type of contract you will sign with them matches your project specifics. Below are the three types of contracts used in software development outsourcing.

  • Fixed price. This approach is good when the project development process is predictable and the scope is small to medium. This is not the best choice for AI creation.
  • Time and material. This type of contact can be suitable if you already have a solution you would like to improve with the help of AI. Such an approach is also ideal for legacy system modernization, so consider it if you have some legacy code to rewrite and improve.
  • Dedicated team. Most AI solutions for businesses come with an excellent potential in response to the business growth they can promise. Despite this being the most expensive contact type, it also promises the most benefits in the long run.

Conclusion

Whilst following the software development outsourcing business model, hiring a specialized AI team can be quite an effective approach. The most vital thing is to partner with a suitable vendor experienced in your niche. Doing so will enable you to hire a ready-made team almost instantly, so you can get started with the development process without any delay.


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