[AI SPRINT] AI Agents and Employee AI Habits: Keys to 2025’s AI-Enabled Companies

The Rise of AI Agents: What Are They, and Are They Ready for Prime Time?

If you’ve been paying attention to AI news over the last six months, you’ve undoubtedly heard about the buzz surrounding AI Agents. I completely agree that they’re set to be a game-changer, but what exactly are they, and are they ready to revolutionize the workplace? Here’s my take:

What Are AI Agents?

At their core, AI Agents are semi-autonomous programs designed to perform specific tasks with minimal human intervention. Think of them as digital co-workers capable of handling well-defined responsibilities. For example:

• Agent Frank, a Sales AI Agent, automates the prospecting process. You define Frank’s personality, provide details about your product, and upload a list of prospects. From there, Frank autonomously executes an outbound strategy—crafting personalized emails and passing qualified leads to your sales team. At $500 per month, running 24/7, Frank offers a highly cost-effective solution for prospecting.

AI Agents like Frank are already being developed for a wide range of roles, from sales automation to software development agents like Devin. There are even voice-based agents capable of live phone conversations and AI healthcare agents handling pre- and post-surgery follow-ups. Jensen Huang, CEO at Nvidia, recently said that soon you will onboard AI agents as new staff, with the IT Department servicing as the HR Department for AI Agents in the future. These tools promise to fundamentally reshape how work gets done.

Are They Ready for Prime Time?

Almost! By the end of 2025, I expect AI Agents to be standard in many AI-enabled organizations, performing tasks across departments and industries. Currently, there are likely thousands of agents in development, with more being introduced daily.

Beyond pre-built, purchasable agents, we’re also moving toward a future where employees can create and share their own custom agents in whatever AI application your company uses, with agent functionality built into ChatGPT, Copilot, and others. For example:

• Automate your monthly report by designing an AI Agent to gather supporting detail and write your first draft.

• Need to make a job description? Ask your HR Agent, which will walk you through creating a company-standard one, and even post it online.

The possibilities are vast, and as the technology matures, AI Agents will enable employees to automate increasingly complex tasks, freeing them to focus on higher-value work.

What Should Be Done Now?

The answer depends on where you are in your AI enablement journey. If you’re just starting out, it’s critical to lay the groundwork first. AI Agents represent a transformative shift in how companies operate, and success requires careful preparation.

If you’re following my AI SPRINT framework, ensure you’ve completed the first three foundational steps before you begin working on agents:

1. SPARK Action – Start with building alignment about your AI strategy within your leadership team.

2. POSITION Company – Evaluate your competitive position and how to enhance it with AI, and set priorities.

3. RALLY Employees – Equip your workforce with the mindset and skills to embrace AI.

These steps create the foundation for successfully adopting AI Agents when the time is right. By preparing now, you’ll ensure your organization is ready to adopt agents late this year when they are ready for prime time.

This Week’s Resource List:

• How the Best Companies Are Using AI to Upskill Employees (6 minutes) Top companies are leveraging AI tools like personalized learning platforms, AI chatbots for training, internal talent marketplaces, and mentor-matching algorithms to upskill employees, enhance training accessibility, and drive equitable career development.

• AI Upskilling: Developing Teams to Gain Productivity with Gen AI (8 minutes) A strategic AI upskilling approach boosts productivity by aligning training with organizational goals, fostering collaboration, developing soft and hard skills, and ensuring ethical AI use.

• AI Agents Every Business Needs: How Small Businesses Are Saving 60% on Operational Costs (10 minutes) A general overview of how AI agents will transform businesses by performing complex, high-level tasks with speed and accuracy.

RALLY Your Employees: The Third Step in AI Enablement

Earlier this month, I introduced the AI SPRINT Adoption Framework—a six-step guide any company can follow to effectively implement AI while overcoming high consulting costs and complexity. You can follow each step on your own or contact me to learn about workshops and resources to accelerate your transformation.

This week, I’m covering the critical third step: RALLY Your Employees to Use AI Daily.

This is a step many companies have overlooked: you won’t reap the full benefits of AI unless you actively encourage employees to integrate AI into their roles. To achieve this, you need to provide clear direction, offer ongoing support, and set measurable goals for usage. Think of this step as communicating your AI strategy to your workforce: if you want specific results, you must take an intentional approach.

Here’s the hard truth: most employees are wary of AI. As a leader, it’s crucial to acknowledge their concerns and provide the support they need to embrace this powerful tool. When I work with clients, I often begin by conducting an employee survey to assess their willingness to change, identify who is already experimenting with AI tools, and uncover ways to make their jobs easier through AI. This is a key component of change management—engaging employees in the process while gathering invaluable data to inform your implementation strategy.

Typically, I find that about 20-25% of employees are already experimenting with AI tools in some capacity. At the same time, there’s usually resistance from others, which can stem from philosophical objections or reluctance to adopt new technology, particularly among older workforce members. Understanding these dynamics is essential for success.

Crafting an Effective Rollout Strategy

Once you’ve gathered insights from your employee survey, you can design a rollout strategy aimed at encouraging daily AI use. Key elements of this strategy include:

• Establishing an AI Acceptable Use Policy: Clearly define how AI should be used to align with the company’s vision and goals, while emphasizing safety and ethical considerations.

• Providing Initial Training: Offer regular workshops and resources to help employees feel confident and empowered using AI.

• Providing an AI Helpdesk and Support Materials: Provide access to more advanced AI users, an internal company knowledge-sharing platform, and other resources to help share AI knowledge.

What to Expect with a Structured Approach

If implemented intentionally, you can expect to see measurable results:

• Within 30–60 days: Employees using AI will demonstrate improved work quality.

• Within 120–180 days: Employees using AI will report productivity gains.

With focused efforts, you should aim to reach 50% employee adoption of weekly AI usage within six months. This level of engagement will drive higher-quality work, increased productivity, and even innovation as employees discover new ways to leverage AI for automation, problem-solving, and product development.

From Legacy to Innovation

By committing to this step, your company will transition from being a legacy organization to one that is innovative, tech-forward, and AI-enabled. But remember, the ultimate goal isn’t just weekly AI use—it’s daily AI use. For example, Moderna’s CEO has publicly shared their encouragement for employees to use ChatGPT up to 20 times per day!

This is why the third step in the framework is Rally Your Employees to Use AI Daily. By setting this goal, you’ll unlock direct and transformative results for your business.

If you’d like to learn more about how I approach this step, feel free to reach out!

This Week’s AI Prompt: 

Sometimes, the simplest way to leverage AI is to ask: "How can I improve this?"

Whether it’s an email to a colleague, a report, a project plan, or any other task, having AI evaluate and suggest improvements can often elevate the quality of your work. Give it a try—you might be surprised by the results! 

This Week’s Takeaway

If you’re just starting out with AI, AI Agents may seem like a futuristic concept—but they’re quickly becoming a practical reality. Focus on building a solid foundation for adoption now, as these semi-autonomous tools are set to handle tasks like sales automation, coding, and customer support with minimal oversight later this year. While they’re not quite ready for widespread implementation, preparing your team and aligning your strategy will ensure you’re positioned to take full advantage when they are.

Action Step: Drop me an email to schedule a leadership workshop or discussion to explore the opportunities AI can unlock for your organization. Use this as a chance to SPARK Action and get your team thinking about your next moves in the AI journey.

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