🔒 Exercise 1 Facilitator Guide

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Exercise 1: AI Tech Radar - Facilitator Guide

Duration: 45 minutes (9:55 AM - 10:40 AM) Core Learning: Most organisations cluster in “Optimize” quadrant. Strategic leaders intentionally balance across all four.

Pre-Exercise Setup

Materials needed: - 12 AI Capability Cards (printed or displayed on devices) - Butcher paper with AI Transformation Matrix (pre-drawn: Horizon 1/2/3 × Optimize/Transform) - Post-it notes and markers for each table

Room setup: - Post matrix on wall or lay flat on large tables - Distribute Post-it notes and markers

Phase 1: Card Introduction (5 min)

Script: “You’re going to map your organisation’s AI capabilities using 12 capability cards. Each card represents a different AI application your company COULD pursue.

Your job: Place each card on the matrix to identify: 1. Which quadrant it belongs (Optimize = Process Improvements, Transform = Business Model Innovation) 2. Which horizon (H1 = Now, H2 = 1-2 years, H3 = Future vision)

Start with cards you’re ALREADY doing or seriously considering. Then add aspirational ones.

Go.”

Timing: - 30 sec: Explain the grid - 5 min: Teams work

During Exercise: What You’re Looking For

Good signs: - Teams placing cards, debating placement (healthy disagreement is normal) - Asking clarifying questions (“Is that really H3 or should it be H2?”) - Noticing patterns (“Oh wow, we have 8 cards in Optimize, only 1 in Transform”)

Circulate and prompt: - “Talk through WHY that card goes there, not just WHERE” - “Does that feel like an optimization or transformation?” - “Is that realistic for H3 or more H2?”

Don’t: - Tell them “correct” answers (cards can legitimately be multiple places) - Rush them - Move cards yourself

After cards are placed:

“Now we’re going to look at what emerged. Walk to the matrix. What patterns do you see?”

Likely patterns they’ll discover: - Clustering in Optimize quadrant (60-80% of cards) - Few Transform initiatives - Mostly H1 focus, few H3 initiatives

Your role: - Point out patterns without judgment: “I’m noticing your team placed most cards here. What does that tell you?” - Resist the urge to say “that’s wrong” - Ask: “Is this intentional or an accident?”

Key insight to surface (but let them discover): “Strategic organisations intentionally spread across all four quadrants. Why? Because you need: - Optimize: Keep lights on, improve margins - Transform: Prepare for future competition - H1: Immediate ROI - H2/H3: Strategic positioning”

Phase 3: Debrief Discussion (30 min)

Framing (2 min): “Most companies look like your matrix right now—heavy on Optimize, light on Transform. That’s not wrong, but it’s risky. If all your money goes to incremental improvements, you’re vulnerable when competitors transform.

Let’s talk about strategic balance.”

Questions to ask: 1. “Look at your Transform quadrant. What’s stopping you from investing there?” - Answers: “Uncertain ROI,” “Too risky,” “We don’t have talent,” “Need to stabilize first” - Your point: “Those are real constraints. But also reasons to START, not skip”

  1. “If you had to add ONE transformational initiative, what would it be?”
    • Listen for genuine opportunities vs. “because it sounds cool”
    • Your point: “Notice how hard this is? That’s why most companies skip it.”
  2. “How does this matrix compare to your actual budget allocation?”
    • Do budgets match the placement?
    • Your point: “Often no—we KNOW we should transform, but we fund optimization”
  3. “What’s the risk of ONLY optimizing?”
    • Drive toward: “Competitors transform, we’re still optimizing, we lose”

Synthesis (3 min): “This week: Try placing your ACTUAL projects here. Where’s your money really going? Then ask: Are we balanced intentionally, or by accident? That’s the strategic question.”

Common Facilitation Moves

If team is stuck: “Pick one card. Talk me through: Is this improving what we do (Optimize) or changing what we do (Transform)?”

If team dismisses Transform: “I hear you—Transform feels risky. But what’s the risk of doing ONLY Optimize?”

If team clusters everything in H1: “Why is nothing future-focused? Is H3 ‘not our problem’ or ‘we haven’t thought about it yet’?”

Success Indicators

✅ Exercise worked if: - Teams discuss card placement (not just placing quietly) - Someone says: “Wait, we should have a Transform initiative” - Teams notice their own clustering pattern - At least one team mentions “we’re not balanced”

Transition to Exercise 2

“That’s Exercise 1. You’ve mapped WHERE you are. Next exercise (AI-Assisted Strategic Analysis) we’re going to use AI tools to think about WHERE you SHOULD be.

Break 15 minutes.”

Lean and flexible. Key is helping teams SEE their current state, then nudging them to question whether it’s intentional.