AI Champion Program: Growing Internal Advocates
AI adoption doesn't progress "all at once company-wide." Place an advocate (champion) in each field and spread from points to a surface.
The Champion's Role
- A translator who maps AI use onto on-the-ground problems
- Discovering and sharing winning patterns and prompts
- First point of contact for colleagues' questions (lowering psychological barriers)
- Feeding field voices back to the promotion side
How to Grow Them
- Pick motivated people from each department (regardless of rank)
- Give them slightly-ahead knowledge, time, and authority
- Create venues for champions to connect with each other
- Properly evaluate their contribution
Caution
- Don't dump it on top of their main job (provide time and recognition)
- Don't depend on one person (have several; avoid key-person risk)
Key Point
A champion is "someone who translates into field language." Pairing select, support, and evaluate accelerates bottom-up adoption.
