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Getting Your Team Onboard With AI

The Bank of England is warning AI could destabilise financial markets, while UK finance chiefs have never been more confident in it, so somebody’s about to be proven wrong. This issue covers what the FCA‘s stance on regulating tools like ChatGPT and Claude means for financial advice, how to get your team actually using AI without a big rollout plan, and an honest review of Elicit for research-heavy SMEs.

Prompt Engineer

Getting your team onboard with AI starts with them seeing what’s in it for them. Share this prompt with your team so everyone can spot their own quick win, rather than you trying to guess it for them.

I want to find one task in my role that AI could help with. Here is a rough outline of what I do in a typical week: [describe your main tasks and how long each takes].

Based on this, tell me:

  1. Which one task is the best candidate for AI to help with first, and why
  2. What kind of AI tool would suit that task (e.g. writing, research, admin, data)
  3. One simple way I could try this out this week, in under 10 minutes

Keep your answer practical and specific to my role, not generic AI advice.

AI Updates Roundup

Overview

While the Bank of England is warning about AI risk, the UK’s finance chiefs have never been more confident about its upside.

  • The Bank of England says AI is now a growing risk to financial stability.
  • UK finance chiefs are more confident than ever that AI will boost their business.
  • The FCA says popular AI chatbots may need regulating for financial advice.

The Bank of England says rapid AI growth is raising the risk of cyberattacks and sudden market swings across finance.

  • So what? Lenders now face pressure to prove their AI is safe, which protects the finance you rely on.

A Deloitte survey found 73% of UK finance chiefs now expect AI to improve their business, up from 59% at the end of 2025.

  • So what? Finance chiefs are famously hard to convince, so their turnaround is a decent signal AI has moved past the hype stage.

A senior FCA official says popular AI chatbots like ChatGPT and Claude may need regulating as more people use them for financial advice.

  • So what? Clearer rules on AI financial advice mean less confusion over what your business or customers can trust.

96% of UK CFOs expect their business to increase digital investment over the next five years. – Deloitte Survey

AI and Your Team: How to Get Everyone Onboard

Your team won’t use AI because you told them to. They’ll use it because it made their Tuesday easier.

Overview

  • AI adoption sticks when it solves one real problem, not when it’s mandated from the top.
  • Short demos and bite-sized training beat manuals and workshops every time.
  • Skip the big rollout plan. Show one person one task this week and let the results do the talking.

Rolling out AI across your business isn’t about picking the flashiest tool. It’s about getting your team to actually use it. Here’s how to make that happen without the resistance.

  • Start with one problem, not one tool. Ask your team where their time actually goes. Then find the AI tool that solves that specific problem. A tool with no clear purpose will sit unused.
  • Show them, don’t just tell them. A five minute demo beats a training manual every time. Pick one task, run it live and let the team see the result for themselves.
  • Address the fear directly. Some of your team will worry AI is coming for their job. Be honest: the goal is to remove the boring parts of their role, not the role itself.
  • Make training bite-sized. Nobody has a free afternoon for a workshop. Short, focused sessions on one tool or one task will stick far better than a broad overview.
  • Celebrate the wins publicly. When someone on your team saves an hour using AI, share it with the wider group. Peer proof works better than a top-down mandate.

The Takeaway 🚀

You probably don’t need a 12 month AI strategy. You might just need to show Dave in accounts one trick on Thursday. Word travels fast when something actually saves time.

Quick Review: Elicit🔬

Elicit is an AI research assistant built to search, summarise and extract data from over 138 million academic papers and clinical trials. It matters now for UK firms in pharma, medtech or policy work who need to turn evidence based research from weeks into hours.

Key Takeaways

What’s Good ✅:

  • Searches 138 million papers with every AI claim backed by a citation
  • Automates systematic reviews to PRISMA 2020 standards
  • Free Basic plan to test before you pay

What’s Less Good ❌:

  • Built for academic research, not general business admin
  • Heavier use needs a paid Plus or Pro plan
  • AI summaries can oversimplify complex findings

Impact on Your Business 📈: For SMEs in pharma, medtech or policy consultancy, Elicit cuts the time spent manually screening papers for tenders, product research or compliance reporting. It reduces the risk of missing key evidence when the volume of literature is too large for one person to work through by hand.

Financial ROI 💰: Researchers report up to 80% time savings using Elicit for systematic reviews compared with manual desk research. For a small research or regulatory team, that translates into fewer billable hours spent on literature screening and more time on analysis that actually needs a human.

Price Point 💳: A free Basic plan is available with core search and limited reports. Paid plans typically start from around £9 per user per month.

Upcoming Events & Conferences 📅

  • Responsible AI Summit 2026 🏛️
    • Date: 21–22 September 2026
    • Location: London
    • Cost: From £1,299 (+ VAT)
      A closed-door summit for AI, risk and compliance leaders in mid-market and enterprise firms covering agentic system governance and workforce adoption.
  • Big Data LDN 2026 📊
    • Date: 23–24 September 2026
    • Location: London
    • Cost: Free
      The UK’s leading free data and AI exhibition, best for data, operations and finance leaders building an AI-ready data estate.
  • The Fourth UK AI Conference 2026 🎓
    • Date: 29–30 September 2026
    • Location: Nottingham
    • Cost: See website
      An academic-leaning national conference for R&D leads and firms partnering with universities, with booking closing 4 September.
  • Design Evenings LDN: Leadership in Design & AI 🎨
    • Date: 13 August 2026
    • Location: London
    • Cost: £20
      A panel discussion for product and design leaders on how AI is changing product strategy, design practice and team leadership.

Networking 🤝