Stage 1: Building Alignment Before Building AI

Part 2 of 7 in the AI Change Framework Series

Every organization feels the pressure to “do something with AI.” The temptation is to start with tools, pilots, or vendors. The first discipline of effective change management is to pause.

This stage invites teams to stop reacting and build a shared foundation before investing energy or budget. Without a unified “why,” every decision downstream fragments.

The Invitation to Pause

Stage 1 asks three essential questions:

• Why are we exploring AI?
• What kind of transformation do we actually want—efficiency, differentiation, innovation, or resilience?
• How does this effort connect to our mission, customers, and people?

The invitation of Stage 1 is simple but difficult: align minds before aligning machines.

Defining Your AI Purpose

The foundation stage defines the intent and boundaries of your AI transformation. It clarifies purpose, scope, and ownership so later experimentation stays meaningful.

Primary objectives:

1. Establish a shared AI purpose statement—a sentence that connects AI to business and human value
2. Identify the system of people, processes, and data that change will touch
3. Create psychological safety: acknowledge uncertainty, fear, and optimism equally
4. Secure early sponsorship and accountability for the journey ahead

Clear intent filters distractions. “We could use AI here” becomes “Does this support our purpose?”

System Mapping Exercise

AI reshapes interdependencies. A SaaS company may start with automating customer-support tickets but quickly discover implications for data governance, sales hand-offs, and product design. Mapping the system reveals how those parts connect.

Who belongs in the system conversation:

• Executives/Sponsors—articulate strategic priorities and boundaries
• Functional Leads—describe day-to-day realities and where friction lives
• Change Partners—HR, L&D, IT, Communications: they connect intent to execution
• Front-line Voices—the people whose workflows will shift first

System-Thinking Exercise (1–2 hours)

1. In small mixed groups, list what flows through your work: information, decisions, customers, or data
2. Draw arrows showing where those flows originate and where they go next
3. Circle points where “AI could intervene”
4. Discuss: If AI made that flow smoother, what downstream effects would occur?

The output becomes a System Map—a one-page visual showing the key processes, data sets, and human roles affected by AI.

Workshop Facilitation Guide

1. Kick-off Dialogue (45 min)

Objective: Surface perceptions and emotional landscape.

• Prompt: “When you hear 'AI transformation,' what's your first reaction—hope, fear, confusion, excitement?”
• Capture all words on a shared board
• Group them into drivers (why we're doing this) and barriers (what might hold us back)

2. Purpose Co-Definition (2 hours)

Objective: Craft a unifying statement.

• Split into cross-functional groups of 5–7
• Ask: “What specific outcomes should AI help us achieve in the next 12 months?”
• Ask: “Who benefits if we succeed?” and “What risk or harm must we avoid?”
• Combine into one statement: “We are exploring AI to ___ so that ___.”
• Iterate until leadership and front-line voices both see themselves in it

3. System Mapping (2–3 hours)

Use the exercise above. Keep labels plain—no jargon. Color-code: blue = people, green = processes, yellow = data, red = decisions.

4. Alignment & Commitments (1 hour)

Present the draft purpose statement and system map. Facilitator asks:

• “What feels missing?”
• “What does this change mean for your function?”
• “What are you willing to own?”

Mastery Checklist

You'll know the foundation is solid when:

1. Clarity—everyone, from exec to intern, can summarize the AI purpose in one sentence
2. System View—key interdependencies are visualized and understood
3. Ownership—leaders have assigned who stewards the next phase
4. Safety—participants report feeling heard; no major pockets of silent resistance
5. Alignment—top priorities and boundaries are agreed upon and documented

Artifacts to Produce

• ☐ AI Purpose Statement approved
• ☐ System Map validated across functions
• ☐ Commitment matrix (owners + next steps)
• ☐ Communication plan for internal audiences
• ☐ Workshop feedback reviewed and shared

Previous: Why Most AI Initiatives Fail
Next: Stage 2: Diagnosing AI Readiness