Who owns AI-Readiness? The next interdisciplinary challenge.
AI readiness isn't an IT problem, an HR problem, or a strategy problem—it's all three simultaneously. Yet most organizations assign ownership to one function, creating gaps nobody addresses. IT focuses on infrastructure and software. HR focuses on people. Strategy focuses on business outcomes.
The work that sits between—organizational memory, decision codification, work redesign—falls through the cracks. This isn't a failure of individual functions. It's a coordination challenge that requires new organizational muscle. The next decade belongs to organizations that figure out how to bridge these silos and own readiness as an interdisciplinary capability.
When organizations decide to "get ready for AI," the first question is usually: whose job is this?
IT says it's about infrastructure and software —data pipelines, model deployment, system integration. They're right. But that's not the whole picture.
HR says it's about people—skills development, change management, workforce planning. They're also right. But that's not complete either.
Strategy says it's about business outcomes—competitive advantage, operational efficiency, new capabilities. Correct again. Still incomplete.
The problem is that AI readiness requires all three simultaneously. And most organizations aren't set up to work this way.
Consider what readiness actually requires. You need technical infrastructure—clean-enough data, integrated systems, reliable models. That's IT's domain. You need organizational capability—people who can work alongside AI, processes designed for human-machine collaboration. That's HR territory. You need strategic clarity—which outcomes matter, where AI adds value, how to measure success. That's strategy's responsibility.
But the critical work sits between these functions. Codifying organizational decision logic so AI can learn from it. Designing workflows that split tasks between humans and machines. Building data architecture that connects people, work, and technology. Establishing governance for AI safety and ethics while enabling rapid experimentation.
This interdisciplinary work doesn't naturally belong to IT, HR, or strategy. It requires all three working together with shared accountability.
Most organizations default to assigning ownership to one function. IT gets tagged because AI sounds technical. Or HR gets it because it's about workforce. Or strategy leads because it's transformation.
The result? Critical gaps. IT builds infrastructure without understanding how work actually flows. HR designs training without knowing what the technology can reliably do. Strategy sets direction without visibility into readiness constraints.
Nobody's failing their job. Everyone's operating within their domain expertise. The problem is that AI readiness transcends traditional domain boundaries.
The organizations making progress treat readiness as an interdisciplinary capability. They form cross-functional teams with joint accountability. They build new roles that bridge IT, HR, and strategy—not reporting to one function but connecting all three. They create governance structures where technical, organizational, and strategic perspectives have equal weight.
This isn't about matrix management or coordinating committees. It's about fundamentally rethinking who owns what when the challenge doesn't fit existing boxes.
The next decade will separate organizations that figure this out from those that don't. Not because one group has better AI or smarter people. But because some will build the organizational muscle to own interdisciplinary challenges while others keep optimizing within functional silos.
AI readiness is just the beginning. The real challenge is building organizations that can tackle complex problems requiring IT, HR, and strategy to work as one system—not three functions coordinating at the edges.
That capability, more than any specific AI implementation, determines who wins.
