Hey there! Mat Parkins here, founder of The AI Guys. I recently had the pleasure of hosting a training session for the Institute of Directors (IoD), where we explored practical ways businesses can leverage AI to save time and boost productivity.
I wanted to share a recap of what we covered for those who attended and couldn’t take notes fast enough (I do talk at double speed sometimes!) and for those who couldn’t make it but are interested in the insights.
What We Covered in the IoD Session
During our hour together, we explored the fundamentals of AI tools, their practical applications for business, and I demonstrated some of my favourite time-saving workflows. The session was deliberately hands-on – because while theory is nice, seeing these tools in action is what really brings home their potential.
It was brilliant to have such an engaged group, with questions ranging from AI security concerns to specific applications in manufacturing and veterinary practices. Your questions shaped the session and helped make it relevant to real business challenges.
The AI Age vs The Information Age
One of the key concepts we discussed was how the AI Age compares to the Information Age. As I shared in the session, the Information Age gave us access to data anywhere and anytime, revolutionising business through channels like social media and online marketing.
But the AI Age is taking this to an entirely different level – at least 1000 times more impactful. Here’s what this means for businesses, as we discussed:
- Learning and research is 10X faster – No more sifting through dozens of Google results
- Tasks are completed 10X quicker – As I demonstrated with content creation
- Business creation is faster and cheaper – In other IoD sessions, I’ve helped build entire business concepts with websites in under an hour
- Expert advice in your pocket – Get insights on almost any topic instantly
- Development costs slashed – Build MVPs without expensive developer teams
For the small and medium businesses represented at our IoD session, this means more time for high-value tasks, increased profitability per employee, and easier scaling.
The AI Tools We Explored
During the training, I walked through several AI platforms that I use daily. Here’s a refresher on each:
Claude
As I mentioned during our session, this is one of my favourites for structured responses. Claude fibs to me a lot less than other models and follows instructions precisely. If I ask for UK English, it delivers UK English consistently. Several IoD members were interested in content creation, and Claude excels at this.
ChatGPT
This was familiar to many in the room. We looked at the different models available:
- GPT-4o: Good for most everyday questions
- GPT-4o mini: Faster with decent reasoning capability
- GPT-4o-1: The most powerful for complex reasoning tasks
Grok
Elon Musk’s AI model generated some interest during the Q&A. As I demonstrated, it’s generally unfiltered and produces images of pretty much anything you ask for. It has access to the latest information, making it quite up-to-date.
Perplexity
This was a highlight for many attendees. I showed how this search-first AI gives you answers with linked sources so you can verify information. For the business owners looking to stay on top of industry changes, this tool was particularly relevant.
Google Gemini
This resonated with the Google Workspace users in the room. It connects to your Google Drive and emails, making it incredibly useful for searching through your documents and correspondence.
Content Creation Workflow Demonstration
One of the most popular parts of our session was when I demonstrated my content creation workflow. For those taking notes, here’s the process:
- Record video content – I showed how I record presentations (like our IoD session!) or discussions
- Transcribe with Descript – This tool transcribes the video and allows editing by simply editing the text
- Generate an article with a trained AI – I demonstrated feeding the transcript into my custom-trained AI writer
- Create AI-generated images – I showed how I ask my AI to create image prompts based on the content sections
- Generate consistent image sets – We looked at Recraft.ai to create sets of images that maintain a consistent style
- Set up an AI chat on the page – I briefly touched on how to create an AI assistant that can answer questions about the specific content
Several attendees were amazed at how a process that would typically take hours was completed in minutes during our demonstration.
Creating Custom AI Models
As we discussed during the session, creating custom AI models tailored to specific tasks is a game-changer. I showed how each platform has its own approach:
- Claude: Projects
- ChatGPT: Custom GPTs
- Gemini: Gems
- Perplexity: Spaces
Remember my advice during the Q&A: Don’t use one chat for everything! Start fresh chats for different topics. This keeps your AI focused and prevents confusion.
Deep Research Capabilities
In the final part of our session, we explored how AI can help with thorough research. I demonstrated Google’s Notebook LM, showing how you can upload documents and then:
- Create briefing documents
- Generate FAQs
- Build timelines
- Produce study guides
The podcast feature where two AI voices discuss your document was a hit with the IoD audience – though unfortunately the audio didn’t come through properly in our Zoom session!
Addressing Your Security Concerns
During our Q&A, an important question came up about data security when uploading business information to AI platforms. As I advised in the session, be extremely cautious about uploading sensitive information to free AI versions, as they often use your data to train their models.
For business-critical information, look for:
- Paid versions with clear privacy policies
- Enterprise options with SOCK 2 certifications
- Platform-specific security features (like Google Workspace integration)
Always review the terms and conditions of each AI platform to ensure they meet your business security requirements.
Next Steps After Our IoD Session
For those who attended the session, I hope you’ve had a chance to explore some of the tools we discussed. The link tree I shared gives you direct access to all the platforms we covered (I’ve since added Descript and InsightIO which were missing initially).
Final Thoughts
The enthusiasm in our IoD session reinforced what I already knew – business leaders are recognising the immense potential of AI to transform operations, regardless of their industry or technical background.
Whether you were the IoD member who mentioned knowing “nothing about AI” at the start, or the manufacturing business looking to enhance inspection processes, or the veterinary practice wanting to streamline documentation – AI has practical applications for your business today.
As I emphasised in our session, these tools aren’t about replacing humans – they’re about enhancing what we do by automating the mundane so we can focus on the meaningful.
Thank you to everyone who participated in our IoD training session. Your questions and engagement made it a valuable experience, and I look forward to seeing how you implement these tools in your businesses.
Want to continue the conversation? Connect with me on LinkedIn – the link was in that link tree I shared. I’m always happy to help fellow business owners discover the power of these tools.
