Using AI to boost your productivity: practical tools and strategies

A recent study from the University of St Andrews in Scotland found that SMEs adopting AI can see seismic productivity gains

Small businesses are no strangers to competing with larger firms with deeper pockets and greater resources. But artificial intelligence (AI) now offers powerful and accessible tools that can help SMEs level the playing field.

The impact isn’t just theoretical. A recent study from the University of St Andrews in Scotland found that adopting AI can result in productivity gains of between 27% and 133% for SMEs compared to non-adopters. ‘Yes, we expected to find a productivity uplift from SMEs who used AI, but what surprised us most was the level of magnitude of this positive impact,’ says Professor Ross Brown who led the study. ‘It appears AI has a profound and seismic effect in terms of enhancing the productivity levels in smaller firms and the biggest positive effect is on enhancing operational and planning procedures. AI potentially offers SMEs labour saving shortcuts that yield quick productivity wins but are relatively inexpensive and easy to enact.’

But which tools should SMEs use, and how do they actually use them to make their businesses more productive? Alex Green, CEO and co-founder of the Radfield Home Care Group and Help to Grow: Management alumnus, shares some specific insights on the tools and platforms his national home care franchise network is using to be more productive and competitive. ‘We’re a care business and have people at the heart of what we do, so we’re not in the business of replacing people with AI,’ stresses Green. ‘What it is allowing us to do is be more intelligent with the work we do. We have better conversations with our network and drive greater performance as more of the routine and mundane tasks are automated. It just leaves us with the data we need to work with.’

Start with the basics

Many small businesses are turning to large language models like ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini for a wide range of tasks. Green says his team uses ChatGPT for marketing, content creation, legal work, strategy, document review, research and financial planning. ‘We also use Gemini and Claude for different tasks. Gemini integrates with the Google Workspace ecosystem and Claude for bouncing content between LLMs (large language models), which is sometimes useful,’ he adds.

These tools allow businesses to create high-quality content quickly, draft contracts or emails, brainstorm strategies, and even handle financial forecasting. The key is learning how to use them effectively. ‘To get good content out, you have to put good prompts in, so there is an investment of time required,’ stresses Green.

Action: train your team (or yourself) to craft effective prompts to get the most out of platforms like ChatGPT. Even small improvements in prompt quality can lead to dramatically better outputs.

Save time with AI transcription

Meetings and interviews often eat into valuable work hours, especially when manual note-taking or transcription is involved. That’s where tools like Google Transcription, Otter.ai, and Supernormal come in. These platforms automatically transcribe meetings, saving teams hours of notetaking and allowing them to focus on delivering the more strategic work.

 ‘We’ve saved a huge amount of time using AI, from meeting notes transcription to content development,’ says Green ‘This has freed up valuable time for more impactful activities.’

Action: start recording and transcribing your team meetings using Otter.ai or Supernormal, then summarise those transcripts with ChatGPT to create action items or reports.

Empower teams with smart documentation tools

Radfield uses Google’s NotebookLM to help deliver intelligent, searchable manuals to its network of franchisees. Instead of flipping through pages of static documents, users can ask questions and find answers immediately, much like searching the web.

This shift reduces the burden on central support teams and promotes greater self-sufficiency. ‘We’ve been able to deliver self-help tools to our network to facilitate more content creation and less reliance on our national support team,’ says Green.

Action: convert your company manuals, guides, or FAQs into searchable documents using AI tools like NotebookLM or similar platforms. This will empower staff to get the help they need on their own.

Streamline complex operations

Some platforms are built specifically for niche business needs. Radfield is exploring Magic Notes to streamline client consultations and care planning for social workers. This tool is designed with data security in mind, a critical consideration for businesses handling sensitive information. ‘GDPR is a big factor that you have to consider, which is one reason we are looking into using Magic Notes,’ Green explains. AI tools need to align with compliance and privacy regulations, especially in sectors like healthcare, law, and finance.

Action: when handling sensitive data, avoid general-purpose tools and look for AI platforms that explicitly meet GDPR and data security requirements.

Plan for the future with agentic AI

Looking ahead, Green sees a clear trajectory: ‘With more development of agentic AI platforms, we will easily be able to automate more of our routine tasks, such as auditing our care systems, collecting marketing data, and pulling different data streams together to create automated reporting and actions for our franchisees.’

Agentic AI, a recent development in the AI world, goes beyond responding to prompts, it proactively carries out tasks. Imagine an AI that not only gathers data but also generates reports and suggests actions based on trends.

Action: stay informed about agentic AI developments. Tools like AutoGPT and emerging integrations in platforms like Zapier and Notion AI are early steps toward fully autonomous business assistants.

The pace of developments in AI technology is only picking up and there is little doubt in it’s usefulness helping businesses maintain their core functions of operation. Despite what LinkedIn tells you, there is no deadline for AI adoption. The key is figuring out where the weaknesses are in your business operations and then identifying AI tools that can help, rather than trying to shoehorn tools into your business because they’re trending on social media.

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