The Old Diocesan Issue 13 - Magazine - Page 54
While management debates privacy
and POPIA compliance, employees
may already be pasting confidential
contracts or client information
into unsanctioned tools.
Second, choose one strong
model, pay for the proper version
and get to grips with how it works.
Kwanda currently favours Claude,
but the principle matters more
than the badge. Constantly
jumping to the newest release
brings diminishing returns,
while a well-configured system
accumulates knowledge of your
business, clients and working
habits. Context is where much
of the value lies.
Third, look for the work that
makes you roll your eyes. The
answer differs by industry and
by person. As Chris knows so well,
an advocate starting on a case can
instantly save hours or even days
of work. A small business may
need overdue invoices identified
and courteous reminders drafted.
A manager may spend every
Friday turning nine reports
into one. Begin with a recurring,
bounded task, the output of
which can be checked.
Fourth, create digital artefacts.
Record meetings and important
conversations with a transcription
tool such as Granola; keep
documents and correspondence
where an authorised AI system
can query them; reduce
the number of important
conversations stranded in
silos. Chris has found meeting
transcription unexpectedly
liberating. “Not only does it
save the pain of note-taking,
but I’m so much more engaged
in meetings,” he says. “I used to
be so worried about making sure
I didn’t forget anything that I didn’t
actually contribute all I could to
the conversation.”
Chris and Kieran also highly
recommend AI-assisted dictation
software, which turns speech into
cleaned-up text in any application.
It’s advice that resonates with me
because the publishing industry
is email-intensive; and while a few
minutes saved on one email may
sound trivial, multiplied over a
working year, it adds up to days.
I have used my Mac’s built-in
dictation mode for some time,
but Kwanda’s go-to option,
For those sceptical that AI is a “cheat” or turning us
into unthinking robots, this Kwanda visual is an eyeopener. The way they conceive an “AI native business”,
the company collects artefacts from its working
agreements, email threads, and project management
and transcription tools to form a shared knowledge
base. Using their AI agents, employees can access that
shared knowledge directly rather than getting stuck
working with the tools. In this way, they’re freed up
to do more strategic thinking and people-facing work.
For more info on Kwanda and access to
their Claude cheat sheet, visit kwanda.ai.
Otherwise, reach out to Chris or Kieran
through the ODU or LinkedIn.
50 | THE OLD DIOCESAN
Wispr Flow, is supposedly more
accurate and easier to toggle
on and off – small functionality
differences that could provide
an additional productivity leap.
Deciding which apps to use and
connect is not always straightforward. There will always be
another promising tool arriving
next week, but at some point –
and that point is now – you have
to make a call. Choose the ones
that work best for your current
requirements, then get on with it.
Personally, I’m caught in the Apple
ecosystem, with Mail and Calendar
apps that don’t currently connect
easily with AI tools. Might switching
to Gmail be worth the effort so
that I can have batches of emails
automatically drafted? Not yet.
But, following Chris and Kieran’s
advice, I have signed up to Granola
and started loading certain meetings
into my Google Calendar, allowing
Granola to take notes automatically
when they begin. Now I have to
decide whether it is worth keeping
my Zoom subscription, because
I’m effectively paying for two
transcription services… What
a time to be alive and working!
