How AI Can Help Leaders in Decision-Making

We make decisions in practically every area of our lives. However, in a professional context—where decisions made by leaders and business managers can have broader consequences—different levels of stress can arise, making the decision-making path itself less clear.

Considering this scenario, it is becoming increasingly common for companies to turn to AI-powered technologies that leverage data insights and enhance decision-making capabilities in critical and high-pressure situations.

In the Harvard Business Review article “How AI Can Help Leaders Make Better Decisions Under Pressure,” three ways of using AI to support decision-making are analyzed:

1. Real-time tracking and enhanced forecasting of business developments on-site

Citing examples such as the global company Unilever and seaports, it is increasingly common for companies to use tracking technologies to make more efficient and sustainable decisions based on their supply chains and databases. Unilever uses AI to detect deforestation signals in its palm oil supply chain—a key ingredient in food, cosmetics, and fuel production. The Port of Rotterdam, the largest seaport in Europe, uses AI to optimize port operations, infrastructure, and improve environmental impacts. The same platform is being used by seaports worldwide, optimizing decision-making and long-term planning around port operations.

2. Virtual role-play to train workers in realistic business scenarios

Verizon, the American telecommunications company, uses virtual reality to create immersive environments in which trainees can switch roles with customers and understand problems from their perspective. The article also highlights other training situations where VR is applied, such as the Fort Myers Police Department in Florida, which uses immersive technologies to practice decision-making in high-pressure or emergency situations.

In healthcare, professionals are adopting AI to assist with diagnoses, eliminate dosage errors, and perform safer surgeries. This type of technology can bring benefits such as reducing tension, ensuring correct protocol compliance, and eliminating errors during decision-making processes.

3. Generative AI tools that can answer questions and act as virtual advisors and “sounding boards” for decision-makers

The article cites Konstantinos Mitsopoulos, a researcher at the Institute for Human and Machine Cognition (IHMC) in Florida:

"In principle, generative AI systems can help overcome some of the problems that affect human decision-making, such as limited working memory, low attention span, and decision fatigue, especially when making decisions under pressure. Generative AI tools can potentially help decision-makers save time, conserve energy, and free up mental bandwidth to focus on the most important problems or issues."

AI systems can reduce the cognitive load on physicians by filtering and summarizing the most important data, enabling more effective patient care decisions. AI is also being used to develop “copilots.” Fusion Risk Management, a Chicago-based company providing risk management software, is developing the Resilience Copilot, which uses AI to filter large volumes of operational risk data, identify the most relevant elements for decision-makers, and provide summaries, instant insights, intelligent recommendations, and improvements.

In terms of corporate reputation, generative AI is also being applied through tools such as “social listening,” which tracks feedback and online reviews to help customer success professionals respond in the best possible way. Reputation, a California-based reputation management software company, offers real-time monitoring of online reviews across multiple social media channels, including alerts to flag negative comments, crisis event tracking, and decision-making recommendations for professionals in the field.

One of the most promising applications of generative AI is the testing and validation of ideas, which provides a kind of “virtual sounding board.”

Faced with a vast amount of data from diverse sources, leaders and managers may feel pressured to make the right decisions. AI technology, enriched with contextual data, can ease this cognitive burden and lead to more effective outcomes. However, what may seem like a light at the end of the tunnel also comes with a warning light: human decisions—shaped by skills, experience, and judgment—should not be replaced by technology, but rather enhanced in collaboration with it to achieve more effective decisions while minimizing errors and risks.

Reference: Harvard Business Review