Persistent & IIM Ahmedabad launch AI Value Compass

Persistent Systems has launched an AI research framework with the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad to help companies assess and prioritise AI investments.

Called AI Value Compass, the framework is based on joint research between the technology company and the business school. It is aimed at business leaders seeking a structured way to evaluate AI projects across an organisation rather than treating them as isolated experiments.

The launch comes as many companies move from initial AI trials to embedding the technology in core operations. The research focuses on the conditions needed for AI programmes to deliver measurable business results, with as much emphasis on governance, operating models and organisational readiness as on the underlying tools.

At the centre of the framework is a methodology for reviewing AI initiatives across five areas: business alignment, people readiness, operational integration, data preparedness, and risk and governance. It is intended to help executives judge whether a proposed initiative is ready to scale and whether the business has the structures in place to support it.

That emphasis reflects a broader debate in the corporate AI market. Advances in generative AI and agent-based systems have attracted investment across sectors, but companies have also faced questions about how to measure returns, manage risk and move beyond pilot projects.

Persistent and IIM Ahmedabad argue that the main barriers to successful AI adoption are often organisational rather than technical. Weaknesses in leadership, ownership, success metrics and internal coordination can hold back projects even when the technology itself is available.

Five factors

AI Value Compass is designed to help companies identify gaps early in the life of an AI initiative. It also aims to provide a basis for comparing projects, ranking them against business priorities and deciding where investment should be concentrated.

The framework is intended to improve consistency in AI decision-making by linking project selection to operational conditions inside the business. That includes examining whether data is in a usable state, whether teams are prepared to adopt new systems and whether governance arrangements are strong enough for wider deployment.

Persistent is already using the framework in client work, suggesting the study is being positioned not only as an academic exercise but also as a practical model for advising companies on how to structure AI programmes and assess their chances of delivering sustained results.

The collaboration builds on an existing relationship between Persistent and IIM Ahmedabad. It also underlines the growing role of academic institutions in shaping corporate thinking on AI strategy, especially where management questions are proving as important as technical ones.

Research focus

For companies weighing AI spending, the framework addresses a problem that has become more visible as adoption has widened. Early enthusiasm often centred on proof-of-concept projects or narrow efficiency gains, but businesses now face pressure to show stronger commercial outcomes and explain why some projects should move ahead while others should not.

One element of the research is its use of an enterprise operating model lens rather than a technology-led view. That shifts attention from what AI systems can do in theory to whether an organisation is actually set up to integrate them into workflows, decision-making processes and accountability structures.

Jaideep Vijay Dhok, Chief Operating Officer for Technology at Persistent, said: "Enterprises today have greater access to AI technologies and the focus is on making the right investment and execution choices at scale. As organizations advance in their AI journeys, the need for structured approaches to assess readiness, sequence initiatives and align AI efforts with business priorities is becoming more important. The 'AI Value Compass', developed with IIM Ahmedabad, is designed to provide that clarity, enabling leaders to drive more disciplined, outcome-led AI execution as they scale AI across the enterprise."

IIM Ahmedabad said the work also highlights persistent weaknesses in how many businesses frame AI strategy. These include unclear leadership, limited ownership and the absence of agreed measures for success, all of which can undermine efforts to turn AI spending into long-term value.

Ankur Sinha, Professor of Operations and Decision Sciences at IIM Ahmedabad, said: "Despite rising investments in Artificial Intelligence, most businesses continue to focus on localized efficiency gains rather than leveraging AI for strategic transformation. Our study with Persistent highlights fundamental gaps, including the absence of clear AI leadership, lack of a coherent strategic vision, poorly defined success metrics, and weak ownership and governance structures that significantly constrain the ability of organizations to unlock long-term value from AI. The 'AI Value Compass' enables enterprises to address these gaps and drive more consistent, outcome-led AI adoption."