A recent MIT report reveals a stark divide in the corporate adoption of Generative AI (GenAI): 95% of organizations are getting zero return, while a mere 5% are extracting millions in value. This trend bears a striking resemblance to the common pitfalls of agile and change management initiatives, where high adoption rates often failed to translate into meaningful business transformation.

The report identifies several key parallels:

Budgeting for Visibility over Value: Resources are frequently allocated to surface-level changes (e.g., training, new tools) instead of the difficult, strategic decisions required to embed a lean-agile mindset and achieve tangible outcomes.

The Rise of “Shadow AI”: The study highlights that individual employees are often achieving a higher ROI with personal AI tools than with formal corporate initiatives. This “shadow AI” points to a critical disconnect between top-down strategy and ground-level utility.

The Business Case Challenge: As one executive noted, justifying GenAI spend is difficult when the impact is several degrees removed from direct revenue or cost savings.

As we move toward an “𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐰𝐞𝐛” where large language models (LLMs) and intelligent agents automate complex tasks, these insights are more critical than ever. The report underscores the need to shift focus from tool implementation to holistic organizational change.

Agile coaches and the broader community, what are your thoughts on these parallels? The report is a must-read for anyone navigating organizational change.