How to get your organization on board with AI: Insights from healthcare leaders

AI adoption is quickly becoming the norm in healthcare, with 86% of health systems reporting that they already leverage AI in some capacity. Despite this momentum, a recent Bain index shows that only 45% of AI applications have progressed beyond the ideation or pilot phases, and just 30% have reached production. 

What’s holding organizations back? 

One major barrier is gaining full organizational alignment and buy-in, from the C-suite to the front line. 

At Noteworthy 2025, Notable’s annual summit on AI transformation in healthcare, leaders from across the country convened to discuss how to move from experimentation to enterprise-wide impact with AI. In a standout panel discussion, Notable’s Solutions Lead Aida Mendelson moderated a conversation with Dr. Steven Packer, CEO Emeritus of Montage Health, and McKinsey partners Dr. Jim Kretlow and Dr. Sanjiv Baxi. The group delivered actionable advice for healthcare leaders working to bring their organizations along on the AI journey. 

How to secure C-suite buy-in for AI

For many healthcare leaders, one of the most persistent challenges for AI adoption is securing buy-in from executive leadership. 

Dr. Packer emphasized the importance of articulating a clear value proposition to gain support: 

“When presenting an initiative or a purchase to the C-suite, it’s super important to define the value and be very, very clear on the parameters, what you hope to gain, and how it will improve your initiatives moving forward.”

He also stressed the importance of mission alignment and structured follow-through, reminding leaders that, “We have to remember why it is we’re in healthcare. As a leader, it’s important to create, perpetuate, and continue to highlight the mission and how we want to serve the communities we serve.” 

He added that it’s also important to set hard milestones and a strict scope when embarking on a new project to prevent drift. Regular check-ins hold people accountable for implementing the plan. 

Dr. Baxi added that leaders need to become more comfortable with experimentation and failure: 

“We all probably don’t fail nearly enough. If 100% of the pilots you run are successful, that’s a huge disappointment.”

He asserts that healthcare organizations need to build a culture of people who are willing to tinker, try new things, and experiment, because not failing likely means you’re missing out on other opportunities that could be successful. 

Addressing the “EHR will do that soon” objection 

A common objection many healthcare leaders face when presenting an AI solution to their C-suite is the belief that the EHR system will soon provide the same functionality. 

Dr. Packer cautioned against waiting: 

“If you’re going to wait for your EHR to deliver all of your HIT services, and more specifically to provide you with your AI-enabled services, I think you’re going to be waiting a long time.” 

Dr. Kretlow underscored the operational risk in banking on vendor roadmaps:

“While something may be on the roadmap, it may be delayed, it may take years to release, and it may be even longer until it’s actually usable for me. Given all the headwinds on providers right now, we’re seeing more and more adoption of tools that will return near-term value.” 

Dr. Baxi added, “If you adopt an EMR-centric approach for all of your solutions, you are accepting an average of three to four years behind the market strategy. That's effectively what you're saying. It's like, I'm going to tolerate and accept mediocrity. If you want to be leading or push in certain areas, then you would potentially take a different approach.”

A flexible AI platform with quick implementation times can plug the gaps left by EHR capabilities, even if they may be added in the future. It gives leaders the ability to turn on and off different workflows as needed, when needed, without straining IT teams. 

Engaging frontline staff in AI implementation 

Getting leadership on board is only half the battle. Frontline engagement is just as crucial for successful AI adoption. 

Dr. Kretlow shared that the organizations that he sees succeed with AI are the ones that involve end users early and have champions among the people whose work is being redesigned. 

“There's this threat that persists that AI will replace people's jobs,” he explained. “I think engaging them to be part of the solution, training them, and upskilling them such that they're the ones out there becoming the tinkerers, they're the ones who know the workflows best.”

Dr. Kretlow added that projects tend to fail when the opportunity is explained to leadership, but there’s no direct engagement back to the people who are engaged in the day-to-day workflow. They end up with a solution that isn’t tailored to the workflow as they actually operationalize it.

Similarly, Dr. Baxi reinforced the need for a two-way dialogue throughout the process: 

“Who are you building this for at the end of the day? Just ask yourself that question. But also source your ideas from them… Have a conversation with them, and understand why there are challenges in the work that they're doing, and then work together with them to solve those challenges.”

Dr. Packer echoed this sentiment, noting that while we always ask frontline staff about pain points in routine performance improvement activities, we rarely tend to do it when it comes to building a tech solution: 

“It's a good reminder that we can marry two very, very common sorts of work streams in our organization, and utilize those lean tools in the development of flows as well.”

AI is a culture, not just a tool

AI has incredible potential to transform healthcare by improving efficiency, addressing workforce shortages, and enhancing care delivery. But technology alone isn’t enough. 

Success requires a unified vision, strategic clarity, and focused execution. Healthcare leaders must go beyond pilot projects and drive alignment across leadership, clinical operations, and frontline staff. They must treat AI as a transformational shift in how we work gets done, not just another software solution to add to their tech stack.

Organizations that embrace change, take intelligent risks, and empower their people will lead the next era of healthcare. 

See more video highlights and insights from Noteworthy 2025 here.