The costly pitfalls (and the executive's checklist)

Final lesson: the mistakes actually observed in the workplace, and how to avoid them. Each one has already cost someone money or reputation.

Pitfall 1: content sent out without proofreading

A quote with an absurd price, an email promising an impossible deadline, a product sheet with a made-up specification: AI writes with perfect confidence, even when it is inventing things. Any figure, date or commitment must be checked before sending.

Pitfall 2: AI-generated legal content

Contracts, legal notices, clauses: AI can cite statutes that do not exist or are no longer in force. It helps you understand a text and prepare your questions; validation is for a legal professional.

Pitfall 3: relying on a single tool

If your entire organisation depends on a tool that triples its prices or disappears, you are fragile. Keep your prompts and instructions in a document you own: they will work almost as-is with a competitor.

Pitfall 4: the miracle vendor

"Free AI audit", "autonomous agent that manages your customers", "certified training" at a premium price: the hype attracts snake-oil salesmen. Reflex: demand a demonstration on your own use cases, verifiable references, and always compare with what your €20/month assistant already does.

The executive's checklist

• All outgoing content is reviewed by a responsible human.
• Generated figures, dates and commitments: systematically verified.
• Customer data: anonymised before any pasting.
• Legal: understanding with AI, validation by a professional.
• Prompts and instructions kept in-house, not with the vendor.
• A measured pilot before any rollout or purchase.

You have finished this guide. Next concrete step: pick the most repetitive task in your week, and launch your one-month pilot on Monday.