26 01732 759725 AI The Payoff Waiting for the AI landscape to ‘settle down’ is a recipe for standing still. The AI advantage doesn’t come from perfect timing or encyclopaedic knowledge of every model and vendor – you will never know every tool out there. It comes from accumulated learning, iteration improvements and a workforce that becomes comfortable collaborating with capable assistants. SMEs don’t need massive budgets to benefit either. They just need clarity about guardrails, courage to begin and consistency in sharing what works. With those foundations, small wins stack up quickly and bigger changes become both possible and attractive. After two years’ exploring and implementing AI, our takeaway is straightforward: treat AI as a core discipline; encourage creativity but provide direction; tie deployments to business outcomes; update governance as the technology evolves; and, when One sector set to benefit from Phoenix Software’s growing AI capabilities is social housing. Building on its status as a National Housing Federation Preferred Supplier, Phoenix Software has published a new report, The State of AI in Housing 2025, that highlights the extent to which low levels of confidence, skills, governance and AI readiness are impacting AI adoption by housing associations. While a large majority of social housing leaders surveyed by Phoenix recognise AI’s potential to improve efficiency (86%), productivity (84%) and the customer experience (66%), less than half (47%) currently use AI in their day-to-day operations. Across the board, survey respondents displayed little confidence in their ability to design, implement and manage AI solutions securely and effectively: 87% report low levels of knowledge around AI; 82% lack confidence in their ability to use AI ethically or lawfully; 76% have little confidence in their ability to manage AI-related risks; and almost 70% question their ability to handle sensitive resident data responsibly with AI. Phoenix Software and the National Housing Federation are hoping to address these concerns by collaborating on a series of initiatives including AI Readiness Assessments, AI Governance Workshops and tailored consultancy and support aligned to the specific needs of housing associations. https://www.phoenixs.co.uk/thestate-of-ai-in-housing-2025/ https://www.phoenixs.co.uk/itsolutions/ai-and-innovation/ai/ Phoenix Software is a leading provider of software licensing, transformational infrastructure solutions, managed IT services and consultancy and advice on all facets of IT strategy, including conceptualisation, design, deployment, software licence management, cost optimisation, artificial intelligence and cyber security. the small wins have stacked up, step back and reimagine the business with AI at its centre. AI is no longer a future bet. It’s an everyday advantage for organisations prepared to use it thoughtfully. Start where you are, learn fast and keep moving. Fail fast, win big. The rest will follow. www.phoenixs.co.uk ...continued Most organisations lack monitoring capabilities and governance policies needed to mitigate risks posed by shadow AI, warns SASE leader Cato Networks. Shadow AI operates much like shadow IT, with unauthorised technology being adopted to solve an immediate problem. However, the risks tied to data processing, model training and the lack of clear AI decision-making present major security concerns. In Cato Networks’ survey of more than 600 IT leaders in North America, EMEA and APJ, 61% of respondents said they have found unauthorised AI tools in their environment and more than half (53%) said they are highly or extremely concerned about AI security risks. Yet, only 26% have solutions in place to monitor AI adoption and usage, meaning that most enterprises remain oblivious to the AI tools employees are using, what data they are sharing and what compliance risks may be emerging. Almost half of respondents (49%) either don’t track AI usage or only address it on a reactive basis. This governance gap extends beyond oversight and monitoring. Only 13% of respondents consider their organisation’s management of shadow AI risks to be ‘highly effective’ and just 9% think their organisation has a ‘highly effective’ defence against AI-generated cyber threats such as deepfakes, hallucinations and prompt injection attacks. Commenting on the findings, Etay Maor, Chief Security Strategist at Cato Networks, said: “In many enterprises, AI adoption is happening from the bottom up. Employees are always going to gravitate towards using the AI tools they feel comfortable with. However, without proper visibility and governance, enterprises are expanding their attack surface, in many cases without realising it.” He added: “It is not a question of whether there is shadow AI usage within an enterprise, but whether you have the ability to detect it, govern it and secure it before an issue arises. Our research shows that most enterprises need to take rapid action to gain visibility and control of their AI usage.” www.catonetworks.com Cato Networks survey highlights critical gaps in AI oversight, with 69% of organisations lacking a formal tracking system to monitor AI adoption Better visibility and control needed to counter Shadow AI risk Etay Maor
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