Agentic AI Strategy - Five Questions Every CEO Should Be Asking About AI Agents

In every boardroom discussion I’ve been part of recently, one thing is clear: AI agents are no longer a side note in the AI conversation — they’re moving centre stage.

At Beyond: Putting Data to Work, we see the same pattern: CEOs and their teams aren’t just curious, they’re concerned. They’re asking: What’s real? What’s hype? Where are the risks? How do we prepare?

The truth is, AI agents are not just another IT project. They raise questions that touch on strategy, risk appetite, operating models, and culture. That means they belong firmly on the CEO’s agenda.

Here are the five questions every CEO should be asking right now.

1. What Outcomes Do We Want AI Agents to Deliver?

This might sound obvious, but it’s where many organisations stumble. Too often, agents are deployed as “experiments” without a clear business case.

A CEO I recently spoke with put it well: “I don’t want toys, I want impact.”

Agents can improve IT operations, accelerate customer response times, or optimise supply chain flows. But until you’re clear on what outcomes matter most, you risk spreading effort thin and failing to demonstrate value.

2. What’s Our Risk Appetite for Autonomy?

The leap from copilots to agents is the leap from assistance to autonomy. That makes risk management a board-level issue.

We help leadership teams define their risk ambition:

• Where are you comfortable letting agents act on their own?

• Where must human oversight remain?

• What guardrails need to be in place?

Without this conversation, you risk either stalling adoption through fear — or creating exposure by moving too fast.

3. Do We Have the Data and Governance Foundations?

I’ve seen this play out repeatedly: a business is excited about agents, but their data is fragmented, inconsistent, or poorly governed. The result? Agents acting on bad information — which can mean anything from wasted spend to regulatory breaches.

Agents are only as good as the data and rules that shape them. That’s why an Agentic AI Strategy isn’t just about tech — it’s about data quality, governance frameworks, and accountability structures.

4. How Will This Change Our Operating Model?

This is the question too few executives ask early enough.

AI agents don’t just slot into existing structures. They:

• Break down silos by acting across systems.

• Change decision rights (what work is done by humans vs machines).

• Require new governance roles (who monitors, who signs off, who owns outcomes).

One COO asked us: “If agents can take over the middle of a process, how do I redesign the roles around it?” Exactly. If you’re not thinking about operating model change, you’re not thinking strategically.

5. How Will We Prove Value and Scale?

Every CEO wants proof of value before scaling — and rightly so. But the trap is running too many small pilots with no clear path forward.

At Beyond, we push clients to think in portfolios:

• Start with quick wins in low-risk areas (like IT operations).

• Define clear metrics (speed, cost, customer satisfaction).

• Use those to build the case for scaling into core business functions.

It’s not “let’s try something and see.” It’s “let’s prove value in one domain, then expand responsibly.”

Real Challenges We’re Seeing

In practice, here’s where most leadership teams get stuck:

• Too many pilots, not enough scaling. Lots of activity, little impact.

• Data debt catching up. Agents expose gaps in quality and governance faster than any dashboard.

• Unclear ownership. No one knows who’s accountable when an agent acts.

These are exactly the areas we help executives navigate at Beyond: Putting Data to Work — building the strategy, data foundations, and governance needed to move from pilots to enterprise value.

Final Thoughts on Agentic AI Strategy

AI agents aren’t just another buzzword. They’re a new class of technology that will reshape how enterprises work. But the winners won’t be those who rush in blindly. They’ll be the CEOs who ask the right questions now — about outcomes, risk, data, operating models, and value.

At Beyond: Putting Data to Work, we believe those five questions are the foundation of an Agentic AI Strategy — one that delivers real value while managing real risks.

If you’re a CEO and you’re not asking them yet, now’s the time to start. Get in touch to find out how Beyond can help with your Agentic AI Strategy