From Digital to AI Readiness

Last year at the WA IT Leadership Summit, a panel conversation on digital priorities in education covered more than technology. The group discussed unequal access, the strain of constant online learning, and the growing value of communication and critical thinking skills. Looking back, those talks weren’t only about digital readiness.

They were early lessons in how to prepare for the rise of AI. The same truths keep showing up:

• The divide isn’t technical - it’s human.

• Transformation fails when it’s treated as a project instead of a mindset.

• Courage, not code, makes progress possible.

Now, as organisations rush to use AI, it’s clear readiness is about more than new tools. It’s about trust, structure, and the confidence to keep moving while the plane is still in the air. What worked for digital success still applies - it just takes more courage to begin.