For decades, the standard job description for a Small to Medium Enterprise (SME) has been a shopping list of 'doing'. We've looked for candidates who can 'manage the social media calendar', 'process payroll', or 'write the monthly newsletter'. But as I work with businesses navigating this transition, I’m seeing a fundamental shift: the best AI strategy for SME owners isn't about finding better tools; it’s about finding people who know what to do when the tools handle the work.
We are entering the era of The Execution Deflation. In this new reality, the market value of 'standard' execution—the ability to perform a repeatable cognitive task—is plummeting toward zero. If a machine can generate a project plan, write a functional block of code, or draft a legal response in seconds, the person who used to spend forty hours a week doing those things is no longer an asset; they are a bottleneck. The real value has shifted from the answer to the question.
The Shift from Execution to Direction
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I run an AI-first business. There is no one else here. Every function—marketing, support, strategy—is handled by me, powered by AI. When I look at how traditional SMEs hire, I see a dangerous lag. They are still hiring for 'Execution Competency' when they should be hiring for The Inquiry Alpha.
The Inquiry Alpha is the competitive edge gained by an individual’s ability to frame problems, interrogate data, and direct AI systems to produce high-value outcomes. In an AI-saturated market, anyone can produce 'average' work. The win goes to the person who is curious enough to push the AI past the average.
If you are still using legacy HR software to filter for candidates based on static skill sets, you are likely filtering out the very people who will save your business from obsolescence. You don't need someone who knows how to use a specific CRM; you need someone who wonders why the CRM isn't predicting churn and has the curiosity to make it do so.
The '90/10 Rule' of Modern Roles
I often talk to my clients about The 90/10 Rule. In almost every cognitive role, AI can now handle 90% of the heavy lifting—the research, the first drafts, the data formatting. This leaves 10% for the human.
Most business owners look at that 10% and think, 'Great, I can fire the human.' That’s a shallow take. The 10% is actually the most critical part of the process: it’s the strategy, the nuance, the ethical oversight, and the 'what if?' If you eliminate the human entirely, you end up with a business that is efficient but soulless and stagnant.
However, if you keep a human who was hired only for their ability to do the 90%, they will struggle with the 10%. They will feel threatened by the automation rather than empowered by it. This is why you must redefine the job description before you hire.
Introducing the Curiosity Quotient (CQ)
In my experience, the most successful AI adoptions happen in businesses that prioritise Curiosity Quotient (CQ) over traditional IQ or experience. Curiosity is the only hedge against the rapid pace of AI development. A candidate with high CQ doesn't ask 'How do I do this?' they ask 'Why do we do it this way, and could it be better?'
When we look at penny-vs-business-consultant, the difference often comes down to this: a traditional consultant sells you an answer based on what worked yesterday. An AI-driven approach (and a curious employee) seeks the best answer for tomorrow by iterating through a thousand possibilities in the time a consultant takes to open their laptop.
How to Spot High CQ in the Interview Process
If you want to bake this into your AI strategy for SME growth, you need to change how you interview. Stop asking about what they’ve done. Start asking about what they’ve broken and fixed.
- The 'What’s Missing?' Test: Give them a piece of AI-generated output (a marketing plan or a financial report) and ask: 'What is the AI missing here that would make this world-class?'
- The Tool Agnostic Challenge: Ask them to explain a complex process they managed. Then ask: 'If the software you used for that vanished tomorrow, how would you rebuild the outcome from scratch?'
- The Rabbit Hole Inquiry: Ask: 'What is the last thing you spent three hours researching just because you wanted to understand it?'
The 'Agency Tax' and the Death of Outsourcing
SMEs have traditionally outsourced execution to agencies. This was a sensible way to access skills without the overhead of a full-time hire. But we are now seeing the emergence of The Agency Tax—the massive gap between what an agency charges for execution (e.g., £2,000 for a set of blog posts) and what those same assets cost to produce using AI (£20 in tokens and 30 minutes of human direction).
To avoid this tax, you need to bring the 'Direction' in-house. But you don't need a department; you need one curious person who can act as an 'orchestrator'.
This shift requires a reinvestment in your existing team. You can’t just hire your way out of this; you have to evolve your way out. This is where training and professional services become your secret weapon. But don't train them on 'how to use AI'. Train them on how to think critically, how to audit AI output, and how to remain relentlessly curious about the 'next' step.
Framework: The Cognitive Shift Matrix
To help you visualise how roles are changing, I use a framework called The Cognitive Shift Matrix. It plots roles across two axes: Execution Weight and Strategic Inquiry.
- Legacy Roles (High Execution, Low Inquiry): These are the roles at risk. Data entry, basic bookkeeping, standard copywriting. These roles shouldn't be 'replaced'; they should be 'transformed'.
- Transition Roles (High Execution, High Inquiry): This is where most SMEs are stuck. People are working harder to manage the AI tools, but they haven't let go of the execution. This leads to burnout.
- Future Roles (Low Execution, High Inquiry): This is the goal. The human spends 90% of their time on strategy, testing, and creative direction, while the AI handles the output.
Why This Matters for the SME Bottom Line
This isn't just about 'culture'. It's about math. A curious employee who leverages AI can do the work of three execution-focused employees.
Think about the cost savings:
- Reduced headcount (without losing output).
- Faster time-to-market for new ideas.
- Elimination of the 'Agency Tax'.
But the biggest saving is hidden: it's the cost of The Status Quo. In an AI-accelerated world, standing still is the most expensive thing you can do. Competitors who hire for curiosity will iterate ten times faster than you. They will find the efficiencies you missed. They will solve the customer pain points you didn't even know existed.
Radical Honesty: The Hard Part
I’ll be honest with you: this transition is uncomfortable. It’s hard to tell a loyal employee that their 'execution' is no longer where the value lies. It’s hard to throw away job descriptions that have worked for a decade.
But as your guide, I have to tell you the truth: the window is closing. AI is no longer a 'future' consideration. It is a 'now' reality. Your job as a business owner is no longer to manage people who do work. It is to lead people who direct machines.
Start today. Look at your most recent job posting. If it’s a list of tasks, delete it. Replace it with a list of problems you need solved and a requirement for a candidate who can’t stop asking 'Why?'
Curiosity didn't kill the cat. In the AI era, it’s the only thing that keeps the business alive.