AI can generate ideas, speed up tasks, and support everyday work. But how does an organisation move from experimenting with AI to making it genuinely useful for its teams?
In our previous conversation, we explored how Athena’s Central Business Development team is using AI in practice. We are now taking a closer look at what makes that possible behind the scenes.
We spoke with Thanzilur Rahman, Athena’s IT Manager, and Manasvini, Associate Director of Human Resources, who are shaping two equally important parts of Athena’s AI journey.
Rahman is focused on building the systems and tools that make AI accessible and secure. Manasvini is helping colleagues develop the skills, confidence, and understanding needed to use those tools well.
Together, they share how technology and people must evolve in tandem for AI to become a meaningful part of everyday work.
For Rahman, the journey began in 2022 with a recurring IT challenge.
Employees regularly needed support with passwords, software, Outlook, access permissions, onboarding, cybersecurity, and internal IT processes. Many questions were repetitive, but employees still had to wait for someone from the IT team to respond.
The team began exploring whether a digital assistant could make IT guidance faster and more accessible.
Every prompt, workflow, knowledge source, and user interaction was developed around the organisation’s specific requirements. The result was AIDA—the Athena Infonomics Digital Assistant.
Available through Microsoft Teams, AIDA serves as Athena’s AI-powered IT support assistant. Employees can use it to access guidance on:
AIDA can also support conversations across several regional and international languages, making assistance more accessible to Athena’s globally distributed team.
The intention was never to replace the IT team. AIDA helps employees resolve routine questions independently while allowing IT colleagues to focus more time on complex issues, infrastructure, security, and strategic priorities.
More importantly, it shows why AI initiatives should begin with a real problem rather than with the technology itself.
Creating an AI tool is only one part of adoption. Employees also need to know how, when, and where to use AI responsibly.
Manasvini, Athena’s Associate Director of HR, is helping lead that transition through Athena’s AI Learning Pathway.
The pathway has three levels: Foundations, Proficiency, and Mastery. It is built around free, verifiable certifications, with Claude and Microsoft Copilot as the primary tools and an optional ChatGPT track for colleagues already using it.
However, the goal is not simply to complete courses.
Teams also participate in conversations about practical use cases, new developments, tool limitations, and responsible use. Employees are encouraged to share what works, where AI falls short, and how it can support their day-to-day responsibilities.
The approach recognises that AI will look different across Athena.
A research team may use it to organise information or test an analytical structure. A communications team may use it to explore ideas or refine an early draft. A business development team may use it to structure proposal inputs. Operations teams may use it to simplify recurring processes.
No single training session can address every use case.
Athena is therefore treating AI fluency as an ongoing habit built through structured learning, peer exchange, and continuous experimentation.
Early feedback already points to practical benefits. Teams are reporting faster turnaround on drafting, formatting, and first-pass reviews. Recurring outputs such as reports and client communications are becoming easier to structure and standardise. Employees are also gaining more time for analysis, strategy, and higher-value thinking.
Our conversations with Rahman and Manasvini highlight a simple reality: meaningful AI adoption requires both systems and skills.
AIDA shows how AI can solve a specific organisational challenge. The AI Learning Pathway helps employees understand how to use AI across different roles and responsibilities.
Neither can work fully without the other.
Athena’s approach is still evolving. New tools, workflows, and AI initiatives are already being explored. Each one is guided by the same principle: identify a real need, build responsibly, learn through practice, and focus on lasting value for people.
AIDA may be one of Athena’s first major internal AI initiatives, but it is only the beginning.
