The Crunch with Rebecca Wettman and Patrick

Data, Process, and the Future of AI

Rebecca Wettman and Patrick from “The Crunch” recently sat down with Ian Gotts, CEO and Founder of Elements.cloud, to discuss the critical intersection of data, process, and AI in today’s rapidly evolving business landscape. While AI and data have dominated recent tech conversations, Ian emphasized a less-discussed, yet equally vital, component: process.

The full video podcast is at the bottom of this post, and here is the audio

The Undeniable Link: Data, Process, and AI Success

Ian’s been talking about business process mapping for over 30 years, and he highlighted that companies with well-documented processes and flows are significantly more likely to achieve success with Salesforce’s Agentforce. He underscored that “unless you understand what you’ve really got, it’s quite hard to build an agent.”  Why? Because you are outsourcing work to an agent. 

Elements.cloud, for the past nine years, has been focused on building a platform that accelerates change, reduces risk, and ensures organizations build the right things, and this is all centered around understanding and defining processes and metadata.

Ian used a powerful analogy: a house with multiple owners where you have no idea about the wiring or plumbing. Many SaaS platforms, particularly Salesforce orgs, have been built quickly and iteratively, leading to what he calls a “blackbox” – a system where the configuration isn’t well-understood. This lack of clarity leads to technical debt and makes changes risky. Elements.cloud turns this blackbox into an actionable blueprint, allowing companies to understand their existing systems and build reliable AI agents.

From FOMO to FOMU: The AI Adoption Challenge

The discussion touched on the shift from “fear of missing out” (FOMO) on AI to “fear of messing up” (FOMU). Many organizations are hesitant to deploy AI agents because their underlying processes are not well-defined (enough). They are worried about data quality. But it’s not just about data quality, it’s about data governance. There’s no point cleaning up the pond if you’ve still got polluted rivers running into it. And their systems are not well documented. And finally, the levels of technical debt in the orgs.

Ian advises against waiting for perfection, stating, “You’ll never be ready.” Instead, he recommends starting with low-deployment risk areas and narrow scopes. Elements.cloud, for example, has deployed 17-18 internal agents, integrating AI into their “business as usual” operations and fostering an “agent-first” mindset.

IAN “We have agents on our org chart.”

Configuration Mining: Unveiling the “As-Is” Process

REBECCA “To quote an actual Salesforce customer… the new product they have that takes the org metadata and turns that into process maps is probably one of the most badass things AI related to managing an org that I’ve seen so far.”

A highlight of the conversation was Elements.cloud’s innovative “configuration mining” capability. This technology analyzes an organization’s metadata and dependencies to automatically generate complex process diagrams, revealing how an org actually works, not just how it was designed or documented. This can uncover security vulnerabilities or redundant processes, leading to quick wins and better data governance. This ability to instantly create “documentation on demand” helps organizations understand their existing systems and identify optimal areas for agent deployment.

IAN: “What would take months to do manually, we’re delivering in minutes. That is a gamechanger.”

LEARN MORE: https://elements.cloud/blog/months-to-minutes-documentation-on-demand/

Best Practices for Building Effective Agents

The discussion turned to building reliable agents quickly. Ian emphasized the importance of process diagrams for building agents. These diagrams not only help in generating tight, automated instructions but also facilitate stakeholder engagement, allowing teams to visualize the happy path, exceptions, and human hand-offs. He warned against the “build fast, break fast” mentality when it comes to agents, stressing that business agents require precise, well-defined instructions.

He concluded by highlighting that good design leads to efficient, cost-effective agents with better user experiences. By taking a structured approach, even junior team members with strong business analysis skills can effectively build and deploy agents, leveraging pre-built “LEGO bricks” of agent snippets. This approach builds confidence in agent deployment and provides the necessary governance for managing the AI lifecycle effectively.

IAN: “As part of the work with Salesforce, our Agent Designer app is now free for anyone. So everyone can build reliable agents.”

HOW TO BUILD AGENTS: https://support.elements.cloud/en/articles/10470159-configuring-agentforce-agents

The Crunch: Quickfire Personal Questions with Ian Gotts

At the close of “The Crunch,” there is a rapid-fire round of personal questions, revealing some unexpected favorites:

• Favorite Fictional Character: Deadpool, primarily due to his admiration for Ryan Reynolds. Ian even spoofed one of Reynolds’ Aviation Gin videos by turning it into a process mapping workshop! And whilst Ian didn’t get a free bottle of Aviation Gin, he also didn’t get a “cease and desist”!! Aviation Gin process mapping video https://youtu.be/YmJdT7sWzBw
• Favorite Place: San Francisco, where he’s lived for 10-12 years and is now a proud US citizen.
• Favorite Color: Purple. While he couldn’t get the Elements.cloud app to be purple, he managed to incorporate it into the company’s logo.
• If he could be any person or thing: Prince. This answer perfectly segued from his favorite color, as Ian expressed a deep admiration for Prince’s musical ability and wished he could have seen him perform live.

The Crunch: Data, Process, and the Future of AI

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