(This article was written by Konrad Jarocinski – AI entrepreneur, consultant and advisor https://www.linkedin.com/in/konradjarocinski/ )

As the gig economy continues to evolve, we’re seeing a rise in fractional C-suite roles like fractional Chief of Staff (fCoS). As fCoS you are tasked with juggling multiple responsibilities across various organizations, making efficiency your middle name. Today, I want to dive into five AI-powered tools that can make a real difference for a fractional CoS’s productivity. 

Note: I’m not associated with any of those tools – I just find them genuinely useful.

Why Should You Care?

Before we jump in, let’s look at some stats:

1. Chiefs of Staff can significantly impact executive productivity by optimizing how leadership time is utilized. According to McKinsey & Company, top-level executives can save up to 20% of their time by delegating operational responsibilities to a capable Chief of Staff. That means potential quick wins for fCoS if they know their craft and how to use tools effectively.
2. A Harvard Business Review article reports that organizations with a Chief of Staff have a 30% higher rate of project success. This metric directly reflects the Chief of Staff’s ability to drive execution and manage cross-functional projects. It highly depends on the efficient usage of project management tooling.
3. The OKR examples suggest aiming for a 10% reduction in turnaround time or cycle time for critical processes. Doing OKRs without the right tools is like navigating a ship without a compass.

My toolbox

1. tl;dv: Your AI Meeting Assistant

Remember the days of furio usly scribbling notes during meetings? Those are long gone with tools like tl;dv or Fireflies (note: there are t

ons of competitors). This nifty tool integrates with platforms like Zoom and Google Meet, automatically r

ecording and transcribing your meetings. But here’s where it gets exciting:

• AI-generated summaries of key points
• Extraction of action items
• Timestamps for crucial moments in the discussion

As a fractional CoS juggling multiple clients, you can easily revisit important parts of meetings without rewatching entire recordings. It’s like having a super-efficient personal assistant for every meeting. Here’s an example summary report:

 

2. Asana: AI-Powered Project Management

Asana has been my project management tool of choice for years, but its recent AI features are looking very promising. For a fractional CoS managing multiple projects across different organizations, Asana can be a great tool:

• AI-suggested project timelines
• Task prioritization based on team capacity and deadlines
• Automation of routine processes

 

 

Asana’s Workload feature uses AI to balance team capacity, ensuring no one is overloaded while projects stay on track. I encourage you to try Asana for OKRs too.

3. Notion: Your AI Knowledge Hub

Notion has become the Swiss Army knife of my productivity tools, and its AI capabilities make it an indispensable asset for a fCoS. 

At first, I used Notion for knowledge management and product management (documentation of features), but it can do so much more:

• AI-powered document summarization
• Content idea generation

Notion’s flexibility allows you to create customized workflows for each client, while its AI suggests optimizations based on usage patterns. 

I also like using Zapier in combination with Notion, this setup makes it even more powerful. To me, Notion is the closest to actually building a Second Brain of your principal. If you route everything to Notion and use the AI assistant, you suddenly end up with a solution that makes your content available to you at your fingertips.

4. Reclaim: The AI Schedule Optimizer

As a fractional CoS, your calendar is probably a complex jigsaw puzzle. While a lot of people can get away with Notion Calendar which allows you to integrate multiple calendars nicely, for more advanced users I’d suggest something like Reclaim. 

• Automatic scheduling of tasks and habits
• AI-driven time blocking for deep work
• Smart rescheduling when conflicts arise

Reclaim learns from your preferences and work patterns, optimizing your schedule to maximize productivity across all your client commitments. 

Regardless of whether you use it for your principal or yourself, it’s a great fit for fCoS.

5. Superhuman: The Email Efficiency Booster

Choosing your email client is important especially for people that spend more time on email rather than in tools like Slack. Depending on a budget you can choose between tools like Spark and Superhuman (more pricey and more powerful). Superhuman uses AI to transform your inbox from a time-sink into a productivity powerhouse (they claim it can save 4 hours per person) every single week :

• AI-powered email categorization and prioritization
• Smart follow-up reminders
• One-click meeting scheduling

Superhuman’s AI learns your email habits and helps you achieve inbox zero faster than ever. For a fractional CoS managing communication across multiple organizations, it’s like having a built-in email strategist.

AI Adoption Challenges

While these tools offer incredible benefits, it’s crucial to approach AI adoption thoughtfully. Here are a few considerations, which can become a bit of a pain if you’re managing multiple clients:

• Data Security: Ensure each tool complies with the data protection standards of all your client organizations.
• Learning Curve: Factor in some time to master these tools and integrate them into your workflow.
• Tool Overload: Start with one or two tools that address your most pressing needs, then gradually expand your AI toolkit.

To conclude, tools are essential to keep you and your team organized, but they are useless unless they have skilled operators at the helm. Having a skilled Fractional Chief of Staff at your disposal to help set up programs, monitor and maintain and eventually grow can be the difference between your startup succeeding or not.