Summary
Enterprise marketing teams often hesitate to deploy AI because they need clear use cases, defined owners, and guardrails that reduce compliance risk.
In our recent webinar, Dawn Player, Senior Marketing Transformation Lead at Standard Life, sat down with Fergus Ashe (CCO, Screendragon), to share how the organisation are gradually introducing AI into its marketing operations by focusing on workflow analysis, governance, and measurable operational impact. Standard Life, a 200+ year old stalwart UK pensions and retirement savings provider, now owned by Phoenix Group, that helps individuals and employers manage long-term investments and plan for retirement.
Rather than launching a large AI initiative, the marketing team began by examining how work actually flows across their marketing organisation – from campaign planning and briefing to creative production and compliance approvals.
Start with the workflow, not the technology
Standard Life’s AI journey didn’t begin with tools, it began with a process change.
With demand increasing across new products and audiences, the marketing team needed to understand exactly where time was being lost and where workflows were slowing them down.
Because their marketing operations already ran through a centralised workflow platform, the team could analyse how work moved across the organisation – from planning to content approvals.
We looked at our processes first to see where we were wasting time. If workflows weren’t working, investing in AI won’t solve the problem.
This approach aligns closely with how modern marketing teams use workflow platforms like Screendragon to orchestrate complex marketing operations.
By analysing the workflow first, Standard Life could identify where automation would deliver real operational impact.
Find a clear, measurable use case
During their workflow review, the marketing team discovered a repeatable bottleneck: the compliance “stamp” stage.
After content is approved, compliance teams must verify that the final asset matches the approved version stored in the DAM and complete mandatory regulatory metadata fields for audit purposes.
This step was taking around 20 minutes per job on average and given the volume of marketing content passing through approval, the opportunity was clear.
Instead of attempting to automate everything, the team focused on this one stage and used AI to assist with file comparisons and metadata population.
Operational Impact
- 20 minutes saved per approval task
- ~370 hours of annual time savings projected across marketing and compliance
- Faster throughput across marketing approvals
This created a focused, low-risk pilot that could prove value quickly before expanding further.
Bring compliance into the process early
In many regulated organisations, compliance is seen as a barrier to innovation, but at Standard Life, the opposite happened.
Compliance teams were involved early in designing the workflow so governance requirements – such as audit trails, approval checks, and metadata capture – were built directly into the process.
This collaboration ensured AI adoption stayed aligned with regulatory expectations.
Enterprise workflow platforms support this by embedding governance directly into marketing processes, enabling organisations to automate intake, approvals, and compliance checks while maintaining full audit trails and brand control.
The result is faster delivery without sacrificing governance.
Use AI as an assistant, not a replacement
Another key principle guiding Standard Life’s approach is that AI supports people rather than replaces them.
The goal for them is to reduce repetitive administrative tasks so teams can focus on higher-value work.
For compliance teams, that means more time spent on higher-risk product launches rather than manual checks.
For marketing teams, it means focusing on strategy, creativity, and campaign delivery.
AI is there an assistant. It’s not there to replace people.
This positioning helped build internal trust and encourage adoption across the organisation.
Treat AI adoption as a change programme
Technology alone doesn’t drive transformation – people do.
Standard Life supported the rollout through internal education initiatives, including AI learning modules and knowledge-sharing sessions with subject matter experts.
This helped ensure teams understood both the opportunities and the guardrails around AI.
Successful enterprise AI adoption requires aligning people, processes, and technology so teams can scale marketing operations without adding complexity.
Build momentum step by step
Perhaps the most important lesson from Standard Life’s journey is that AI adoption should be incremental.
Rather than launching a large-scale transformation project, the team built a backlog of potential use cases and began with one focused pilot.
Start small. Take the learnings and move to the next stage.
This approach allows organisations to experiment safely, demonstrate measurable value, and expand adoption over time.
A practical roadmap for enterprise marketing teams
Standard Life’s experience highlights a practical path for enterprise marketing teams exploring AI:
- Map workflows before introducing new technology
- Identify high-volume tasks where automation can deliver measurable impact
- Involve compliance and governance stakeholders early
- Position AI as a support tool for teams
- Start with focused pilots before scaling further
AI transformation doesn’t begin with tools – it begins with understanding how work actually flows through your organisation.
With the right workflow foundation, enterprise marketing teams can introduce AI in a way that is controlled, scalable, and aligned with governance requirements.
See how you can go from AI pilot to production
Standard Life’s journey shows that successful AI adoption doesn’t start with a massive transformation – it starts with one well-defined workflow pilot.
From there, organisations can scale automation and AI across the marketing lifecycle.
If you would like to watch the On-Demand webinar, you can do so here.
How Screendragon can help enterprise marketing teams
Screendragon helps enterprise marketing teams move from AI pilot to production by providing a single platform to:
- Map and optimise marketing workflows
- Introduce automation and AI safely
- Embed governance and approvals into processes
- Scale operational efficiency across campaigns and content operations
Book a demo to see how Screendragon can help your team move from AI pilot to production.