How Our Industry Is Quietly Figuring Out AI

Artificial intelligence is fast-moving, full of promise, and packed with potential for the skilled trades. Between smarter dispatching and better call handling, marketing automation, and improved efficiency, AI offers clear opportunities for growth.

But for many business owners, the reality of AI hasn’t yet matched expectations.

Instead of a transformation, many companies have been left with underused software, frustrated teams, and a growing sense of fatigue. The issue isn’t that AI doesn’t work; it’s that the way it’s been introduced doesn’t reflect how our businesses actually operate.

The result is a widening gap between AI’s potential and the day-to-day reality on the ground. But within that gap, a number of Nexstar Network member companies are beginning to chart a more sustainable path forward — one that starts with a different mindset altogether.

From Tools to Strategy

The difference between businesses making real progress with AI and those still spinning their wheels isn’t budget, technical ability, or headcount. It’s clarity.

Leaders who begin with a specific problem to solve — something the team deals with every day — are seeing much more than short-term efficiency gains. They’re building long-term capability. When the team is involved from the start, AI becomes a shared tool, not a top-down directive. It reduces friction instead of creating it.

Whether the starting point is scheduling, handling missed calls, or streamlining marketing, the pattern is the same: Start with a problem, not a product. Tools can support a good strategy, but they can’t replace one.

The End of the Silver Bullet

In the early AI rush, many companies went hunting for the perfect platform — a plug-and-play solution that would deliver overnight transformation. That search doesn’t always pay off. If anything, it’s created a new problem: technology fatigue.

Leaders sit through endless demos. Teams experience a cycle of rollouts and rollbacks. Promising software goes unused. The organization moves on.

But the companies making headway have taken a different approach. They’re not trying to find the right tool. They’re building the right system — one that starts small, proves its impact quickly, and expands only when it makes sense to do so. The companies making headway with AI have stopped chasing features and started building habits.

People First, Software Second

Among the teams where AI is sticking, there’s a common thread: early and meaningful involvement from frontline staff.

When leaders take the time to understand what’s slowing people down, where time is being lost, and how technology could genuinely help, the conversation shifts. If technicians feel threatened or CSRs feel left out, the software may never get the attention or traction it needs to deliver real results. Change depends on buy-in, and buy-in starts with trust.

When employees help shape the solution, they’re far more likely to use it. That’s when results begin to show. And with those results, confidence grows. This is what real adoption looks like —not just licenses purchased, but tools that get used.

Rethinking Readiness

The question facing home service businesses today isn’t whether to adopt AI. It’s how to do it in a way that sticks.

That’s where the idea of readiness comes in. We’ve built an AI Readiness Framework to help contractors assess their approach before committing to new software or strategy. It starts with three basic questions:

• Are we solving a meaningful business problem?
• Have we involved the right people in shaping the solution?
• Do we have a clear way to measure whether it’s working?

If the answer to any of those is “no,” it’s not time to scale. That’s not a red flag. It’s a checkpoint. Companies that pause here and move forward with intention tend to make far more progress than those who rush to implementation.

Quiet Progress Over Loud Promises

Interestingly, the businesses making the most progress with AI right now aren’t talking about it much. They’re not chasing headlines. They’re not announcing flashy partnerships. They’re running quiet, deliberate experiments.
They’re testing one use case at a time. They’re involving their teams. They’re tracking what works and improving as they go. And they’re doing it with intention, not urgency.

This isn’t about artificial intelligence; it’s about real outcomes and the kind of culture shift that makes them possible.

The Real Work Ahead

It’s common for companies to say, “We bought the tools. We didn’t get the value.” That’s not failure; it’s feedback. It’s where the real work begins.

The next phase of AI in home services won’t be driven by more products. It’ll be shaped by better questions, better systems, and better leadership.

And if you’ve tried AI and it didn’t stick? That’s probably a good thing. It means you’re ready to approach it differently.

The AI Readiness Program at The NoW of Work exists for exactly this reason — to help teams get clarity before they commit. To start small, with purpose. And to move forward with alignment.

AI isn’t the goal. It’s one tool among many. But for those who lead with intention, it can unlock meaningful change, one step at a time.

Looking For Help Along The Way?

That’s where The NoW of Work comes in. We are a small team of former operators who’ve built and led growing companies. We work with home service businesses to help them adopt AI in a way that actually sticks — by starting with real problems, involving the right people, and building systems that work in the office and in the field, not just on paper.

If you’re a Nexstar member, and if this sounds like the kind of support you’ve been looking for, learn more at https://www.nowofwork.com/ai-adoption-nexstar.

If you are not currently a Nexstar member but curious to learn more, start the conversation today!

CONTACT US