Pope Sees AI as a Key Way to Improve Businesses and Everyday Life
Stay in Your Lane, a franchise consulting company, welcomes Nick Pope as director of artificial intelligence. Pope, who brings sales experience to his new position, will help franchise brands identify and utilize opportunities to increase efficiency and drive growth via AI. Stay in Your Lane also recently added Creative Director Amanda Barker and President Patti Rother to its leadership team.
“I firmly believe that AI is not hype. It’s going to be ingrained in everyday life in the very near future,” Pope says. “Individuals and organizations that take advantage of this now will be substantially ahead of the game. Being able to take a personal hobby and leverage that into being able to help franchising thrive even further is exciting.”
After meeting CEO Ingrid Schneider, Pope says he felt an instant connection. In addition to continuing its free biweekly AI-Mazing call, Pope believes Stay in Your Lane will be in the forefront of AI by tracking and digesting its fast-paced development as well as fostering partnerships and collaborations within the AI ecosystem. Pope adds that the franchise consulting company aims to share these insights, drive discussions and empower others to harness AI.
Schneider praises Pope for “his expertise in AI and his passion for innovation, [which] align perfectly with our vision for Stay in Your Lane. We aim to create opportunities for individuals to engage in fractional consulting alongside their full-time jobs, and Nick’s wealth of knowledge will undoubtedly propel us towards this goal.”
Immersion into Franchising
Pope will now wear two career hats, continuing to work with the Northeast Color signage franchise, his first role in franchising. He loves the way everyone in franchising is willing to share and encourage growth of others, especially newcomers like himself, he says. Throughout his career, Pope has worked at Comcast Business, Bank of America and AT&T Mobility.
He encourages people considering franchising to immerse themselves into the franchise community and learn from others’ experiences. “Your success will be shaped by both your specific franchise and your ability to engage with the broader franchising community.”
AI’s Future in Franchising
In Pope’s view, AI will revolutionize franchising by optimizing operations and enhancing customer experiences. To stay up-to-date on AI, franchisors can tap AI-focused news, attend industry conferences and experiment within their own businesses, he says.
Pope is most captivated by AI’s potential to transform industries and the way we live. He says AI is more than technology – it enhances our abilities to understand and interact with everything around us. This can include improving customer service with chatbots, predicting trends with data analysis and automating repetitive tasks. Pope is convinced that AI holds the potential to improve the value of the individuals who use it.