Strategically Building The Future Of AI with Value: Meet Kevin A. Ogunsua, Principal Analyst for AI Strategy and Value
Some people see big rocks as obstacles. I move them, work around them, or build on them.
I grew up on a university campus where curiosity wasn’t just encouraged, it was ambient. My father was a professor. My mother was both a teacher and a tailor. At home, ideas were debated, patterns were studied, and creativity was disciplined by structure. That environment taught me early that innovation isn’t accidental; it is designed. Before I worked in AI, I was drawn to architecture, landscapes, and planned cities; how intentionally designed environments shape human behavior over decades, how cities anticipate the future – where people gather, move, and systems scale without collapsing under complexity.
That lens never left me. I studied architecture at the University of Ife, later became a software developer, transitioned into management consulting at Deloitte, PwC, and Accenture, and returned to school to earn an MBA in Finance from Georgia State University and an MS in Building Construction and Facility Management from Georgia Institute of Technology. I’ve always been driven to solve big problems with an eye on economics. Today, I apply that mindset to AI. I worked at Microsoft for nine years before coming to Forrester, with boards and executive teams to define AI vision, prioritize high impact use cases, and build the governance and execution frameworks required for responsible, enterprise scale adoption
Why AI Feels Different And Why Most Organizations Are Stuck
AI feels magical. But magic without structure rarely lasts.
Across industries, I see the same pattern: excitement, pilots, proofs of concept, and isolated wins, followed by fear to scale and stalled momentum. The biggest challenge isn’t model performance or compute. It’s strategic clarity, organizational readiness, and financial discipline. Enterprises are at a familiar inflection point: standing at the edge of a fast-moving train loaded with AI agents and applications, but burdened by unclear strategy, uncertain returns on investments, and insufficient guardrails amid escalating geopolitical, economic, social, and technological complexity.
Why Forrester And Why Now
I joined Forrester to help leaders design and build the future of AI—not just adopt it. Just as cities must be planned before they are built, AI must be architected before it can deliver durable value. I look forward to partnering with executives and industry leaders to shape AI systems that are innovative, trusted, and built to last—where practical value clearly exceeds cost.
Forrester’s Bold at Work rigor and client first orientation align with how I approach leadership and research. Executives don’t need more hype. They need clarity, discipline, and an actionable roadmap.
What Will Be Your Research Focus?
My research at Forrester focuses on AI strategy, value, governance, and AI as a product, grounded in a core belief that AI must move from strategy to enterprise scale execution with quantifiable value managed as a portfolio. That belief is shaped by more than 15 years of leading AI, data, and digital transformation across financial services, healthcare, public sector, consumer product goods, and the intelligent built environments dotted with smart cities, digital twins, and pervasive IoT – giving me a differentiated perspective across digital and physical systems. Organizations that succeed with AI treat it as an innovation infrastructure enabler, designed intentionally, governed deliberately, and measured by value created.
What Else Should We Know About You?
I live in Atlanta, Georgia with my family. I also love to travel, play tennis, watch sports, and enjoy new cultures.
Let’s Connect
Let’s continue the conversation! Connect with me on LinkedIn or request a guidance session, and keep an eye on my upcoming research and blogs, where I’ll be delivering bold insights built to deliver value.