Macpreneur

How I Use an AI Co-CEO to Make Smarter Business Decisions (Interview)

• Damien Schreurs • Season 7 • Episode 166

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🆓 Build your own Co-CEO today: https://macpreneur.com/csuite

In this episode of Macpreneur, you'll discover how solopreneurs can utilize AI as a virtual C-suite to streamline operations, increase revenue, and achieve a healthier work-life balance. 

Rebroadcasted from the AIBiz podcast with host Avik Chakraborty, I share insights on incorporating AI as a thought partner, building custom AI roles like Co-CEO, Co-CMO, and Co-CFO, and leveraging tools like ChatGPT and Gemini. 

I also highlight the benefits of AI in automating research and decision-making, offering practical advice on maximizing AI for business efficiency. 

Checkout AIBiz: https://aibizshow.podbean.com

Highlights

  • [00:00] Teaser  
  • [00:53] Introduction  
  • [01:35] AIBiz intro  
  • [03:24] Creating and Customizing AI Co-CEO  
  • [06:00] Real-World Applications and Success Stories  
  • [09:09] Integrating AI in Daily Workflow  
  • [11:35] Expanding the AI C-Suite  
  • [16:20] Benefits of AI in Work-Life Balance  
  • [18:38] Advice for Listeners  
  • [22:58] Check out the AIBiz podcast  
  • [23:19] Free AI C Suite resources  
  • [24:14] Outro  

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Introduction: The AI Co-CEO

Damien Schreurs

What if I told you that you could have a business advisor available 24/7 to analyze your numbers and help you make smart decisions without hiring a team or paying a consultant?

Sounds too good to be true, right?

Well, it's not.

In fact, I've been using an AI co-CEO as my thought partner for months now, and it's completely changed how I run my business.

No automation hype, no robots taking over, just real conversations with AI that act like a second brain for my solopreneur business.

Nova AI

Welcome to Macpreneur, the show for seasoned solopreneurs looking to streamline their business on a Mac.

Unlock the secrets to saving time and money with your host and technology mentor, Damien Schreurs.

Damien Schreurs

Hello, hello.

In today's episode, I'm rebroadcasting my appearance on the AIBiz podcast hosted by Avik Chakraborty.

You'll discover how I use AI as my virtual C-suite, whether it's brainstorming marketing strategies, dissecting financial reports, or even refining my business model.

And stick around till the end, because I've got a free C-suite builder GPT and guide that will help you implement this in your own business.

No tech skills required, just a ChatGPT account and a willingness to use AI smarter, not harder.

Let's dive in.


Welcome to the AIBiz Podcast

Avik Chakraborty

Welcome back to another powerful episode of AIBiz, dear listeners, the podcast where we decode how AI is transforming the way that we build, lead, and grow businesses one smart idea at a time.

I'm your host, Avik, and today we are diving into something that every entrepreneur and business leader should be thinking about right now, is, what if you could have a co-CEO, co-CMO, and co-CFO?

Amazing, right?

All powered by AI.

Yeah.

So, and that's not a science fiction anymore, but it's already happening, right?

So, uh, and for this, we are joined by a lovely guest.

Please welcome Damien Schreurs.

So welcome to the show.

Damien Schreurs

Thank you for having me, Avik.

Avik Chakraborty

Amazing.

So dear listeners, before we delve deep into the discussion, I'd love to introduce you to Damien.

So, Damien is the explainer-in-chief at EasyTECH, a company that helps solopreneurs and small business owners master the Apple products, cybersecurity, and now AI.

So he's also the host of, uh, Macpreneur podcast, where he shares strategies to help entrepreneurs save time, automate smarter, and run their businesses more efficiently on a Mac.

So after years in corporate R&D, he turned his passion for the tech and, uh, teaching into a thriving solo business.

And now he's taking that same mindset to the next level with what he calls an AI co-C-suite.

So, I'll not take much of your time.

Let's get started.

So, ooh, the birth of AI co-C-suite.

So, uh, like, you have coined this fascinating idea of, uh, co-C-suite, uh, powered by AI.

Um, I mean, essentially having AI counterparts to your CEO, CMO, CFO roles.

Uh, so how, how did this concept come about for you?

So, what do you think?


The Birth of the AI Co-C-Suite

Damien Schreurs

Yeah, so I did not invent the, the concept, uh, especially the concept of the co-CEO.

Uh, I discovered that by listening to the Artificial Intelligence Show hosted by Paul Rutzer and Mike Kaput.

Um, I listened to, to, to their latest episodes, uh, that was released today, and they have like- 100,000 monthly downloads, or it's a huge-... huge audience.

And, um, yeah, uh, last year, I think or beginning of this year, I don't remember, he, um, he mentioned that concept of a co-CEO.

So he created a co-CEO, and then he organized a webinar explaining how to create your own co-CEO, and what he, what he shared publicly is, um, a co-CEO instructions that needs to be, uh, customized to our own businesses.

And so I, I started with that, so I, I manually customized the co-CEO template.

And then realized that it was really, it was really good, uh.

Um, I was able to create it, but I, I hit one of the, one of the roadblocks of the tools that we have today.

So, people who are familiar with the custom GPTs uh, it's limited to a custom instruction of 8,000 characters.

And the first time I created my co-CEO, I hit that limit.

I was...

I had to manually updated the, the custom instruction, and it was bigger than that.

And so I realized, let's build a, a builder, right?

Let's build an assistant that will help me create the instructions for my co-CEO itself.

So that I would, it would fit, right?

Uh, one of the criteria was for that builder: check that the custom instruction is below the 8,000 character limit.

And so that was nice because I was able to refine my co-CEO custom instruction and start using it.


Early Success and Real-World Application

Damien Schreurs

And...I, I don't know if I can go directly into the, the thing that I started doing with my co-CEO, but the co-CEO was so powerful for me.

So, for instance, I gave it my objectives, right?

My, uh, financial objective for EasyTECH for this year.

I gave it, "Okay, this is the actual revenue.

This is the estimated revenue.

I'm going to fall short of the overall goal."

"Can you help me, um, find out or discover, uh, uh, things I can do to increase revenue in the medium term?"

And so we basically brainstorm idea for short-term revenue and medium-term revenue and longer term revenue.

And, in, in a week and a half, I was able to generate 1,500 euro additional revenue (laughs) like that.

And, uh, was able to have strategies to further increase the revenue through potential, uh, collaborations.

And so that (laughs) gave me the confidence that, yeah, that, that's nice.

And also, um, my business...

So, you- here in Luxembourg, I'm providing mainly Microsoft Office training for corporation and for governmental agencies.

And naturally, I have less...

I, I offer less service.

I, uh, organize less training sessions during the summer holidays.

So my, uh, Q3, so third quarter f- fiscal, is usually the lowest in terms of revenue.

And then (laughs) one of my client asked me for additional date.

So it was good, right?

I was really happy.

But then with the help of my co-CEO, I gave it to it, "This is the current training plan.

These are the, my available dates.

Can you help me, uh, level out my revenue so that Q3 would not be so low as before?"

And so, again, it was a back and forth brainstorming session.

And I was able to...

Okay, now, so, so strategically, even though I'm- I was free, there were, there were, uh...

In my calendar, you could see free slots for training sessions.

I actually postpone some sessions and put some session earlier than, than usually.

And that meant that, actually, my third quarter this year is the best third quarter ever.

It wa- that was thanks to the back and forth that I had with the, with the co-CEO.

Avik Chakraborty

Wow.

Amazing.

And... ... like, um, obviously, it's a really brilliant event, treating AI not as a tool, but as a thought partner, uh, that expands how you think and decide.

So, that's definitely kind of awesome, I'd say.

And if we talk about the specifics, right?

Uh, how do your AI executives, uh, show up in your daily workflow?

I mean, um, ho- how, how, how are you using the tools like GPT or Gemini, uh, to simulate these roles?


Technical Implementation: From Co-CEO to C-Suite

Damien Schreurs

Yeah, so when I started, I only used ChatGPT.

And I implemented my co-CEO as a custom GPT.

So, it's possible to implement this kind of assistance in two ways.

You can create them as projects, or you can create them as custom GPTs.

I, uh, started...

And, and in the end, I prefer the custom GPT approach.

Avik Chakraborty

Mm-hmm.

Okay.

Damien Schreurs

Simply because, um, I can...

Uh, that's maybe another way I use my co-CEO, is, I will start a normal ChatGPT conversation.

So, just for the, the record, I have a paid plus subscription, uh, with ChatGPT.

So, I have a paid account, and you need a paid account to create a GPT anyway.

Avik Chakraborty

Yeah.

Damien Schreurs

But I cre- I, I start a normal ChatGPT conversation.

Avik Chakraborty

Mm-hmm.

Damien Schreurs

But I turn on deep research.

Avik Chakraborty

Okay.

Damien Schreurs

And then I do, for instance, a competitive, uh, competitor analysis in Luxembourg.

I ask, "Please do a research plan to help me assess what are my current competitors in the Microsoft Office training, uh, space," right?

Then, I let it work.

And after 10, 15 minutes, I have this huge report created by the deep research agent.

I'm still in a normal conversation, right?

Avik Chakraborty

Yeah.

Damien Schreurs

But the trick with ChatGPT is if you start a, a conversation and you tap the at sign, @ and then co-CEO, the name of my co-CEO then I bring my co-CEO in the conversation, and I can ask a question to my co-CEO.

I can say, "Look, look at this report." Right?

"How can we leverage this report?"

And I did that recently.

Um, "How can we leverage that report and give me ideas for additional products and services?"

Avik Chakraborty

Yeah.

Damien Schreurs

And, uh, and then afterwards, right?

So, and that's where the C-suite come into play.

I was really happy with my co-CEO, but I realized, even though the co-CEO is technically capable of helping me with operations, finance, and even marketing, it's, it's part of his job description.

It is not, uh, fully tailored for that.

And so, I decided I needed at least a, a marketing officer, chief marketing officer-And that's where my- the concept of C-suite, the AI C-suite came, right?

I repurposed my co-CEO builder, and I asked my co-CEO builder, (laughs) "If- if I were to create a co-CMO, can you help me update the custom instruction?"

And then w- so my co-CEO helped me create the co-CMO and then the co-CFO, and in the end, I- I moved.

It's not a co-CEO builder anymore, it's a C-suite builder.

So, when you, when you enter into that, uh, custom GPT, it will ask you, "Do you want a co-CEO?

Do you want a co-CMO?

Do you want a co-CFO?"

And it will...

You have another, another box that says, "Please tell me what I can do."

And there are 15 positions of the C-suite that that builder can, can help you create, and it will be really fully customized to the solopreneur or entrepreneur or executive's need, right?

So, it will interview you basically.

It will interview you, and you can provide your LinkedIn profile, you can provide your CV, your resume.

You can, you can provide links to your websites, to your products and services, and it will help you craft the custom instruction, and it will also tell you, "These are the, the documents that I need to be a very good CMO or CFO or CISO."

There are (laughs) plenty of, of C-suite, uh, uh, positions that that builder can create.

And once you have created it, so now I have a co-CEO, a co-CMO, co-CFO.

Avik Chakraborty

Yeah.

Damien Schreurs

And in charge GPT, I can bring them in the same conversation.

I just say "@ my co-CMO," and now my co-CMO is in the conversation, and, and I can have a back and forth with, with it.

Obviously, I can immediately go to the co-CFO, upload some documents, like upload my, uh, uh, bank statements or stuff like that, and have it analyze, um, financial information, right?

So I ca- I can still do that, but what is nice is I can bring it inside any conversation.

And... because I'm also with, uh, on Google Workspace for Easytech, I have obviously Gemini, which is now part of my subscription, my Google Workspace subscription.

And so I've recreated...

It was very easy.

I had the custom instruction.

I, I had all the documents that I needed for the knowledge base of, of my co-CEO, co-CMO, co-CFO.

So there are...

Those three assistant are both in charge GPT and Gemini.

And what is nice with the Google Workspace integration of Gemini is that I can be in a Google Sheet or a Google Doc, and then on the side panel, I can turn on the Gemini side panel, and all my, my, my C-suite is there.

I can click on co-CMO, and I can immediately ask my co-CMO about the things that, that it can see in the Google Sheet or in the Google Doc.

So it, it's, it's more than simply going to your assistant and being obliged to, uh, upload data or add stuff.

No, you can invoke them from where you are inside Google Workspace.

Avik Chakraborty

True.

Amazing.

And... (laughs) Wow, lovely.

That's such a clear model.

I mean, it's like having a think tank on a call, like, 24/7.

(laughs) Yeah.


The Gift of Time: Impact on Work-Life Balance

Avik Chakraborty

And, um, like, he often says that, uh, AI's greatest gift isn't the kind of efficiency, but it's his time.

So, how has reclaiming the time through AI changed your relationship, uh, with your work, family, or even your creativity?

Damien Schreurs

So yeah, for me, one...

Something that I really enjoy and that frees me, frees a lot of time for me is the, uh, deep research capabilities of the tools that that we have today.

Because, um, once I have refined the prompt or the research parameters, I can go on with my life (laughs) and do something else.

And, and so yeah, it's...

Not only is it, uh, saving time because it will do some research in 20 minutes or half an hour, something that would have taken me hour- hours to do.

But on top of that, while it's working, I can do something else.

And (sighs) I don't know, I'm, I'm 52 now.

And to give you, uh, some context, I, I'm able to do almost as much as I was doing before, but I take two hours lunch break, I go and, and have a walk.

Now, I don't, I don't need to work in the evening, right?

So... (laughs)

Before, before, I was working until 6:00 PM, then dinner time, and then 8:00 PM, I would go back to my office, and I would continue working, right?

Because I had so much things to do.

Nowadays, my, my, my work day stops at 6:00 PM.

At 6:00 PM, I go, I have my lunch, uh, my, my, my dinner-...

and, and then I ha- I have a few TV programs (laughs) that I've started uh, watching.

And, uh, yeah, for- so I'm, in terms of work/life balance, I would say that simply because now I can do things much faster, that it allowed me to reclaim my evening and, and stop working in the evening.

Avik Chakraborty

True.

That's amazing, really, I have to say.

Yeah.


Advice for Listeners

Avik Chakraborty

And, uh, so any advice you'd like to give to the listeners today of what that would be?

Damien Schreurs

So e- m- my first advice is if you have a Google Workspace for Business account, and you don't use Gemini much, start exploring that.

Start, uh, so first of all visit gemini.google.com, and you will access the, the assistant.

This will be like a ChatGPT conversation or, or, or window, chat window.

So that's number one.

And number two, wa- every time you are in a, in a Google Doc or Google Sheet or inside Google- even Google Drive, start by activating the Gemini panel in the- so in the top right corner you will see a Gemini logo.

Click on it.

You will, you will have the Gemini.

And then ask yourself, "How can Gemini or can AI help me with the task that I'm doing now?"

Right?

And for Google Sheets, for instance, I had a results from a survey.

Avik Chakraborty

Okay.

Damien Schreurs

And two questions were non-numerical.

It was, it was multiple options, but it was text.

And I wanted to know if there was a correlation between these two answers.

And I opened the right pan- the side panel.

And then I asked Chan G- I asked Gemini-

"Can you help me determine if there is a correlation between the answer to that question and the answer to the other question?"

Avik Chakraborty

Okay.

Damien Schreurs

And it made itself the necessary calculations to convert something that's text to a numerical, a, a graded, graded numerical scoring system.

It uses two techniques to do that.

And it created the graphs to show me the dots and tell me that in the end there was no correlation, right?

Avik Chakraborty

(laughs)

Damien Schreurs

First of all, I discovered the two techniques to convert text into numbers, but it, it showed me visually, right?

If I had to c- to do that by myself, I would have spent hours, first of all, researching, and then wondering, "How do I make those graphs?"

And in a few, I think it was two minutes, something like that, one- between one and two minutes, it was done.

So that's number one.

And number two, if you, if people, the listener, you do not have a Google Workspace for Business account, but you have a ChatGPT account, and you're still on the free account-

... I really strongly suggest to invest into the paid.

Now I know that, um, in India, there is a new Go account.

Avik Chakraborty

Yes.

Damien Schreurs

Which is cheaper than the Plus.

Avik Chakraborty

Yeah.

Damien Schreurs

And I think OpenAI is, is doing a kind of a promotion at the moment.

Avik Chakraborty

Yes.

Damien Schreurs

Offering month for free or even a year for free or something like that.

So yeah, my, my advice would be look for the paid account with ChatGPT.

First of all, you will have more credits or more, um, yeah, more...

The limit will be bigger.

But you would then start being able to do your own ai- your own assistants, your own GPTs.

And that's a whole different level of, of using AI.

Avik Chakraborty

Exactly.

Even I am having the business account, and I believe it, it, it will definitely work the best, right?

Damien Schreurs

Mm-hmm.

Avik Chakraborty

Amazing.

Amazing.

Damien Schreurs

Yeah.


Outro and Call to Action

Avik Chakraborty

Yeah.

Ooh, lovely.

So, um, and, uh, I mean, Damien, I mean, this is such a refreshing and practical look, I would say, in how AI can actually serve the human side of business and not overshadow it.

So, uh, for everyone who is listening, if you have ever felt overwhelmed by all the AI noise, then take a page from Damien's playbook.

Start small, experiment with purpose, and think of AI not as a competition but as a collaboration.

Damien Schreurs

Many thanks again to Avik for having me on the show.

You can check out AI Biz by visiting aibizshow.podbean.com.

So aibizshow.podbean.com.

I will put a link in the show notes.

So what did you think?

Could an AI thought partner be the missing piece in your solopreneur toolkit?

If you're ready to stop guessing and start making data-driven decisions, I've got something special for you.

Head over to macpreneur.com/csuite in one word, C-S-U-I-T-E, to grab my free C-Suite implementation guide and build a GPT.

I used these exact tools to build my own co-CEO, co-CMO, and co-CFO.

Trust me.

Building, and more importantly, using an AI-powered C-suite can help you save time, reduce stress, and scale smarter.

Once again, visit macpreneur.com/csuite in one word or click the link in the show notes.

And if this episode has helped you, please do me a favor.

Share it with a fellow solopreneur and tag me on Instagram.

My handle is @macpreneurfm.

And until next time, I'm Damien Schreurs, wishing you a productive day.

Nova AI

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