Every brand at a retailer hires its own AI lead, and those leads ignore the Center of Excellence. Leadership asks what mandate the CoE needs. Which response fits?
Select an answer to reveal the explanation.
Short Explanation
A standards desk that cannot set a standard is just another workshop down the hall. You give the Center of Excellence the mandate to set the standards the brands follow. Funding a second research lab does not create that authority.
Full Explanation
The Center of Excellence exists to set shared standards, run intake, and stop each brand from inventing a private rule for every agent. When brand AI leads ignore the CoE, the missing piece is the mandate to set standards those brands must follow, not another place to experiment. Funding a second research lab adds a build team and leaves the brands free to skip the standards, which is the split already in front of leadership. Closing the CoE removes the only body that could hold a common rule. Judging the CoE by how many leads it hires away measures a staffing contest and does not establish a standard anyone has to use. The mandate should show up at intake: a brand request cites the standard it follows, and a request that invents a private rule is sent back. A lab can still run a pilot, and the pilot does not replace the standard the brands are expected to use. Exam caveat: the mandate is the standards the brands must follow. Funding a second research lab, or closing the CoE, does not create that mandate. Operational check: publish one standard, require the next brand request to cite it at intake, and confirm a request that skips it is returned.