Applying AI to untapped areas of an organization

Based on a study, we investigate the enormous opportunities presented by the AI revolution

Long pigeonholed as technology of the future in previous years, artificial intelligence (AI) is now a major aspect of digital transformation. AI-driven applications are enabling improvements in business insights, operations, and customer satisfaction. So much so that 96% of organizations in India have increased the use of AI in their operations over the last two years, according to a study of qualified executives and technology professionals by ManageEngine.

One of the main reasons for the emergence of AI has been the explosion of data and its resulting application into a range of business processes, but making sense of that data is only half the battle of ensuring its full value can be extracted. The same study by ManageEngine found that 58% of professionals identified a need to improve decision-making, and 50% looked to improve the use of available data by increasing the use of business analytics. Better analytics and business intelligence tools to meet these needs are hitting the market, driven by AI.

As AI applications continue to grow in capability, is there an opportunity for AI to process the growing data in untapped areas of the business to provide benefits to a wider spread of departments?

AI for internal IT and other business operations

Often, AI is being applied to the front line of customer interaction, such as marketing and customer support. But it can also enable employees to be more productive by adding value to internal processes. For example, internal IT can be enhanced with AI features such as improved digital asset management, better service desk ticket routing, and automation of various mundane and redundant tasks. This allows IT teams to focus their critical human resources on areas where human reasoning can be more effectively utilized.

AI can also be deployed within the internal legal department to ensure the processes and workflows within the organization are compliant with legal and moral obligations. While the capabilities of AI are often considered to revolve around applications such as self-driving cars, AI can also tackle minor everyday inconveniences, such as choosing an icon for an internal IT form or proactively advising teams to replenish an item in the inventory that is in danger of running out.

These process enhancements can yield increased productivity, leading to higher revenue and happier customers. AI is probabilistic, meaning it offers probabilities on events. For example, it may predict there’s a 60% chance of an outage in the next hour. Getting used to building probabilistic workflows takes time when coming from a deterministic background. For instance, what will a workflow for a 60% chance of an outage look like in comparison to a workflow for an 80% chance of an outage? Simple internal AI utilities can also enable better understanding of AI’s probabilistic nature, helping employees better manage customer-facing AI features.

The catalyst for human creativity

One commonly covered aspect of AI is its ability to efficiently automate repetitive and mundane tasks with optimum accuracy, freeing up time for professionals to place greater focus on value-adding campaigns. While this has immediate benefits in terms of employee productivity and efficiency, another long-term benefit of the technology is its ability to augment human creativity, such as the development of critical thinking skills.

Because security teams aren’t stuck performing repetitive, time-consuming tasks, they can instead bring greater structure to their workday while focusing on career building. This is vitally important for the upskilling of workforces, especially considering that The Future of Jobs Report 2020 identified critical thinking and analysis skills as rising in prominence in the lead-up to 2025.

Talent management of teams is an area that AI can directly impact, yet for many businesses, talent management may be an area of the organization that remains largely untapped by AI. By enabling employees to broaden their skillsets, organizations are able to apply their abilities to different departments while offering greater opportunities for promotions and career advancements.

AI as the enabler

It’s clear that despite the increase in uptake of AI-driven solutions, for many businesses, use of AI is still in its infancy when it comes to making a positive impact on the various departments in which it can be leveraged. Datasets are only going to grow, and AI is a vital tool in harnessing that information and providing benefits to the wider organization. AI and digital transformation will work increasingly hand-in-hand as the technology develops. At its core, AI is an enabler for making the right decisions to increase efficiency and business opportunities, from enhancing cybersecurity postures to comprehensively building skills and managing talent.

 

Ramprakash_Ramamoorthy

Contributed by

Ramprakash Ramamoorthy, director of research, ManageEngine

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ET Edge Insights, its management, or its members

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