How AI is Changing the Way Business Work

Artificial Intelligence, or AI, as it is commonly known, is everywhere. AI tools like ChatGPT, Dall-E2, and Lumen5 are on the stakeholder’s agenda. Despite how actively businesses want to use custom AI solutions, they are still weary of its (possible) negative impact.

In this guide, we will talk about the benefits, impact, and applications of AI for business use. Instead of using it as a catch-all phrase for all things automated, let’s understand the real role of AI in the enterprise and its true impact on the bottom line.

But First, What is AI?

Quite simply, AI is a technology that mimics human intelligence in machines. It encompasses various techniques (think: machine learning and deep learning) to perform tasks that typically require human intelligence. This includes analyzing copious amounts of data, uncovering patterns, making predictions and forecasts, and more.

This technology empowers machines to understand, learn, and adapt to complex scenarios with the end goal of improving performance.

Due to its 360-degree benefits, AI finds applications across diverse industries—from virtual assistants and recommendation systems to autonomous vehicles and medical diagnostics.

Moreover, by simulating human cognition, AI has opened doors to automation, efficiency, and innovation. With strategic implementation, conversational AI for enterprises can be a game-changer— revolutionizing processes, optimizing operations, and providing businesses with an edge.

Long story short, with AI, machines are becoming intelligent problem-solvers, changing the way businesses operate at the core.

AI for Enterprise: A Data-backed Perspective

Before we jump into the applications of enterprise AI, it is important to understand the AI landscape from a data-driven perspective. Here’s what the numbers tell us:

• Wildly growing market: Research indicates that the global artificial intelligence market is expanding at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 37.3% from 2023 to 2030. In absolute numbers, the market is expected to hit around USD 1,871.2 billion by 2032:
• The digital revolution is being triggered by AI: 4IR technology will be nearly $4 trillion in value by 2025.
• Higher GDP contribution by AI is on the horizon: Research indicates that AI will contribute the highest (26.1%) to the GDP in China, followed by North America (14.5%) of GDP, and UAE (13.6%):
• AI adoption and strategy are going hand in hand: IBM states that today, 35% of companies are using AI in their business, and an additional 42% are exploring AI.
• Use cases of conversational AI for business are manifold: The same IBM study suggests that around half of the organizations are seeing benefits from using AI to automate IT, business, or network processes such as:
  • cost savings and efficiencies (54%)
  • improvements in IT or network performance (53%)
  • better experiences for customers (48%)
• Sector-wise adoption of conversational AI for the enterprise: Larger businesses are actively deploying AI within their business operations. Plus, in terms of geographic AI adoption, Chinese and Indian companies are leading the way. Around 60% of IT professionals claim that their organization is already actively using AI:

The writing is on the wall: AI is no longer a hypothetical concept with hard-to-gauge theoretical applications. Businesses globally are readily driving AI adoption.

As per IBM, 1 in 4 companies are adopting AI because of labor or skills shortages, whereas 1 in 5 companies are adopting AI because of environmental pressures. No matter what the root cause might be, enterprise conversational AI is no longer a futuristic concept.

But What’s the Meaning of AI for Businesses Today?

In the current landscape, AI is being viewed as a game-changing technology that encompasses tools, algorithms, and techniques to:

• automate repetitive tasks and streamline processes
• gain actionable insights and make data-driven decisions
• optimize resource allocation and enhance operational efficiency

Businesses are embracing this precious resource to drive growth opportunities as well as innovation and gain a competitive edge. As per Forbes:

• More than 50% of business owners are already using AI for cybersecurity and fraud management; 46% will use it to create internal communications, and 56% will use it to improve customer relationships:
• An overwhelming 97% of business owners believe ChatGPT will help their business with writing:
  • Website content for one in three businesses
  • Content in other languages for 44%

The takeaway: Businesses are turning to AI to a higher degree to boost operations, reduce costs, and improve their service. All in all, AI for SMEs is turning out to be an augmented, ROI-driven tool instead of a replacement technology that will replace human assets entirely—a sentiment we first saw when computers came around.

How Businesses are Leveraging AI: 6 Applications Worth Knowing

1. Achieving Success: Artificial Intelligence in Sales

AI in sales is revolutionizing the way businesses identify, engage, and convert potential customers into loyal clients. Here’s how:

• Sales forecasting and predictive analytics: Companies gain valuable insights into market trends, customer behaviors, and buying patterns. This helps the sales team to optimize their sales strategies effectively.

An amazing example of a sales AI-powered chatbot is HubSpot’s chatbot which can deliver instant responses, nurture leads throughout the sales process, and close deals efficiently:

The chatbot can effectively engage with customers, answer product inquiries, provide recommendations, and guide them through the sales process.

There’s so much more you can do with an AI-powered chatbot. You can leverage in-built lead scoring algorithms to analyze customer data and prioritize high-potential leads.

Plus, you can use AI-powered sales forecasting models to predict market trends, optimize inventory management, and improve demand planning.

2. Marketing Optimization: Artificial Intelligence in Marketing

Marketing is another field that can greatly benefit from AI integration.

AI-driven data insights can empower market research, customer segmentation, and targeted advertising campaigns. For instance, Coca-Cola has forayed into generative AI and has partnered with ChatGPT and Dall-E to roll out segmented campaigns and market at scale.

Another interesting example of using AI to market smarter is Nutella:

The brand leveraged an algorithm to generate 7 million unique packaging designs, making it a cost-effective and successful campaign!

3. ‘Supportive’ Intelligence: Artificial Intelligence in Customer Support

Perhaps one of the biggest applications of AI is being seen in customer support, with 73% of businesses using AI-powered chatbots for instant messaging.

AI business phones and AI-powered virtual assistants offer 24/7 support, instant responses, and personalized assistance, as Sephora’s Facebook Messenger bot demonstrates below:

This bot claims to have an 11% higher conversion rate as opposed to other traditional channels for booking in-store makeover appointments.

That’s not all. These bots can engage in sentiment analysis and automated ticket routing. As a result, customers can be directed to the appropriate channels promptly. Plus, AI-driven recommendation systems can suggest relevant products based on individual preferences and improve the user experience.

Another interesting example is Indigo’s chatbot, Dottie, which can provide instant answers to common questions and offer useful information, such as flight details, payment status, etc., in a matter of minutes:

Customers can also download their boarding pass, view the booking itinerary, understand baggage allowance, and more.

4. Operational Excellence: Artificial Intelligence in Operations

In the pursuit of operational excellence, businesses are also harnessing AI to optimize processes and drive efficiency.

For example, Amazon makes use of predictive analytics and customer data (such as previous orders, shopping cart items, wish lists, and regional listings) to anticipate customer needs and offer anticipatory shipping–a patented technology by the brand today.

Using anticipatory shipping, the items will be placed in strategic warehouses and will be delivered in a much shorter time span.

Other applications of conversational AI enterprise in operations include:

• Efficient supply chain management
• Streamlined inventory control to reduce stockouts
• Increased automation of repetitive tasks such as item stocking, order processing, invoice generation, and data entry
• Predictive maintenance to prevent equipment failures, detect anomalies, schedule maintenance activities, and reduce costly downtime

5. Hiring Revolution: Artificial Intelligence in Human Resources

Even the Human Resources field is reaping the benefits of AI-powered tools. For example, iMocha is an AI-powered tool that can engage in resume screening and shortlist candidates at an accelerated speed:

HR professionals can hire remotely and identify top talent within minutes.

HR managers are increasingly relying on AI tools to onboard new hires, solve employee queries, and manage leave requests quickly.

Plus, virtual HR assistants come equipped with natural language processing capabilities to offer guidance on HR policies and procedures and analyze employee feedback.

6. Accounting Transformation: Artificial Intelligence in Accounting

The accounting field, too, is heavily automating processes such as:

• AI-powered invoice processing: This functionality is helping automate data extraction, match invoices with purchase orders, and detect discrepancies. The end result? Reduced processing time and improved accuracy–a win-win for all.
• AI-driven fraud detection: AI algorithms can successfully analyze financial transactions, identify anomalies, and flag potential fraudulent activities. For instance, Mastercard’s Decision Intelligence can analyze a customer’s spending habits and build a robust customer profile to detect potential instances of fraud, thereby strengthening financial security.
• Predictive analytics models: AI can also be used to analyze historical financial data and market trends and offer accurate forecasts for budgeting, cash flow management, and risk assessment.

AI for Enterprise: Common Challenges to Know About

Despite the advantages of conversational business intelligence, AI adoption is raising a few concerns, such as:

• 65% of consumers want to use ChatGPT instead of search engines: The negative impact on website traffic and reduced business visibility on search engines as businesses resort to tools like ChatGPT to get the information they need.
• Increased dependence on technology (more than ever): For 43% of respondents, businesses will become too reliant on AI. Additionally, 35% of entrepreneurs are worried about the (lack of) technical abilities needed to use AI to optimum levels. Furthermore, 28% claim that the chances of bias errors will boost with AI systems.
• Reduction of the workforce: One of the biggest concerns with AI adoption is the loss of human jobs this technology will supposedly affect.
• Misinformation may become rampant: The thing about AI is that the tools are only as good as the data captured. As the data becomes dated fairly quickly, this can create instances of misinformation.
• Data privacy and security: As is the case with any technology, data privacy, and security are also top contenders of concern with increased AI implementation.

Useful Tips on How to Use AI for Your Business

1. Tip #1: Establish robust data governance practices:

To lower chances of reduced security and issues of privacy concerns, organizations must:

• • Implement data quality measures such as data cleansing, validation, and enrichment to enhance the accuracy and completeness of data.
  • Adopt data integration and consolidation strategies by breaking down data silos and implementing centralized data platforms.
  • Implement data anonymization techniques and comply with data privacy regulations to protect sensitive information.

2. Tip #2: For AI to work, clean data is key:

To set up a system of clean data, think long and hard about your organization’s data strategy. This includes contemplating things like:

• How will you get the data?
• How will the business store it?
• How will the organization protect the data?
• What does your organization’s long-term AI vision look like?

Remember, data silos will create more issues for your organization with respect to data availability and quality. Plus, your business will not be able to leverage the full potential of AI–making it a waste of investment and time.

3. Tip #3: Identify the right problem and set the right KPIs:

Often, businesses set out on their AI journey on the right foot–from the very beginning itself:

– They do not think about the right AI opportunity for the business.

– They don’t identify the right problems they need to solve.

– They don’t set the right KPIs to measure AI success.

AI is not a blanket solution to your business problems. It cannot solve all the issues. The more specific you are with the kind of problem you wish to solve, the higher the chances of AI being more productive for your business.

To make things easier, consider asking the stakeholders the following questions:

• What do the teams and leadership ‘expect’ from the AI system?
• What kind of optimization, automation, and prediction do you want the algorithm to drive?
• How will AI affect your existing workflow processes, day-to-day
  activities, and current systems as well as tools?
• Which kind of business advantages can the AI tool offer beyond its
  core functionality? Think in terms of cost-effectiveness, scalability, customer-centricity, and so on.

Once you’ve got the answers to these, follow these steps:

• Create a feasibility assessment.
• Speak to 3-4 vendors and try a free trial for the AI tools.
• Set up a roadmap with the team and work collaboratively to ensure success.

Working in the blind, engaging with AI for the sake of AI, and going with a herd mentality will do your business more harm than good for obvious reasons.

4. Tip #4: Create a dedicated team of resources and assets that are trained in AI:

While AI will not replace jobs, it will create a shift in the demand for specialized skills. If your business has implemented AI tools, but the team doesn’t know how to use them or, worse, doesn’t want to use them, you are setting yourself up for failure.

To build a high-performing AI team, make sure to:

• Nurture AI skills across departments and teams so that everyone understands their role in executing AI.
• Hire the right AI experts–this could be setting up an in-house team or hiring AI partners externally.
• Conduct workshops and sessions that will help the team to understand the basics of AI.
• Empower the team with a comprehensive knowledge base that includes online courses, books, expert-written articles, how-to videos, and so on.
• When hiring AI experts, look for technical and soft skills.
• When it comes to defining the AI project, make sure to outline the goals and scope effectively by:
  • Outlining the budget which includes additional costs such as data access, software, and hardware requirements, expert salaries, etc.
  • Creating a realistic timeline that includes key milestones and the value expected from each phase.
  • Highlighting the roles and responsibilities of each member of the AI team.
  • Creating the right benchmarks and outlining the risks early on.
  • Taking a holistic, three-pronged approach to AI adoption, which includes business transformation, decision-making, and modernizing processes and systems–which is proving to be more successful than businesses that are focusing on one goal and then moving onto the next:

The takeaway: Even though AI technology might seem like a one-stop solution for a vast variety of business problems, it should not be treated as a ‘one-size-fits-all’ solution. The way businesses implement AI will be as unique as the problems they aim to solve using custom AI solutions.

Key Takeaways

AI possesses a host of helpful ‘traits’ that are making it a coveted addition to any business:

• Fast, scalable, and contextual outputs: It can process and analyze mountains worth of information within seconds than a human brain.
• Suggestive technology: With the data, AI can provide the recommended course of action and accelerate the decision-making process. Offering all possible consequences and scenarios can enable decision-makers to drive sound decisions. In some cases, AI can even make decisions on its own, making it a valuable addition to industries across the spectrum.
• Vigilant tool: AI is an indispensable tool for businesses that want to stay vigilant and be proactive. This is probably why AI is being actively used by cybersecurity to prevent fraud. In addition to alerting the business about the security holes and gaps, it can backtrack to find the actual source of the problem and prevent chances of recurrence.
• Trustworthy and reliable personal assistant: AI bots are doubling up as trusted advisors for consumers–providing relevant suggestions, offering guidance, and answering routine questions on the go.

All these traits collectively make AI difficult to ignore. When used strategically, AI can, at the very least, take over mundane tasks that can be automated. It can empower businesses to go the extra mile for customers instead of wasting valuable time in entering data (boring!).

To wrap up, here are a few important key points to remember:

• AI is a technology that is rapidly getting better and better at mimicking (not replacing) human intelligence and improving performance.
• Given its widespread applications and use cases, the global AI market is growing rapidly.
• AI adoption is increasing in various industries, such as customer service, marketing, finance, healthcare, etc.
• Businesses are using AI to automate tasks, gain insights, optimize operations, enhance customer support, and transform operations.
• Some of the most common challenges of AI adoption include job loss, data privacy, and misinformation.
• To effectively use AI, businesses need to establish data governance practices, ensure clean data, identify the right problems to solve and build a skilled AI team.
• Long story short, AI can be thought of as a powerful tool that drives growth, innovation, and efficiency in businesses–only if used strategically.

The Future of AI: It is Fast-Becoming a Technological Reality

AI is fast-emerging as the rule—not the exception. In its current form and scope, AI is transforming a slew of industries, such as customer service, finance, marketing, and cybersecurity, to name a few.

Speaking with respect to the end goals, most businesses wish to leverage AI to lower costs, improve the customer experience, offer personalized services, boost operational efficiency, and drive targeted marketing at scale.

Even internal business operations such as data aggregation and process automation are on the cards for businesses looking to implement custom AI solutions.

Overall, the sentiment towards AI is positive despite a few well-established concerns. Instead of viewing AI as an overhyped or far-fetched concept, businesses are seeing AI under a more realistic lens and embracing AI as a supporting technology that will augment human effort (and not replace human assets).

With time, AI is all set to become a household name as more brands and organizations understand the true potential it holds. Customers are already interacting with AI in different forms and shapes.

Businesses that can partner with AI and leverage the combined expertise of humans and machines will find themselves racing ahead of the pack with the first-mover’s advantage.