AI ‘The Fastest Growing Technology We’ve Seen in Our Company’s History’

There have been many questions raised about the benefits that can be seen from artificial intelligence and the resulting AI. As we reported here last month, there is growing concern among board leaders that their organizations are diving into AI without weighing its risks, such as inaccuracies and workplace disruption. Are we headed to expect more soon?

Recent research from Accenture suggests that AI innovation is delivering on its promises. The consultancy’s survey of 2,800 C-suite executives finds that 49% of C-suite leaders say their investments in AI outweigh other investments.

“It’s the fastest growing technology we’ve seen in our company’s history.” Jack Azagury, group managing director for communications at Accenture, told me. All the numbers are good, but at the same time, AI’s biggest weakness is the lack of a “digital core,” he warned.

Surprisingly, nearly 100% of C-suite leaders in an Accenture survey say gen AI has impacted the way their businesses acquire and retain customers. Nearly 45% believe – strongly – that their investment in technology improves customer relationships More than half (54%) say AI has impacted their customer strategy by automating customer service tasks they use chatbots that provide personalized interactions in real time. first, the same percentage (51%), consider Gen AI to help them measure customer satisfaction and gather feedback.

Most technology waves over the years have been full of hype and promises, but AI is different, Azagury argued. “As an emerging technology, AI is unlike any other technological advancement that has the potential to affect every aspect of an organization,” he said. “Our research found that AI is helping to reinvent and accelerate organizational performance faster than previous technologies across industries.”

However, that doesn’t mean the resulting AI will deliver immediate success, Azagury pointed out. A lot of work is needed to prepare the organization to adopt technology in the right way. “When implementing gen AI, the lack of a strong digital foundation, especially the data layer, is the top challenge that organizations face,” he pointed out. The digital foundation includes the organization’s “cloud foundations, data, AI components, systems of record, engagement and cybersecurity,” he explained.

Building a digital foundation “isn’t something that happens overnight, he advised. “Organizations need to develop and stick to a comprehensive strategy that includes input from all aspects of the business.”

Another challenge, “as with all innovations, is ensuring that people and talent strategy are at the core of the AI ​​adoption process,” Azagury said. AI proponents need to clearly articulate the “why” and include a “strong talent and skills strategy,” he said.

However, businesses are seeing the ROI they expected from AI adoption, Azagury argued. “While many consumers are still experimenting with the technology, and the adoption of gen AI is still in its infancy for many companies and organizations, our latest research shows that C leaders -suite are already seeing positive results from AI implementation,” he explained.

The most prominent examples of the results of AI are in the productivity boost that employees experience. “AI can help save workers’ time by automating tedious daily tasks,” Azagury said. “It also empowers people to do things they’ve never been able to do before, and now the predictions of AI’s revolutionary power are coming true.”

He added: “Gen AI-powered workers” can handle a wide range of tasks that transcend functional silos. “For example, we’ve seen artificial intelligence dramatically improve the customer service process for a mobile customer by helping them quickly identify why customers are calling and find solutions to their problems. It’s not not only did the team’s overall productivity increase by 30%, but customer satisfaction ratings rose by 60%.

In one example, a government agency “used AI to deliver automation at speed and scale, saving three million hours of work, while helping nearly 90,000 employees improve their performance.” service to more than 20 million citizens,” Azagury said.

There are many ways to determine if an AI implementation has been successful, and this is due to AI’s business-wide strategy, versus data objectives. “Businesses that have driven innovation – a step change in operations – with gen AI have taken a holistic approach to their programs,” said Azagury. “We advise companies to focus on a very small number of end-users compared to many pilots to drive a measurable change in performance.”