Three ways AI-ifying your organization can reap tremendous results

Data has been both a friend and foe for enterprises since the early 2000s. Most executives understand the power of data, but the sheer vastness of an organization’s data stores—which can easily reach the petabyte level—contributes to a general state of information overload. As such, traditional enterprises are struggling, and commonplace IT terms like “data lakes” and “data warehouses” are now jokingly referred to as “data dumping grounds.”

The challenge today is how to invigorate these “data dumping grounds” into intuitive recommendations and predictions. This is where an artificial intelligence (AI) strategy comes in, offering a way to collect and unify relevant information so that it becomes actionable and insightful.

For example, AI can galvanize an organization’s supply chain management analytics. Once a company embarks on an AI journey, it will have to commence a wide data strategy. This includes collecting and unifying data from the internal ERP and CRM systems, along with data from external sources such as news and social feeds. Once all the data is collected and processed, it can provide the company with insightful predictions about the cost of raw materials, help the organization automate resource planning, and even suggest optimal inventory based on demand forecasts.

Let’s look at three specific ways AI can propel a company into a true digital transformation.

1. AI REDUCES COST 

The most visible evidence of cost-reduction observed from “AI-ifying” systems is in operations and customer support. In the United States, customer service call centers charge $26-$30 per hour—and more for specialists. In-person customer service can cost anywhere from 8 to 12 times this amount. But AI can help reduce these costs in multiple ways.

First, AI can power a call center system to detect early anomalies and patterns that may reside with—for example—product defects that can lead to issues, and either prevent problems before they occur or alert the consumer and company in advance.

Secondly, conversational computing—perhaps better known as interactive chatbots—can help save time and money when organizations enable them to address customers’ most common questions quickly. Meanwhile, other customer service representatives can spend more time and energy answering customers’ more complex inquiries. In either case, customer satisfaction and retention are improved, and the company is able to save up to five times the amount it takes to acquire a new client.

Finally, once an issue is detected, the AI can rapidly check system inputs and outputs to determine the cause. Analytics offering predictions and recommendations can then be provided to the organization via its ERP systems, or even spreadsheets.

2. AI INCREASES SPEED TO EXECUTION

AI is the engine of automation. It can optimize recommendations and search engines, turning them into powerful tools for bringing relevant content to visibility. Computer vision (CV) makes it possible to scan hundreds of pages of documents for relevant information instantaneously. Additionally, experienced mobile app development teams can use CV tools to detect user-interface differences from provided designs automatically.

AI can empower organizations through data-driven projections by assisting quality assurance teams with analyzing inputs, outputs, and simulated data for anomalies. On the other hand, using comprehensive data from multiple sources, AI helps predict business outcomes, providing actionable insights and rapid decision-making.

Consider the use of high-speed automated bidding. Advertising platforms often use automated bidding to connect advertisers with mobile websites. When done manually, this process is tedious and unavoidably inaccurate. But AI provides technological solutions through platforms that minimize processing time and increase execution speeds.

3. AI SIMPLIFIES COMPLEXITY

Business processes become more efficient with the application of AI. It wasn’t long ago that you’d find broadcast editors struggling to match timestamps with subtitles for a newly posted video. Now, with Natural Language Processing and context analysis, AI can provide subtitles and generate near-perfect translations.

In healthcare, computer vision equipped with deep learning is increasingly used in diagnostics and imaging. One research firm notes that using AI can improve patient outcomes by approximately 40%—while cutting treatment costs in half!

AI can also assist in evaluating a patient’s condition levels. Through video conferencing, doctors can immediately address even the severest of cases. This ensures that all patients’ conditions are appropriately addressed through the proper channels, while saving time and avoiding confusion.

Incorporating an AI and data science strategy may be challenging, but it has tremendous benefits. Utilizing the right tools to collect, unify, and process data can save time in business processes. Data science, machine learning, and artificial intelligence, among others, provide data-centric directions that make innovation possible.

AI offers a host of possibilities, and successful execution can lead traditional enterprises into a new era of digital transformation.

Anand Mahurkar is the founder and CEO of Findability Sciences.