One of the questions I have got a lot in last few years is “where the impact of AI is going to be most visible – which industries” and after some time, I have to admit that this is becoming very hard to answer. Every day we see some new scenarios or applications, and they go from education to governments to supply chains to … anything basically. Few years ago, we would talk about more and less impacted areas of our life, and trying to be very cautious of where we will place our bets. At the same time, we wanted to be kind of fair and give some more time to some jobs or professionals saying something like “AI will have more impact of blue and less on white collar type of jobs. And probably it is not going to touch anything which belongs to creative industries.” Well, Toto, we are not in Kansas anymore.
Over the past decade everyone started to talk about digital transformation. Organizations were employing people. Workshops have been done. Initiatives started. Many PostIt notes spent on the Design Thinking workshops. All in the pursue of next transformation that will bring enlighten to the organization. Yet, if you would as CXO what exactly they are doing and what they are trying to achieve – you would probably get more questions than answers back.
Let’s go back to the basics: in essence, digital transformation means adapting the organization and organizational strategy to the opportunities that advanced digital technology enables. After a number of technologies on the table (like computers, internet, mobile, cloud, blockchain, just to name some of them), they are still not sure what should be the next step, what should they use to get to the results they expect – and sometimes even those expectations are not clear to the organization. We automate, generate, orchestrate, process our business way more efficiently than before with the help of technologies, yet – we do not see a massive, exponential benefits that would give us exploding results.
Should AI be the baseline for you digital transformation? I guess it is a sure shot – whatever AI touches it brings different, almost magical results (as if in, no one really understands how it works, it has to be magical).
So, sometimes AI can be way more structured that us (humans) when trying to find some answer. Let’s be practical and ask Bing what would be a good way to use AI for Digital Transformation:
“Artificial Intelligence (AI) can be a powerful tool for driving digital transformation in companies by enabling automation, optimization, and innovation.
Here are some ways AI can be a basis for digital transformation:
- Process Automation: AI-powered automation can streamline and optimize business processes, reducing manual effort, and minimizing errors. For example, chatbots can automate customer support, natural language processing can automate document processing, and robotic process automation can automate repetitive tasks.
- Predictive Analytics: AI can analyze large volumes of data and provide insights for better decision-making. Predictive analytics can help companies identify trends, make predictions, and take proactive measures to improve business outcomes.
- Personalization: AI can help companies personalize their offerings to individual customers, improving customer experience and engagement. For example, personalized recommendations can be generated based on a customer’s past behavior and preferences.
- Optimization: AI algorithms can optimize business processes to improve efficiency, reduce costs, and increase productivity. For example, AI can optimize supply chain management, logistics, and inventory management.
- Innovation: AI can help companies develop new products, services, and business models. For example, AI can help companies identify new market opportunities, automate product design, and create personalized marketing campaigns.
Overall, AI can be a powerful enabler of digital transformation by automating processes, providing insights, personalizing offerings, optimizing operations, and fostering innovation. Companies that leverage AI effectively can gain a competitive advantage in the digital age.
Well, I could not say (write) it better than the AI itself. I guess I could write this article way faster, more actionable and more understandable if I just asked the right question. There is something to learn, for sure.