Will AI 'Steal' your job? Possibly.....

AI is undoubtedly shaping our future within the world of work. There is a new realm of possibilities which can be achieved with this match made in heaven.

Ever since the industrial revolution, businesses are bringing forward ideas which leverage the newest technology to augment human workers in order to streamline efficiency and productivity whilst cutting unnecessary costs. You may be thinking that Artificial Intelligence may indeed make us redundant, but the reality is, that this is most probably not the case. Although, thanks to the recent advancements in AI, we can now retrospect a different working environment to one that we have become accustomed to. So, what does Business Process Automation (BPA), Machine Learning (ML) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) propose and mean for tomorrow’s workforce? The reality is that the future workplace will likely involve hybrids which involve both human and machine intelligence working in harmony towards achieving common business goals.

Shaping The Way We Work

Automation isn’t a relatively new ground-breaking concept – it’s been around for over a hundred years. There are many areas in the workplace where monotonous tasks can be permanently shifted from human employees to intelligent learning software so that work can be completed faster and eliminating the risks of any human error. Subsequently, this improves overall efficiency levels, leading to a better bottom line for the organisation as a whole. Due to the increases in the output of the quality of work, service levels are also seen to take a positive hit – so in theory, everybody wins. However, automation powered by Artificial Intelligence has taken this relatively basic concept to an entirely new level. This form of intelligence doesn’t just involve programming a machine simple tasks as is often the assumption. Rather, it is about relying on technology which is ‘smart’ enough to learn and adapt over time without the need of any human input. Let’s take chatbots as an example; a technology which is capable of using continuous data gatherings from customer inquiries to develop a robust catalogue of answers – the more it is used, the smarter it becomes.

Adapted Job Roles

The truth about technology being implemented in our workplace is that Business Process Automation does in fact adapt and create new roles and opportunities for us human workers to pursue. The reality is that there are certain areas throughout the business where technology simply cannot replicate ‘human touch’ – no matter how far the intelligence of the automation, it is something which cannot be replaced. For instance, a chatbot can be programmed to perform basic customer support, although it is not ‘intelligent’ enough to manage complex situations. To break this down even further, let us look at employers. Intelligent Automation could be very effective and efficient in identifying the ideal candidates for a job opening, but the actual hiring process is still and will be a human-centric function.

Humans & Technology in Harmony

Rather than technology and humans working independently, the two should be working together towards achieving the greater good for the organisation. Ideally, the best way to approach this AI overhaul in businesses is to view it from a more holistic perspective. For instance, Process Automation can be leveraged to handle the majority of mundane and repetitive tasks whilst seamlessly transferring more complex issues to human workers – this enables an ideal standard of work. Executives then use this information to make strategic data-driven decisions, project and plan for the future whilst the machines handle the data mining process, identifying and extracting the most relevant data available. Ultimately, this facilitates businesses to achieve greater innovation, hence, those who adopt an AI approach will lead the charge in their respective fields.

Redefining Work

Artificial Intelligence is continuously evolving, growing and being increasingly implanted into our day-to-day lives. The main aim of organisations which apply these technologies is to improve their workforce’s efficiency, make tasks more enjoyable and make the lives of their employees much easier. With intelligent technologies becoming smarter, more and more tasks will be carried out through AI-related technologies. Studies indicate that by 2022, many tasks of businesses involving lawyers, doctors, medicine and IT will be handled by intelligent technology. With our experiences working with many service professionals, we can confirm that this is the direction that will improve everyone’s quality of life and satisfaction within their respective fields as well as by improving their quality of service like never before. This doesn’t necessarily mean that there will be certain unemployment for those working on the front lines. 79% of executives were surveyed saying that they expect an increase in new jobs with the adoption of business automation. Furthermore, 94% of executives said that there will be a significant increase in demand for roles which demand soft skills such as communication, creative problem solving and collaboration. Ultimately, the way we work is changing and this reality is what allows us to adapt and evolve as people. For those who welcome artificial intelligence and all of its intelligent subfields and opportunities it presents, the future certainly looks exciting and filled with innovation in a continuously fiercely competitive and updated business landscape.