Can Our Organization Really Leverage Artificial Intelligence? Or Are We Not There Yet?

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Artificial Intelligence is here. All businesses are aware of AI and recognize the tremendous potential for AI. AI enables new approaches to existing business models, operations, and deployment of people. These changes can fundamentally alter the way our organization operates.

However, if you’re not a high-tech company, are you really sophisticated enough to leverage AI?

The answer is yes, because AI comes in a spectrum of forms, with varying levels of complexity and sophistication, dependent on your organization’s level of Digital Maturity. In fact, we can categorize AI into 3 forms (depicted in the slide below):

1. Assisted Intelligence – AI that improves what we are already doing (e.g. Robotic Process Automation).
2. Augmented Intelligence – AI that enables us to do things we otherwise wouldn’t do (e.g. Machine Learning).
3. Autonomous Intelligence – AI that acts on its own, deciding its own actions on behalf of our organization’s goals (e.g. Optimus Prime).

Assisted Intelligence

Assisted Intelligence improves what people and organizations are currently doing. In other words, it amplifies the value of existing activities.

Assisted Intelligence typically involves clearly defined, rule-based, and repeatable activities. Assisted Intelligence applications also include modeling of complex realities, so that organizations can test decision and scenarios with less risk.

It is currently widely available and deployed. The most common applications include Robotic Process Automation (RPA), a concept we discussed in a previous email. As mentioned then, when an organization undertakes Digital Transformation, RPA is typically the lowest hanging fruit driving the most immediate impact.

Assisted Intelligence applications are becoming more and more widely used in enterprise software platforms. This should drive to substantial improvements in key performance metrics, e.g. labor productivity, revenues or margins per employee, and average time to complete various business process.

All organizations can leverage this form of AI.

Augmented Intelligence

Augmented Intelligence enables people and organizations to do things they otherwise couldn’t do. It does this by giving new capability to human activity. To develop applications based on Augmented Intelligence, we need to imagine products, services, or processes that would not be possible at all without AI.

Unlike Assisted Intelligence, Augmented Intelligence fundamentally changes the nature of the task. Business models thus change accordingly.

Augmented Intelligence applications are typically based on Machine Learning (ML) and Natural Language Generation (NLG) algorithms.

A good example of this is Netflix. Netflix leverages ML to suggest choices for subscribers that they probably would not have found themselves. This is done based on both the customer’s own behavior patterns and those of the audience at large.

Autonomous Intelligence

This is the highest state of AI. Autonomous Intelligence creates and deploys machines that act on their own. Only the most advanced tech companies are utilizing this form of AI. A great example of Autonomous Intelligence is self-driving vehicles.

Regardless of your level of Digital Maturity, AI should play a part in some form and within your Digital Transformation Strategy. The key is to determine the proper strategic AI applications and develop the competencies and capabilities for those applications.

Once we’ve identified specific applications that use AI for our organization, we need to develop an AI Strategy to implement these applications. To do this, we follow a 4-step process:

1. Develop an AI Strategy aligned with our overall Corporate Strategy.
2. Develop enterprise-wide AI capabilities.
3. Institutionalize our portfolio of AI capabilities.
4. Ensure appropriate and sufficient Governance.

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Digital Transformation is being embraced by organizations of all sizes across most industries. In the Digital Age today, technology creates new opportunities and fundamentally transforms businesses in all aspects—operations, business models, strategies. It not only enables the business, but also drives its growth and can be a source of Competitive Advantage.

For many industries, COVID-19 has accelerated the timeline for Digital Transformation Programs by multiple years. Digital Transformation has become a necessity. Now, to survive in the Low Touch Economy—characterized by social distancing and a minimization of in-person activities—organizations must go digital. This includes offering digital solutions for both employees (e.g. Remote Work, Virtual Teams, Enterprise Cloud, etc.) and customers (e.g. E-commerce, Social Media, Mobile Apps, etc.).