Will artificial intelligence and automation become mainstream in 2019?

With the implementation of emerging technologies in products, websites and applications, artificial intelligence (AI) gained a lot of support this year. Amazon Alexa and Google Home are also entering more homes, bringing consumers into contact with artificial intelligence, and it is beginning to look like technology that was once thought to be the future and is now spreading into our daily lives.

At the same time, automation has gained a lot of attention as companies find new ways to automate tasks to help increase productivity and employee well-being. TechRadar Pro talked to NICE‘s robotic automation EMEA and AI, Sharon Einstein, to learn about artificial intelligence and automation next year and in the future.

Last year, Forrester predicted that organizations would have difficulty using artificial intelligence. Do you think that 2019 will become a more common year for artificial intelligence?

If you agree that artificial intelligence (AI) is the next step in the development of robotic process automation (RPA), then you might think that the company has adopted some form of AI. For example, Deloitte research shows that 53% of companies have supported their employees through some kind of robotic process automation (RPA). This number is expected to increase to 72% by 2020.

As organizations better understand the potential of RPAs to change business processes and employee experiences, adoption rates will increase, and organizations will even begin to consider RPAs to deal with more complex situations than they do today. We are only in the early stages of adoption, and many organizations are still waiting for the impact before the investment.

Looking ahead, companies that adopt a broader automation perspective will make breakthroughs in adoption. The opportunity for expansion grows exponentially by using capabilities that go beyond “unattended” RPAs and move into broader operations. By leveraging "manual enhancement" as part of the ability, you can benefit from a broader range of areas of your organization, rather than being limited to some back-end processes.

PricewaterhouseCoopers estimates that in the next 20 years, approximately 20% of jobs will be automated and no department will be affected. Any suggestions for companies that use AI and automation in 2019?

The biggest problem facing companies facing RPAs and AIs is where to start, and many automation projects fail simply because they choose the wrong process—that is, processes that are too complex and too niche. Automated discovery tools like NICE‘s automated finder are trying to decide which processes to automate. These tools use sophisticated machine learning algorithms to suggest which processes can produce the best ROI.

I also recommend that the organization consider not only efficiency advantages. Artificial intelligence and automation also help change the employee experience. For example, consider the goals that can be achieved through real-time guidance, decision support, and best practices provided when needed. A data-driven approach can also help because it can provide you with real-world images without having to spend weeks or months analyzing each business area.

Finally, I recommend that companies view automation and artificial intelligence as opportunities to re-use existing employees. Take the time to draw the processes of each part of the business, focus your work on areas that require manual input and skills, and automate robotics for processes that are more suitable for automation, and have a greater impact on business outcomes.

As part of your journey to digital transformation, how do you think companies will return to implementing automated solutions?

There are many reasons. Not knowing where to start, waiting for early adopters to showcase business results and automate the feeling of replacing people are all contributing factors. Advancing the digital transformation project is a long journey with many components - there is no doubt that automation is part of it - but before you begin to automate, you need to revisit the current process and optimize it.

Not knowing how to scale can also be a barrier, and the scale of the process - deploying AI is often an end-to-end digital transformation project that requires a comprehensive change management plan. How can companies use artificial intelligence to power employees in 2019? Artificial intelligence can be a powerful tool for employee engagement. It can help personalize the employee experience and provide them with the necessary help and support. By helping them complete their tasks faster, AI will ensure they are always motivated.

Artificial intelligence-driven personal assistants can be deployed for each employee, enabling them to make better decisions, increase productivity and efficiency. At present, ordinary employees spend an average of 80% a day on ordinary daily work, and these jobs do not necessarily require manual investment. As a result, a large amount of potential is often not realized. By integrating automation and artificial intelligence into their day-to-day work, employees can get rid of monotonous tasks and accomplish more exciting and rewarding tasks, adding real value. For many organizations, this means increasing employee satisfaction and employees feel their time is more valuable.

Do you want to make any other comments?

Both automation and artificial intelligence have caused great excitement in the market. However, the challenge for companies will be to maintain this momentum. As mentioned earlier, companies need to ensure they have an effective change management plan to help manage this process. This requires a positive solution to the challenge, training for employees, monitoring progress, and asking for feedback to work in areas where improvement is needed.