Earlier this month, I shared the truth about gen AI (artificial intelligence), explaining we must realize the rise of AI will have an impact on our workforce. We can’t have one without the other. They are the ying and the yang and how we choose to leverage one will in fact impact the other. Let’s be clear here, to be successful in business, we must consider both in tandem. With that, I also explained there are real, true opportunities to be had with generative AI.
The reality is many people—and companies—are already using gen AI. PwC suggests one year after ChatGPT hit the market, more than half of companies surveyed had implemented gen AI in some areas of their business.
Now, we do need to be careful with statistics such as this because what does “implemented” mean? I know many people who tried ChatGPT to see how it works and then didn’t do much beyond that. It seems PwC even recognizes this, because in a 2024 survey it found many companies believe there is attractive ROI from gen AI, but only a few succeed in achieving transformative value from it. The bottomline is we are still in the initial stages of adoption. We must not get ahead of ourselves like we have with every other great new innovation. The question then remains: where does that transformative value lie for businesses? Let’s dig into this a bit.
Use Cases to Consider
McKinsey & Co., released a report last year about the economic potential of generative AI. What is interesting in this report is the potential use cases. It suggests roughly 75% of the value that generative AI use cases could deliver falls in only four key areas including:
- Customer operations
- Marketing and sales
- Software engineering
- Research and development
Some examples include generative AI’s ability to support customer interactions and draft computer code based on natural-language prompts, just to name a few. Still, even though there are four primary areas, it will have an impact across all industries, with banking, high tech, and life sciences being among the leading industries.
Let’s consider this in addition to another report. In Deloitte’s 2024 The State of Generative AI in the Enterprise, we see improved efficiency and productivity remain the most anticipated benefits among organizations adopting generative AI. This report suggests the top areas where generative AI will be used include:
- IT and cybersecurity (43%)
- Marketing, sales, and customer service (37%)
- Product development and R&D (32%)
- Strategy and operation (29%)
- Finance (20%)
- Supply chain and manufacturing (18%)
Keep in mind, we will also continue to see AI functionality coming to many of our existing tools. For example, Fluke Reliability has entered into a partnership with Verusen. Here we will see a combination of Verusen’s AI-driven visibility of MRO spare parts inventory and back-office functions with Fluke Reliability’s AI-powered enterprise asset management solutions. The end result is it will increase uptime, enhance maintenance and reliability operations efficiency, and drive customer productivity.
Of course, this is only one example. In the years to come, we can anticipate many companies will highlight new functionality and AI capabilities as a way to ensure tech advances will help businesses become more productive.
If you want to dig further into the topic of generative AI, make sure to head over to The Peggy Smedley Show this month. I have had the opportunity to have so many wonderful conversations with people about where AI is truly making a difference and identify the next step companies should take to tap into the opportunities that AI can offer.
A Way Forward
The Deloitte report suggests in the second quarter, the fastest-moving adopters of generative AI are getting past the infatuation stage. They are taking steps to overcome barriers to value.
As we move forward, let’s always remember productivity is only one part of the equation when we are talking about business success. We also need to ensure quality, customer service, and employee satisfaction all remain top priorities as well.
We need to identify big opportunities, train, and teach our workers how to engage with generative AI in a way that is actually useful, create company policies and processes that focus on that true value, and adjust our strategies as needed. Keep an eye out for all the sharks. Don’t be fooled by all the hype. There will be a lot of hits and misses. So, look before you leap, but certainly enjoy the glorious ride, keeping your eyes wide open to all that AI will bring.
If we keep all this top of mind, while also implementing generative AI, we have an opportunity to do something truly inspiring, leaving a long-lasting legacy for future generations.
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