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Digital Transformation: Reinventing Business Processes From The Bottom-Up

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Digital Transformation: Reinventing Business Processes From The Bottom-Up

Aditya Arora, Managing Director, Teleperformance, 0

Today’s markets are in the midst of a disruption. Given the scenario, the change in technology adoption and consumer habits is causing a direct shift in business priorities. However, the overall mission remains the same – to provide a high-quality customer experience, drive down costs, improve operational efficiency and thereby ensure return on investment.

Eighty five per cent of enterprise decision-makers say they have just two years to make significant inroads into digital transformation or they will fall behind their competitors . Companies can strengthen and safeguard their offering by integrating digitally-advanced business solutions, such as automated back-office services and business transformation optimisation.

It is key to remember, however, that today’s connected customer expects an omni channel experience with seamless service between various communication methods. Therefore, organisations must now bridge Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies and the basic rule of business – to serve the customer. Only then will they remain agile and one step ahead of their competitors.

Shifting customer expectations
Connected customers have access to knowledge that allows them to make better-informed decisions. With an appetite for innovation and finding the best deals on the market, they expect instant, round-the-clock communication with businesses – but with limited effort on their part.

The explosion of Conversational AI (CAI) in particular, such as chatbots, now enables businesses to have integrated one-on-one conversations at their convenience and create a highly advanced Digital Customer Experience (DCX). Customer expectations can be met more easily if individual pain points and their aspirations are addressed more speedily and possibly together.

The competition is such that businesses that do not offer such convenient and immediate experiences will risk losing customers to challenger competitors born online. Core business value - the driver of long-term customer loyalty – is best achieved when AI applications are categorised into hybrid systems of two main components – High-Tech and High-Touch.
Human-driven automation
Eighty per cent of service decision-makers agree that AI is most effective when deployed with – rather than instead of – humans . This means established companies have an opportunity to address pain-points by deploying digitally-driven services whilst maintaining the all-important human touch that reassures customers.

Any business service that can be automated through AI, should be, so human agents have more time to dedicate to building deeper connections with customers. Essentially working to meet customers wherever they are – whether it’s in person or on a website – AI then uses emotional recognition tools to identify when and where human intervention is required. In providing direct support through multiple channels, the connected customer will recognise and appreciate the extra effort being taken to service their needs - and brand advocacy will improve by 25 per cent.

Business optimisation
With sales of AI systems worldwide predicted to more than double to $79.2 billion by 2022 , AI has shifted from being a business desire, to a practical solution for modern business challenges. Transformation is both external and internal, and there are huge revenue and cost benefits to be gained when business services are digitised. By 2024, 69 per cent of routine work currently handled by managers will be fully automated, as organisations seek to scale up and achieve such efficiencies.

Integrating AI and Machine Learning can reduce processing time as well as cut costs by up to 50 per cent. It is this significant increase in operational agility that is giving companies the opportunity to create more meaningful interactions with customers.
As technology and cyber threats become increasingly sophisticated, back-office fraud detection services will also play a significant role in risk management. Overhauling legacy systems, and automating the end-to-end fraud strategy, allows for more accurate management of potential fraudulent activity whilst driving back-office productivity efficiencies.

Looking to the future
The consensus is that, although keeping up with the latest customer relationship management (CRM) technology is important for agility, it is the way businesses balance this with human drivers that will create a true business differentiator, and make every interaction simpler, faster, safer and better – both internally and externally.

In a world of online brand comparisons and switching, companies must demonstrate both responsiveness and attentiveness to retain their customer base. Delivering a personalised experience, by coupling digitally integrated business services with people, is what will encourage customers to continue doing business with them for years to come.

Equally, seamless operational efficiency will remove bottlenecks from internal processes, and ensure AI-driven growth is optimised for the foreseeable future.