04 Jan
How Voice Assistants Are Transforming The Enterprise Workplace
Leading industry analysts like Gartner predict that voice assistants are gaining a firm hold in the workplace. It is believed that by 2021, 25% of the entire digital workforce will use a virtual employee assistant. Another interesting prediction that Gartner makes is that by 2021 consumer and business spending on VPA speakers will top $3.5 billion in 2021. All the attention that this technology has received so far, isn’t without reason.
Though text-based chatbots have till date been rapidly deployed by a number of organizations, enterprises are willing to take on the next wave of innovation in conversational AI. A number of organizations today are eager to learn about voice-based bots. Some are even using have Amazon’s Alexa or Google Assistant on the business front.
From scheduling meetings to setting alarms to reading emails aloud to bringing in efficiency and order to the helpdesk to helping make more sound decisions, voice assistants are transforming the enterprise workplace.
Want to know what all a simple voice assistant can do ( and do much better than any human can) for your enterprise workplace? Read on.
voice aI-based knowledge capture
AI-based voice bots can be trained in capturing knowledge from a Subject Matter Expert (SME), transcribing audio, tagging and storing in Knowledge Management systems like SharePoint, Azure, etc.
Enterprises can now leverage an AI bot to tag your documents in ECM accurately, at lower overall costs, and a higher speed. Manually tagging one item costs around $4 to $7 and is highly error-prone. AI bots not only tag your documents but also transform your taxonomy into a living and breathing entity that automatically evolves along with your enterprise.
Learn more: How to Leverage AI to Improve Information Discovery in Your Enterprise
voice-based updates in CRM
If integrated with your CRM systems, voice bots can eliminate the need for manual data entry into CRMs. Consider this scenario. As soon as a salesperson finishes a meeting, he/she can make a phone call to the voice bot and update the meeting notes, opportunity, etc. directly in SFDC, Dynamics CRM or any other CRM system.
Users can have a quick conversation with the CRM voice bot and ask it to update/change the records with the provided specifications. They don’t have to undergo the hassle of logging into their system, navigating throw dashboards, and make changes to the records. Imagine the amount of time saved and increased productivity!
taking notes during the meeting
Let’s consider a simple scenario. You have to take down minutes of the meeting but your laptop battery dies. You’d probably have to take mental notes, half of which you’d not be able to recall later. However, with a voice assistant, you can simply ask out loud to ‘take notes’.
customer support
Voice bots can provide relief from the long IVR menu to customers. They can connect callers to the right department by asking questions like a human secretary. Voice bots transform the live chat experience. They can be integrated with social media apps, emails or live chat windows. Instead of typing lengthy texts, customers can quickly express the problem they’re facing. Transaction times for repetitive tasks like cancellations, booking, and booking can be drastically reduced.
conversational business intelligence
Now, let’s consider a more complex work process. Today, most large businesses store data in their Business Intelligence, LOB and CRM systems. Retrieving and processing information accurately with tons of data to decipher has become manually impossible, making the case for AI voice assistants stronger.
Employers can rely on voice assistants that are integrated with these systems for fetching data and processing information in a matter of seconds.
With intelligent chatbots like Acuvate’s Business Intelligence bot, you can easily access data and analytics within your 3rd party messaging applications like Skype For Business, Skype, Slack, etc. Simply ask “What is my predicted sales” and the bot will respond via text or voice. In this way, decision-makers get all the information instantly with a bot at their service.
Read More: Why Business Intelligence Needs Chatbots to Boost User Adoption & ROI
time management
One of the basic steps, yet a road less traveled towards productivity, is time management. Most of us find it difficult to properly manage time. Today, voice assistants can help us track our time and utilize it efficiently. And, it couldn’t get any simpler. You can ask your Google Assistant to create time entries by simply saying, “Create a new time entry for 4 hours for Mark Day”. Similarly, attendance bots are also helping employees at the workplace manage their work hours and PTOs better. Be it attendance management, absence management, or shift management, attendance bots help you manage it all easily.
predictive ability
We’ve discussed the capability of AI-enabled voice assistants to quickly provide the right information at the right moment from your data storage systems. Additionally, voice assistants can analyze this data to cleverly predict our future needs or requirements. If your inventory is nearing the finish line, your voice assistant can remind you to restock. If you’ve not turned off your office lights, your voice assistant will let you know. That’s the predictive power of intelligent voice assistants. They’ll utilize data to be of any help that you tune them to be!
wrapping up
Voice is a new innovation in the chatbot ecosystem. Whether it’s a bank that you have called in for resolving your money transfer query or a healthcare service provider who you want to book your next appointment with – bots will be everywhere in the future.
This trend is likely to continue strong, and there will be soon a time when you will no longer need to write full-fledged emails to your HR to explain things like leave policy or payroll. Instead, a voice-based will handle all this for you. As such, employee and customer satisfaction will drastically increase when they get instant responses to all their queries. With bots taking over the workplace, each function will witness an increase in efficiency levels, streamlined workflows, and reduced costs.
As AI continues to fuel productivity, are you joining in the voice and chat technology-enabled bandwagon? Talk to our experts now!
Abhishek is the AI & Automation Practice Head at Acuvate and brings with him 17+ years of strong expertise across the Microsoft stack. He has consulted with clients globally to provide solutions on technologies such as Cognitive Services, Azure, RPA, SharePoint & Office 365. He has worked with clients across multiple industry domains including Retail & FMCG, Government, BFSI, Manufacturing and Telecom.
Abhishek Shanbhag