The economic impact of artificial intelligence: AI – New jobs and major turnover growth

The figures are impressive: Artificial intelligence (AI) could lead to an increase in turnover of US$ 1.1 trillion and more than 800,000 new jobs in the field of customer relationship management globally by 2021 – more jobs than would be lost as a result of automation during the same period. Germany’s share of the above would be US$ 62 billion and more than 130,000 new jobs. These were the results of the study entitled “A Trillion-Dollar Boost: The Economic Impact of AI on Customer Relationship Management”, which was produced by IDC in collaboration with Salesforce. As part of the study, 1,028 company representatives from the USA, Canada, Australia, Japan, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom were consulted. Analysts also used macro-economic data and calculation models.

Rising Productivity, Sinking Costs

What is this economic growth based on? Those questioned expect AI to change the CRM and other activities of a company in a number of ways. The technology will accelerate sales cycles, optimize lead generation and qualification, deal with customer queries more quickly, and improve price determination for products and services. AI offers every member of staff in customer services the opportunity to be more productive and to provide better, more customized customer experiences – from chatbots and analytics-based predictions to personalized marketing campaigns. As a result, AI is expected to boost productivity  while also  reducing costs. These factors will lead to the predicted growth in jobs, according to the estimations presented in the survey. Furthermore, AI will create new occupational fields, just as cloud technology has changed the work profiles in IT departments.

Fewer Mistakes, Happier Staff

But it is not only the functions themselves that will change, according to the survey respondents. They also expect to be able to use AI solutions to better prioritize their tasks and to solve problems more quickly. AI will help to reduce the number of mistakes and lead to more satisfaction among staff. On the whole, they regard AI as a positive development.

In line with this, the global spend on artificial intelligence in customer interaction could rise from US$ 7.9 billion last year to US$ 46 billion in 2020. More than 40 percent of the companies surveyed intend to invest in these kinds of CRM solutions in the next two years. The focus is on supporting systems such as knowledge and dialogue management, data processing and enhancement, and sentiment analysis. Behind these processes are AI solutions such as speech recognition, numerical analysis, text analysis, and machine learning. Respondents believe that there are particularly promising fields of application for AI in the areas of customer support, partner management, billing, inventory management, and logistics and fulfillment. 

Suitable Training, Transformed Business

AI is still at a very early stage of development. However, the next 12 to 18 months will mark a turning point so it is vital that companies act now. Early adopters and fast followers can gather critical experience with AI solutions in the near future, which will be a competitive advantage at a later stage.

According to the IDC analysts, the cloud will play a leading role in AI solutions.

In most cases, AI solutions will not be separate applications, they will be embedded in a huge number of other applications and user interfaces.

Respondents noted that it was important now to offer staff appropriate training opportunities so that they are prepared for the challenges and changes that AI entail. Most of those surveyed agree: AI can change the culture, the personnel, and the business activities of a company.

You can read the study here.

Author: Editorial team Future. Customer
Image: Photocreo Bednarek – Fotolia/Adobe Stock