It is no secret that artificial intelligence and intelligent automation are gathering momentum. The main driver for the increased adopt of these technologies is their contribution to business value on many fronts – as a competitive advantage, productivity boost, efficiency enhancer and prediction engine.

As your business considers where and how to invest for growth, it's crucial that you try to imagine how business will be conducted in the future. Rather than trying to incrementally improve what you already have today, get ahead of what will happen two years from now. What if instead of dozens of applications running through unrelated interfaces, every business task spanning IT, HR, Finance, and Administration could be conducted through one platform on a single interface? What if instead of contacting the IT department, the HR team, or the finance lead for minor issues, you could connect this overarching platform to an Intelligent Virtual Agent (IVA) designed to automate, inform and accelerate tasks? You would have entirely reinvented the way you do business.

In my previous post, I outlined a key problem facing insurers today: many are investing a significant amount in innovative technologies, yet are struggling to unlock their true potential and release trapped value in their business. In this post, I'll discuss how insurers can use advanced technology such as artificial intelligence (AI) and intelligent automation to reduce costs, enhance operations and improve efficiency to future-proof their organizations. In our research on "The New, New Normal: Exponential Growth", 56 percent of executives agreed that AI deployment will drive new growth and revenue opportunities by accelerating new products and services. Fifty-eight percent said that AI-enabled revenue growth will come from increased customer satisfaction and engagement; while nearly 50 percent believe it will spur a change in their business models. In the 2017 Technology Vision for Insurance survey, 76 percent of executives said AI would significantly or completely change the industry in the next three years, while 72 percent believed it would have a similar impact on their organization.

Today's organizations are upping their competitive game using various forms of machine intelligence. From chatbots and virtual assistants to robotics processing automation (RPA) and deep learning, businesses and entire industries are transforming the way they operate, although the results are mixed. Proceeding responsibly requires members of the C-suite to consider the potential opportunities, challenges and risks, including the impacts on people and processes. For example, McKinsey Global Institute recently analyzed more than 2,000 work activities across 800 occupations. It concluded that 30% of what 60% of all occupations do could be automated today.

Today's organizations are upping their competitive game using various forms of machine intelligence. From chatbots and virtual assistants to robotics processing automation (RPA) and deep learning, businesses and entire industries are transforming the way they operate, although the results are mixed. Proceeding responsibly requires members of the C-suite to consider the potential opportunities, challenges and risks, including the impacts on people and processes. For example, McKinsey Global Institute recently analyzed more than 2,000 work activities across 800 occupations. It concluded that 30% of what 60% of all occupations do could be automated today.