So far, the impact of information technology on overall productivity has been a mixed bag, and even disappointing. IT has been reshaping workplaces in a big way since the 1980s, yet, there appears to be little to show for all this progress -- many argue that technology may even inhibit productivity growth. There are many reasons why the proliferation of technology doesn't automatically translate to productivity growth. For one, "technological disruption is, well, disruptive," Harvard's Jeffrey Frankel observed in a recent World Economic Forum report. "It demands that people learn new skills, adapt to new systems, and change their behavior. While a new iteration of computer software or hardware may offer more capacity, efficiency, or performance, those advantages are at least partly offset by the time users have to spend learning to use it. And glitches often bedevil the transition."

So far, the impact of information technology on overall productivity has been a mixed bag, and even disappointing. IT has been reshaping workplaces in a big way since the 1980s, yet, there appears to be little to show for all this progress -- many argue that technology may even inhibit productivity growth. There are many reasons why the proliferation of technology doesn't automatically translate to productivity growth. For one, "technological disruption is, well, disruptive," Harvard's Jeffrey Frankel observed in a recent World Economic Forum report. "It demands that people learn new skills, adapt to new systems, and change their behavior. While a new iteration of computer software or hardware may offer more capacity, efficiency, or performance, those advantages are at least partly offset by the time users have to spend learning to use it. And glitches often bedevil the transition."

Box Inc. wants its customers to do more with all the files they're storing on its content management service. Today, it announced a couple of new tools powered in part by machine learning technology to give customers more ways to extract value from the data -- and more reasons to pay Box for extra services. Box Skills is a software framework that uses machine learning, a set of technologies that allow computers to learn akin to way the brain does rather than being explicitly programmed, to do tasks such as computer vision for image analysis, video indexing and sentiment analysis from audio. The capability was announced at its BoxWorks conference this week in San Francisco, as part of Box's goal to make Box "the most intelligent cloud content management platform," as Chief Executive Aaron Levie puts it. The San Francisco-based company today previewed three skills that are still in development.

People love to talk about artificial intelligence tools' potential to make content management and CRM... You forgot to provide an Email Address. AI projects require continuous human monitoring, or its results degrade into something at best irrelevant to the business and at worst detrimental to business goals and harmful to customers. In content management systems, AI can police network activity in both sales and service data stores for potential fraud and report suspicious customer activity to experts who can take a closer look. "That's where the hard part is," said Thomas Dong, OpenText's vice president of product marketing, acknowledging that product marketers sometimes do simplify AI project requirements because the processes around advanced analytics aren't always easy to explain.

People love to talk about artificial intelligence tools' potential to make content management and CRM work easier, better and more efficient. What isn't highlighted by industry insiders or in artificial intelligence (AI) product marketing is that, sure, technology can effect beautiful automation that can eliminate low-skill jobs and create cost efficiencies CFOs only dream of. But AI can't accomplish these benefits on its own. AI projects require continuous human monitoring, or its results degrade into something at best irrelevant to the business and at worst detrimental to business goals and harmful to customers. Experts attending OpenText's Enterprise World 2017 user conference here cautioned that companies considering AI projects must also factor in the cost of employing humans -- data scientists, specifically -- to keep their hands on the AI tiller and reel them when necessary.

Organizations have generated unprecedented amounts of employee feedback through weekly or monthly pulse surveys, annual engagement surveys, and internal social networks and collaboration platforms. But many still struggle with how to efficiently comb through that mountain of information to identify actionable insights leaders can use to improve employee engagement and retention. Some companies are now turning to artificial intelligence (AI) tools to conduct sentiment analysis on employee feedback, gauge how employees feel and address their concerns. While text analysis of survey responses isn't new, the emergence of smarter algorithms enables faster and more precise search and categorization of unstructured data, such as open-ended comments, said Alan Lepofsky, vice president and principal analyst with Constellation Research, a technology research firm in Silicon Valley. Lepofsky, author of the recent report Why Artificial Intelligence Will Power the Future of Work, said vendors have made advances in sentiment analysis technology.

Last summer, Adobe researchers surveyed over 2,000 office employees and nine thought leaders on the evolving definition of work. Through this exercise, researches uncovered several interesting insights about the future of work, including the most effective "carrots" used to motivate employees. "Employers may be focusing too much on ping pong tables and free dry cleaning instead of technology that helps their employees feel valued and encouraged," says Jeff Vijungco, vice president of global talent at Adobe. To help them find fulfillment, "employers need to pay attention to productivity more than perks," he adds. Workspaces that encourage subconscious thought, smart coffee machines and conference rooms that remember what you like, virtual assistants that delight, flexible attendance policies, and performance-based rewards were at the top of the list, according to the study.

Tedious administrative tasks have long been the bane of the HR professional's job. Updating paperwork, sending out benefits reminders and plowing through hundreds of resumes can eat up hours every day, preventing HR leaders from focusing on more strategic tasks related to workforce planning and development. But the days of drudgery may soon be over, at least according to some vendors. Over the past year, HR software providers have trumpeted the fact that their technologies automate all of the manual and repetitive tasks that few want to do. Industry tech experts say your job is safe.

A scarf designed to filter out harmful elements in city air. A breast pump that fits into a bra and keeps track of pumping volume. A drone that can dive into water and help anglers catch a big one. CES 2017, the consumer tech event held in Las Vegas this week, featured vendors with automated baubles, humanoid robots and "smart" everything -- a dishwasher, hairbrush and lawnmower, to name a few. But it's not so much the gadgets as their underlying technology that will make CIOs -- who seek out new tools for business, not the home or yard -- stop, look and listen.

Artificial intelligence (AI) had a coming out party of sorts in 2016. Even though it has been in development for decades, this year, with the perfect combination of cheap computing power and access to increasing amounts of data, it seems AI's time in business has come. Its first foray in business has been directed at making salespeople more efficient at every level of the sales workflow. If you think about it, it makes sense to start with the part of the company that drives revenue. Certainly the vendors recognize that, says Alan Lepofsky, an analyst at Constellation Research, who is working on the impact of AI on work.