Over the past few years, businesses have pondered what an intelligent workplace powered by artificial intelligence (AI) might look like. Well, the day is finally here, and it's not as daunting or as intimidating as many might have anticipated. While some organizations were apprehensive that the arrival of AI would result in worker displacement or business process confusion, most now agree that AI will ultimately benefit their businesses. In fact, Gartner predicts that AI augmentation will recover 6.2 billion hours of worker productivity by 2021. Still, many companies are left wondering how these technologies will work to actually boost productivity and positively impact the bottom line.

Given that the B2B sector is largely influenced by trends taking place in the B2C world, it's no surprise that Amazon announced Alexa for Business last quarter in response to business needs. You can use a "personal assistant" that combines machine learning, natural language processing and predictive analytics to do more than simply turn on the lights or dial into conference calls. However, in order to break into the next level of productivity, enterprises need to understand how to train such technologies to adapt to specific business settings, and to employees' daily tasks. One way employees can train their digital assistants is by integrating them with their work calendars. A digital assistant that is fully integrated with your work schedule could, for example, inform you that, after your last in-person meeting at 3:00 p.m., you should have time, based on current traffic conditions, to drive home and take your last call of the day from your house. That information helps you avoid rush hour traffic and still finish everything you needed to do for the day.