As AI becomes more prolific, its economic impact is expected to increase significantly. Companies are just beginning to comprehend AI’s true potential, although they still need to see a practical business proposition before investing – including the projected ROI and the tangible value to their organization.  In other words, they need help removing the “magic” from AI and understanding the real financial benefits to their organization. To help companies in this quest, Microsoft commissioned a study through IDC . The research firm surveyed over 2,000 global leaders and decision makers who are tasked with bringing AI to life within their organizations to discover how to deliver meaningful economic impact. The study targeted workplace productivity, AI monetization, the generation of new revenue streams and modernizing internal processes. Some of the key findings of the Microsoft study include:

  • 71% of organizations are already using AI
  • The majority of AI deployments (92%) are taking less than a year to implement
  • Organizations investing in AI are realizing ROI within 14 months
  • Companies are realizing an average return of 3.5X  on every dollar spent
  • A lack of skilled workers is the most significant barrier to implement and scale AI (52%)

AI has proven business value, and generative AI (such as OpenAI and ChatGPT) is resulting in exponentially greater returns.

“IDC is projecting that generative AI will add nearly $10 trillion to global GDP over the next 10 years. Calculating the value of new investments in GenAI requires building the business case by simulating potential cost and responsible value realization,” said Ritu Jyoti, Group Vice President

Microsoft study shows that clients are rapidly embracing adoption for AI-driven business transformation.

Enhance the employee experience: Employees in every industry are operating under a growing amount of administrative burden that adversely impacts productivity and slows the completion of meaningful tasks. AI is being employed to collect unstructured information from social media, product details and customer engagement to more effectively discern intelligent insights and solve problems more rapidly. Employees are also utilizing Azure OpenAI and Microsoft Copilot in Microsoft 365 to strengthen their copywriting skills in presentations, social content, press releases, search engine optimization and digital art production.

Innovate client engagement: In an intensely competitive acquisitions and retention environment, companies are challenged to keep up with the continuous influx of client signals, and to deliver targeted customized service in real-time. To inspire greater customer loyalty, businesses are using the AI functions in Dynamics 365 for contact center assistance and guidance when crafting responses. Employees are using AI to summarize interactions, obtain guidance on next steps, and receive feedback. Azure-powered virtual assistants are increasingly being utilized to provide hyper-personalized experiences, whether processing medical claims or selling sports tickets.

Reinventing business processes: Most organizations have valuable information located in pieces around their organization. This scattered information can be difficult for the team to collate and put to holistic use. By locating, collecting and connecting these data points, AI can deliver integrated insights that predict and streamline workloads. This is especially true in the cybersecurity field, where employees are using AI intelligence to identify bad actors more rapidly – and better safeguard both employees and intellectual property.

The IDC survey results further reveal that businesses are willing and eager to adopt AI technology

  • 71% are currently using AI tools in their organizations
  • 22% are planning to do so within the next 12 months.

However, a lack of skilled employees is preventing organizations from moving forward decisively with AI-based innovations. 52% of survey respondents report a shortage of the skilled workers they need to implement and scale AI initiatives. To help solve issues surrounding the skills gap, Microsoft has engaged over 6 million people globally in learning initiatives, and empowered their sphere of influence – more than 400,000 partners worldwide – with the skills required to responsibly implement AI technology while enhancing value to the customer. .

If your company is on a journey to cloud and AI transformation, Microsoft and Alliance IT can help.