In today’s fast-paced digital world, the service sector is witnessing a revolution powered by intelligent automation (IA), artificial intelligence (AI), and service robots. In their article, Jochen Wirtz and Valentina Pitardi explore how these technologies transform customer experiences, boost service quality, and enhance productivity. From everyday interactions with chatbots to sophisticated tasks handled by AI-powered robots in healthcare and finance, this shift promises efficiency and novel challenges for businesses.

The article investigates how organizations leverage advancements like the metaverse and generative AI (GenAI), enabling them to deliver high-quality services at reduced costs. The authors also address consumer reactions, highlighting mixed sentiments between acceptance and resistance, influenced by situational contexts and the nature of the tasks. Notably, the authors identify that while automation is welcomed in utilitarian tasks, many consumers remain hesitant about AI’s role in personal, identity-driven contexts. The ethical, privacy, and fairness risks associated with intelligent automation are equally crucial, which the authors argue must be balanced through responsible corporate digital practices. They call for deeper exploration into areas like Corporate Digital Responsibility (CDR) and suggest that firms develop robust CDR strategies to build consumer trust.

We spoke with the authors to uncover practical insights for managers looking to integrate these innovations effectively into their operations.

What do you recommend to managers considering integrating GenAI into their marketing and communication processes?

We believe marketing managers have no choice but to embrace GenAI or be made obsolete. Intelligent automation, service robots, and AI are set to revolutionize marketing and communications. Even the customer interface will be transformed, and the customer experience (CX), service quality, and productivity will be boosted like never before in the coming years. For example, GenAI offers an undeniable advantage for delivering highly customized services while providing exceptional opportunities for economies of scale and scope, resulting in almost zero incremental costs of serving, customizing, and communicating with customers. Thus, they represent a unique opportunity to service companies that want to drive innovation, productivity, and quality. Nevertheless, this requires a profound reorganization of the frontline regarding deploying and managing hybrid human-robot teams.

How might managers prevent issues related to privacy, ethics, and potential bias when introducing AI tools to interact with consumers?

To address potential prejudice and anxieties people might have about GenAI and issues related to privacy, ethics, and bias. Companies should focus on CDR and create shared norms, values, and guidelines for using technology and data responsibly throughout their life cycles. For example, with data, this includes how they collect it (e.g., using biometrics or social media), how they use it (e.g., making health scores or financial ratings), how they make decisions (e.g., approving loans or setting interest rates), and when they delete it (e.g., clearing out records of missed payments).

Which industries will be most impacted by AI? How can they effectively manage AI integration while reducing employee resistance and consumer fear risks?

Virtually all industries will be impacted by GenAI and GenAI-powered service robots. Information processing services (e.g., banking, insurance, communications, making reservations, billing, and customer service) are being transformed as we speak and will be mainly offered by these technologies within the next 12 to 36 months. Services that require physical processing (e.g., restaurants, logistics, and some but not all health care) will take longer to be transformed. Having said this, GenAI is rapidly being integrated into physical service robots. This will make their deployment in service operations a ‘no code’ effort whereby employees teach and talk to robots and show them how to do specific tasks. These technologies will allow service firms to simplify, organize, and scale.

Organizations need to undergo significant transformations and reorganization to facilitate the integration and adoption of these technologies. If robots substitute humans for more analytical, routine, and standardized tasks, human employees will remain primarily responsible for building trustful customer relationships. Hence, it will be essential to assign employees to new tasks and responsibilities that will become the skills and competencies of human service representatives in the future. At the same time, companies should engage in CDR practices such as adopting shared norms and actional guidelines for responsible use of technology. This will improve the image and reputation of the organization and, most importantly, help foster consumer trust in technology.

Copertina: Image by TyliJura from Pixabay