Dive Brief:
- Chatbots are messaging platforms that let workers communicate and swap files without face-to-face contact, but will they make them more productive? Venture Beat recently raised the question about the technology, which it compared to Amazon’s Echo and Apple’s Siri.
- Venture Beat says chatbots are capable of training employees, helping customer service representatives solve patrons’ problems, relay call-center data and book appointments or flights, among other tasks. VB reports that technological advances in chatbots are quickly evolving and that voice recognition is improving.
- Chatbots are streamlining workplace procedures and saving employers time and money. However, VB rightfully points out current drawbacks with the technology.
Dive Insight:
The rise of AI in the workplace is being carefully watched, though so far it seems most innovations are in their early stages. Chatbots must understand specific tasks, nuances in language and even local colloquialisms to be truly effective. Employees who must stop and restate requests — common with chatbots right now — aren’t being productive.
Other possible drawbacks with chatbots include the impersonal ways employees communicate and work together. A major complaint about technology is the replacement of face-to-face communication with less personal interaction. Some are also concerned that robots could eventually replace a slew of workers, but industries could create new jobs as old jobs are phased out.
