The majority of organisations appear to be united in their approach to what many have dubbed the “Year of AI”: we are taking artificial intelligence (AI) agents seriously.
According to Deloitte, 25% of generative AI-using businesses will introduce agentic AI pilots or proofs of concept this year, and by 2027, that percentage will rise to 50%.
AI agents have swiftly passed the compatibility test and will undoubtedly become loyal business leaders’ partners. The future of autonomous work for businesses lies with AI agents. By automating workflows, they contribute to improving the accuracy and speed of business processes. This entails carrying out multi-step, end-to-end procedures, processing large amounts of data, and conducting analyses in real time.
Consider the onboarding procedures for suppliers, logistics companies, or government agencies. Historically, this has been a time-consuming financial procedure that involves numerous manual steps, but that is about to change. By rapidly standardising and transforming PDFs or images into requisitions, invoices, or payment instructions that are prepared for staff approval, AI agents can assist finance teams. The best part is that workers can devote more of their time to more strategic endeavours since AI agents can now accomplish frequent, repetitive tasks successfully and independently.
Indeed, according to a recent Capgemini survey, 64% of businesses anticipate that agents will relieve employees of monotonous work so they can concentrate on value-added activities.
According to a Boston Consulting Group report, AI is also expected to boost productivity by up to 60% over the long run.
Businesses can rethink how work is done throughout their entire organisation, including finance, supply chain, human resources, sales, marketing, and service, thanks to this degree of assisted automation, which also increases productivity. The ability of AI agents to improve operational efficiency and lower overhead costs while encouraging a more engaged and innovative workforce is what companies adore about them. AI agents’ scalability and flexibility enable companies to easily incorporate them into current processes in a variety of departments.
In the same way that no two relationships are alike, AI agents are special because they can learn from past interactions and provide tailored advice and recommendations. Because of their capacity for constant adaptation, AI agents are especially useful for assisting staff members with highly specialised role-based duties. For instance, a role-based AI agent can assist staff members in navigating HR procedures when they undergo major life transitions. Depending on personal milestones, the AI agent can assist employees in updating their beneficiary claims, employee profiles, and new benefit packages. This includes getting married or having a child.
One more excellent example is in sales. With the assistance of an AI agent, a sales representative can create a customised account summary that includes sentiment, recent activity, and contract status. A sales representative can then easily modify the agent’s customised customer emails to fit their preferred tone using this overview.
AI agents are still finding their way into daily business operations, but as agentic systems get more widely available and advanced, they are revolutionising how businesses operate and address issues. We will soon witness increasingly sophisticated systems with numerous autonomous AI agents cooperating to complete challenging tasks and reach common objectives. This implies that AI agents will cooperate with people and with one another through business applications and productivity and collaboration tools, automating previously unachievable tasks and processes and improving the quality of work for millions of workers.
The impact of AI agents will be greatly increased by these kinds of agentic workflows, which will also allow businesses to go from making small, incremental changes to implementing business-wide changes. AI agents encourage companies and executives to become better versions of themselves. By experimenting with and using AI systems, company executives are strengthening their platform and capabilities for ongoing innovation. The more business leaders use, test, and refine AI, the more adept they will be at maximising its potential to generate measurable business value. Businesses that use AI agents will benefit from increased productivity and improved business performance, while those that don’t will fall behind.
The moment has arrived to advance AI and treat it with seriousness. There are all signs of a long-term collaboration that will benefit each business. Adopting AI agents is now a strategic necessity for companies looking to maintain their competitiveness and achieve long-term success. Additionally, as AI technology develops further, companies can anticipate even more breakthroughs that will boost operational capability and present fresh approaches to improving customer experiences and streamlining processes. These technologies are the way businesses will prosper in a world that is changing quickly; they are not merely a fad.