Unleashing the Power of Artificial Intelligence

Published in Orthotics & Prosthetics on October 06, 2023

By Scott Hagberg, Application and Automation Architect, VGM Group, Inc.

The rise of artificial intelligence (AI) has brought new and exciting possibilities to businesses across many professions, and DME, O&P, and DMEPOS are not excluded. From improving customer engagement to streamlining operations, we’ll dive into a few areas that will have the biggest impact.

According to IBM, artificial intelligence “leverages computers and machines to mimic the problem solving and decision-making capabilities of the human mind.” One example of AI is ChatGPT, an AI chatbot that uses language processing to create human-like conversational dialogue. It was released in November 2022.

Customer Engagement

One of the most significant impacts of AI and ChatGPT is on customer engagement. With AI-powered chatbots, businesses can provide customers with 24/7 support and personalized experiences. Chatbots can understand natural language, learn from past interactions, and provide customers with the information they need, when they need it.

This means that customers no longer have to wait for human support, making the customer experience faster and more efficient. Moreover, by automating routine tasks, businesses can free up their customer support staff to focus on more complex tasks, such as resolving customer complaints or handling unique requests.

Operations and Logistics

Another area where AI and ChatGPT are set to change the business landscape is in operations and logistics. AI-powered algorithms can analyze data and provide insights that can help businesses optimize their supply chain, reduce waste, and improve delivery times. ChatGPT can be used to automate routine tasks such as scheduling appointments, sending reminders, and following up on orders, freeing up staff time for more complex tasks.

Furthermore, AI and ChatGPT can help businesses make more informed decisions by providing real-time insights into customer behavior, market trends, and operational metrics. This can help businesses stay ahead of the competition, identify new opportunities, and make data-driven decisions that can improve their bottom line.

Data Privacy and Security

However, as with any new technology, there are challenges associated with implementing AI and ChatGPT. One of the biggest concerns is around data privacy and security. Businesses must ensure they have robust systems in place to protect customer data and comply with regulations such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA).

Jobs and Opportunities

Another challenge is around the potential for AI to replace human workers, leading to job losses. Some reports show that many industries are already experiencing this. However, many experts believe that AI will create new jobs and opportunities, especially in areas such as data analysis, programming, and customer support.

Here to Stay

As businesses continue to adopt these technologies, they will be able to provide faster, more efficient services and make more informed decisions. While there are challenges associated with AI and ChatGPT, the benefits are too significant to ignore, and businesses that fail to embrace these technologies risk falling behind their competitors.

In fact, everything that you just read above is true, accurate, and also written by ChatGPT in less than 20 seconds (with some editing). I simply asked ChatGPT to write a magazine article about AI and ChatGPT and how it will change business. The impact of AI and ChatGPT will be as large or larger than the Google search engine. We will stop saying, “Google it!” and start saying, “Ask ChatGPT!”

Welcoming Change

VGM Group is committed to technology and innovation. The impact that AI and ChatGPT will have on our industry will be major. We have created a team of internal technology enthusiasts to assess the current state of readiness at our organization. This team will assess the AI marketplace, the divisions of VGM, as well as the skills needed by our employee owners to leverage these tools.

Microsoft invested $10 billion in OpenAI, the company that owns ChatGPT. Microsoft’s new Bing search service runs on ChatGPT-4, which is the latest version of the large language model (LLM). In addition, Microsoft is offering Azure AI, Microsoft 365 Copilot, Microsoft Security Copilot, and Microsoft Viva Sales as part of the AI offerings in the market.

A recent poll of CIOs and IT leaders of VGM member organizations lists three of the top IT initiatives for 2023 as:

• Interactive Voice Response (IVR)
• Omnichannel
• Automation

AI and ChatGPT will add significant benefits to these technologies in the very near future. These emerging technologies will transform from difficult-to-implement to ready-out-of-the-box.

Better Care for Patients

Analysis of our existing data using AI will lead to better decision making across our organizations. Trends analysis, performance metrics, capacity planning, and pattern recognition all will lead to more accurate and targeted care for our patients. These tools will help us all modernize our customer engagement strategy to provide timely, personalized, and relevant touchpoints during every interaction.

VGM Group is committed to innovation. “Welcome Change” is one of our core principles. “Protect Our Company” is another. We need to innovate, but we also need to do so in a safe and responsible manner. VGM Group will continue to share our AI journey with our members, and we look forward to being on the AI journey with you.

READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE

This article was originally featured in the VGM Playbook: Business Solutions to Optimize Success in DMEPOS. To read the full article and more like this, download your copy of the playbook today! 

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