Artificial intelligence (AI) will continue to attract business interest over the next year, but few organizations in the Asia-Pacific region will be able to reap its full benefits due to their risk aversion and sub-par data management capabilities.
Only 30% have the IT practices needed to harness the benefits of AI, including greater operational agility, richer customer experiences, and business model innovation. Others will be held back by a risk-averse culture and inadequate data management capabilities, according to Forrester’s 2024 forecast.
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“While many companies in the Asia-Pacific region see generative AI as a tool to enhance efficiency, many will face obstacles in the form of an overly cautious business culture and gaps in data management capabilities,” said Frederic Geron, Forrester vice president and senior research director. . In a blog post.
“Companies with more advanced IT practices, which make up about 30% of companies in the region, appear more willing to make the most of technology and are focusing on using generative AI to develop their business models,” Giron noted. “But it is important to note that this development will be more of a gradual, multi-year process than an overnight success story in the Asia-Pacific region.”
He pointed to two other key predictions for the region, where a quarter of multinational companies will adopt customer trust as a priority. However, only 5% are expected to have established tangible metrics to measure and maintain this trust.
He added that although public confidence in business is important, it is currently declining.
Forrester indicated that companies in the region will face difficulties in activating customer trust, with few companies taking these efforts seriously and working to integrate them into their corporate culture.
By the end of 2024, the research firm predicts that 25% of large companies in the Asia-Pacific region will defend their commitment to earning customer trust.
“The real challenge is turning these words into measurable actions,” Giron said.
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Despite this, customer experience is expected to improve through the adoption of generative AI on the backend, with customer service agents gaining the ability to respond to questions faster and better. Issues will be resolved on first contact, resulting in customers feeling heard, according to Forrester.
The company expects that agencies will invest in custom AI applications on behalf of organizations, with the top 10 ad agencies collectively spending $50 million next year in partnerships to build such applications. Forrester said these AI tools will allow its clients to scale personalized marketing campaigns.
Business AI initiatives will also improve productivity and problem solving by 50%, as Productive AI is expected to boost productivity in all IT roles, including developers. Investments in technology across the organization will boost the time employees take to resolve issues by up to 50%.
However, organizations’ adoption of agile engineering services will be limited. Amid cloud scalers’ efforts to provide previews or general availability of such services, 80% of companies will add agile engineering talent internally to strengthen model and value foundations.
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As regulators work on potentially generative AI policies, Forrester recommends organizations identify applications that may increase their risk exposure and invest in third-party risk management tools.
“In 2024, the Asia-Pacific region is poised for a year of potential exploration and growth, with generative AI at the heart of it all,” Giron said. “The promise and potential of generative AI, combined with a new wave of technological innovations, will inspire more technology and business leaders in the Asia-Pacific region to follow in the footsteps of the early pioneers and integrate the power of AI with their transformational efforts to drive business outcomes.”