How IT and finance benefits from advanced AI chatbots

People ask: How can an IT help desk offload small but repetitive client queries and focus more on complex problems? The answer is chatbots!
Whether an IT and finance department supports employees or customers with their computing issues, the problems that they deal with are quite similar. Experts say that ninety percent of computing problems that IT experts take care of are small repetitive problems that take them away from more productive work. If the workload is heavy there may be need to employ more people which is costly. IT professionals need help with the efficient handling of common concerns and questions that they deal with daily so that they can focus on complex problems or new projects. At the same time, IT users are not too keen to fill in lengthy forms and wait for many hours to get help. They want solutions fast.
According to Avi Benezra, the CTO of SnatchBot, they have incorporated robotic process automation (RPA) into a chatbot platfrom – and that is why the IT and finance industry sees record adoption rates: huge savings are incurred in workflow automation.
The way in which the insurance industry deploys RPA and chatbots can serve as an example: The solution for the users and the IT guys can be found in chatbots, also known as conversational agents. Chatbots are software tools that use artificial intelligence and natural language processing to hold conversations. They can be programmed to automatically handle many queries that IT people spend too much time working on.
Common tasks that chatbots can take over on the IT help desk
Instead of a user contacting the physical IT help desk through the phone, email, ticketing system or walk in, he/she can use the self-service chatbot to report a problem. Below are some of the common IT tasks that chatbots are taking over within the IT help desk.
Answering queries. The chatbot can be programmed and trained to automatically answer frequently asked questions regarding a supported business app or a system that the business uses. Once this is working, a help desk employee does not need to answer those simple application-based question over and over again.
Re-routing questions. The chatbot can be programmed and trained to steer the client who needs help towards a human IT expert who can take over and provide the help. To automatically book the IT expert, the chatbot can be integrated into the shared calendar platform and the resource reservation platform in order to automate the handling of person-to-person interactions.
Training. A chatbot can be programmed to train new employees on how to use the company’s various systems. It can also be programmed to train all employees on how to interact with or operate new software and to field most questions concerning the new software.
Agent Assist. A chatbot is not just for customers or employees but can be programmed to provide help to agents in solving their requests efficiently. For example, an agent may request the bot to prepare a helpdesk ticket volume report. The chatbot compiles the report and delivers it to the agent in an instant. The bot can even proactively inform agents about any major incidents that affect operations within the organization.
Password Reset. The help desk is always getting password reset requests whose resolution takes up a lot of time. AI is now making it easy for chatbots to handle such requests fast without manual intervention.
The advantages of deploying an IT help desk chatbot
Chatbots are ideal for an IT help desk because they provide all the help that people need. There are several advantages of deploying a chatbot on an IT help desk.
- Many people need to learn a new interface or a new system sometimes and they prefer a personalized conversational approach. A chatbot provides that conversational and personalized approach.
- A chatbot is self-serving, meaning that there is no need of human intervention. For many people, self-service is ideal.
- By accessing a chatbot, a customer or an employee can immediately communicate with the help desk and solve many problems when it suits him without having to wait for a human technician. This is particularly beneficial if a business operates on extended hours or if an employee is working during his own time.
- A chatbot can answer questions, provide information and point out resources and perform many automated tasks. It also works fast and efficiently while engaging the user in a conversation.
- A chatbot frees IT staff from the need to handle small repetitive questions and leaves them to focus on more complex problems or on new projects.
- An organization saves on the cost of employing more IT staff by having a chatbot that handles many queries 24/7.
Way forward for organizations
Chatbots are still costly to develop. Fortunately, some companies, such as SnatchBot, have developed a number of chatbot templates. Any organization can purchase an IT chatbot template at a reasonable price and quickly customize it to its needs without the need for coding. The organization can choose which process it wants to automate and which process will include human input.