The collaboration between man and machine has been providing benefits for society for hundreds of years. By automating many elements in the manufacture of cars, they have become much cheaper and therefore much more accessible for a larger group of people.

Telephone and email are much faster and cheaper means of communication than a courier service. And in a land like India, where the doctor/patient ratio is 1 to 1,600, technological support is the only way to ensure that Indian doctors can set the right priorities and see the right patients first.

In all these examples, the computer has provided added value, not only to the business world but also to society as a whole.

In the coming years, the collaboration between man and machine will be crucial in successfully meeting the expectations of customers and stakeholders. This will involve a transition from AI to IA: from Artificial Intelligence to Intelligence Augmented.

Just as the machines of the Industrial Revolution helped us to overcome our physical limitations, the machines of the near future will help us to overcome our cognitive limitations.

The more research reports I read, the more I become convinced that AI will ‘only’ initiate the process of fundamental change in the way we do our jobs, rather than eliminating those jobs completely.

After all, that’s more or less what has already been happening for the last hundred years or so. Progress during the past century has changed the nature of many jobs and, yes, it is true that some jobs have fallen by the wayside, but the vast majority of us still have work. It will be no different in the world of AI and IA.

Intelligence augmented is about offering technical solutions that will allow people to improve their performance. Personnel who are supported by the right technology can achieve higher levels of service than personnel who only make use of their human qualities.

The scaling-up of human skills

Every company dreams of being able to make the difference with its human component. Unfortunately, however, you can’t expect every person to have a perfect memory.

You can’t expect every person to immediately know what a customer is talking about when he/she asks a question. This is where intelligence augmented comes in. Intelligence augmented makes it possible to apply the human interface on a greater scale.

In recent years, we have organized three events at the W Hotel in Barcelona. The service on each occasion was fantastic. The W Hotel is without doubt one of my favourite hotels in Europe, and in total, we have booked something like 270 nights for our different events. In other words, we are a good and loyal customer.

About a month after our last event, I was back in Barcelona to give a lecture to a group of managers. When I wanted to check in, I was greeted with the words: “Good morning, Mr. Van Belleghem. Is this your first stay in the W Hotel?”

When you are a good customer, that’s not really what you want to hear. What you want to hear is: “Steven, it’s wonderful to see you back again, and so soon!”

Is this the fault of the receptionist? Not at all! Perhaps he had only been working there for a week.

Even if he had been working there longer, you see thousands of guests pass through a hotel and you can’t be expected to remember them all, can you? No, not as an individual employee you can’t. But the hotel can – and should.

Guest recognition software has been available for years and it’s up to the management of hotels like the W Hotel to make sure that their staff have it at their disposal.

With the right tech-support, hotels can make it easier for their staff to give loyal customers a special welcome. The loyal customer feels valued and thinks: “Wow! What a great hotel!” In my case, the W Hotel missed a good opportunity to score.

It is a useful exercise to think about what constitutes ‘ideal’ staff behaviour towards customers in your business. In particular, ask yourself how smart technology can help to make it possible for your people to achieve that ideal behaviour.

Prof. Steven Van Belleghem is an expert in customer focus in the digital world.