Study shows how AI can be a ‘crystal ball’ for businesses to stay afloat

Businesses unsure how to survive the next global tragedy should have no fear, with a new study showing how Artificial Intelligence (AI) can help organisations stay afloat in rapidly changing times. 

The new study led by Charles Darwin University (CDU) examined how AI can predict what factors impact an organisation’s ability to anticipate, prepare for, respond to, and recover from economic disruptions. 

Data was collected from 44 industry individuals across Australia from the private and public sectors, service organisations, universities, not-for-profits and more. 

Most respondents were from the education, information technology, hospitality and tourism, and construction and engineering sectors and were asked questions about the current agility of their organisations and future challenges they might face. 

eXplainable Artificial Intelligence techniques examined the data and predicted the top five factors affecting organisational agility: legislation or government changes which force organisations to change, globalisation, low level of process maturity, technology, and digital disruption. 

Lead author and CDU Associate Professor Niusha Shafiabady said by using AI to highlight factors such as the above, organisations could make corporate faster decisions, give them competitive advantages, and allow them to adapt in rapidly changing environments. 

“Failure to prioritise agility and responsiveness can result in increased costs, missed opportunities, competition and reputational damage, and ultimately, loss of customers, revenue, profitability, and market share,” Associate Professor Shafiabady said. 

“The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of organisational agility and resilience.

“Organisations that are able to adapt quickly to change, anticipate and prepare for disruptions, and respond and recover effectively are more likely to succeed in the current volatile business environment.” 

Associate Professor Shafiabady said if organisations wanted to take further advantage of the technology, they could adopt AI systems which provide specific advice. 

“Using this methodology, AI can provide personalised recommendations to each business depending on their own dynamics on the areas they should focus on to enhance their rigility,” she said. 

The study was completed alongside the Adelaide Institute of Higher Education, Torrens University, and the University of Technology Sydney. 

The new paper follows on from previous research led by Associate Professor Shafiabady on how AI can be used to predict organisational agility or a company’s ability to effectively respond to change brought about by factors such as market competition, economic pressures, and emerging technology. 

eXplainable Artificial Intelligence (XAI) for improving organisational regility was published in PLOS ONE.