Be it manufacturing or consumer-facing businesses, companies must first strategise how to integrate technology-driven applications like AI. The key lies in demonstrating to consumers how services have improved while simultaneously convincing employees that these innovations simplify their work, leaders from various corporates emphasised at the Nasscom Technology and Leadership Forum.
Evolving technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) demand agility from corporates in identifying and executing use cases across both front-end consumer interactions and back-end operations. Managing talent expectations is crucial in ensuring seamless tech adoption, they noted.
“Different stakeholders have different concerns, and it is important to communicate that technology is here to make work easier,” said TV Narendran, CEO and managing director, Tata Steel. Citing an example, he noted that if a shop floor employee no longer needs to visit the control room to check the temperature, it directly showcases AI’s benefits. To foster engagement, Tata Steel also introduced reverse mentoring, where younger employees guide seniors through new technological advancements.
Narendran added that Tata Steel extensively uses AI across manufacturing and customer engagement, with nearly 70% of AI applications deployed in operations.
For an institution of the scale of the State Bank of India (SBI), integrating technology was a natural step toward handling its vast operations, chairperson CS Setty said. “To stay relevant, we had to integrate technology not just in backend processes but also in consumer-facing initiatives,” he said, underlining SBI’s long-standing tech focus.
As a pioneer in introducing internet banking in India, SBI has consistently embraced new technologies to streamline operations. “We process around 180 million UPI transactions daily, with a tech failure rate of less than 0.1%,” Setty added, highlighting SBI’s efficiency-driven approach to tech adoption.
For consumer companies, technology integration plays a dual role — optimising supply chain management while also deriving valuable consumer insights that refine marketing strategies. “Leadership must have a learning mindset when it comes to tech adoption,” said Saugata Gupta, CEO of Marico. He emphasised that AI applications at Marico extend beyond operations, aiding in packaging, content generation, and gathering consumer insights across multiple languages.
While traditional businesses like Tata Steel, Marico, and SBI have successfully embedded AI to enhance productivity, digital-native firms are leveraging new-age tech to shorten go-to-market cycles in competitive segments like food delivery and quick commerce.
“There’s a lot of debate around the need for 10-minute food delivery, but data shows consumers increasingly expect faster service,” said Rohit Kapoor, CEO – food delivery, Swiggy. He noted that AI has significantly expedited product rollouts at Swiggy. “For instance, our Swiggy Snacc app moved from ideation to execution in just 23 days, thanks to AI,” he said.
