Revolutionizing Business Operations With AI and Automation
On the 32nd episode of Enterprise Software Innovators, hosts Evan Reiser (Abnormal Security) and Saam Motamedi (Greylock Partners) talk with Eric Johnson, CIO at PagerDuty, the digital operations management platform. Eric is a longtime technology leader and has been the CIO at many notable companies throughout his career, including Informatica, DocuSign, and SurveyMonkey. In this conversation, Eric shares his thoughts about the impact of data strategy on AI adoption, transforming business operations with automation, and best practices for using generative AI in the enterprise.
Eric sheds light on PagerDuty's evolution from a notification technology to a comprehensive solution that not only alerts users to problems but also helps identify, understand, and automate the resolution of issues. He envisions a future where PagerDuty can prevent problems by proactively addressing early indications of potential outages. In an increasingly complex business landscape, PagerDuty's role becomes crucial in supporting companies with modern and remote operations. Eric discusses that as technology evolves, businesses need to examine the foundational elements of their adoption approach to ensure a more positive outcome. Considering opportunities through the lens of AI, Eric urges CIOs to start with clear use cases aligned with business problems. He underscores the importance of a robust data strategy, emphasizing thorough data management for the success of any generative AI program. "If you have a data program that is not incredibly diligent in managing the quality of the data, the security of the data, and the curation and trust around the data, I don't know how strong of an AI program or generative AI program you're ultimately going to have. It goes back to the fundamentals. If your fundamentals aren't in good shape, it will be hard to take advantage of some of this cutting-edge, innovative technology."
Looking at practical applications for AI in business operations, PagerDuty has focused on utilizing AI capabilities to augment incident management efficiency. This involves harnessing machine learning algorithms to analyze and understand potential issues, enabling organizations to proactively address problems before they escalate. Eric discusses a possible future toward remediation solutions where AI can provide support actions alongside a human team. "As you move out into the future where you can identify where a problem has occurred, you have a workflow that can then address the problem for you on your behalf. You could start to then even see that time shrinking even more. And that's also working with AI and data to be able to correlate a lot of different data points, identify what's going on, and then have a very intelligent workflow that can go in and turn a server off or block that account or whatever is causing the incident on your behalf." This next phase of AI would require refining sophisticated algorithms to analyze historical incident data, identify patterns, and predict potential disruptions. Recognizing the importance of collaboration in the tech industry, Eric emphasizes PagerDuty's commitment to forming strategic partnerships with leading AI and machine learning providers to stay ahead of the rapidly evolving curve.
Eric offers insights into preparing organizations for AI's impact, emphasizing early and transparent communication. He stresses the need to educate teams on the benefits of automation, assuring them that it's about changing roles rather than eliminating jobs. Successfully navigating this transformation requires building a culture that embraces change and continuously focuses on reskilling employees. "You need to work into the organizations and truly be honest and open with people. You also need to look very carefully at the change management around reskilling people in many cases. I do think there's going to be new roles. Did you think there would ever be a role for someone who would be a bot administrator? But those are jobs that people have now. So, it is one of those areas I spend a lot of time on." The practical applications Eric champions generative AI for include copilots for infrastructure coding, preventative prediction to reduce service outages, and extending the skills of security and remediation teams, but cautions that team members can only get involved to the degree a company's culture allows them to be.
The landscape of AI promises a profound and optimistic transformation for enterprises across various industries. The intersection of advanced technologies, big data analytics, and ML has opened unprecedented business opportunities to enhance efficiency, innovation, and overall performance. The ability of AI to sift through massive datasets and derive meaningful insights contributes significantly to informed decision-making. This empowers enterprises to anticipate market trends, identify customer preferences, and adapt swiftly to dynamic business environments. The result is a more agile and responsive organizational structure, better equipped to navigate the challenges of a rapidly evolving global market. Looking ahead, the synergy between human intelligence and AI capabilities holds the key to unlocking unprecedented possibilities. By fostering a collaborative environment where AI augments human capabilities rather than replacing them, enterprises can create a more adaptable, creative, and resilient workforce. Eric states, "We are going to have really powerful technology, but you're going to have to focus on the people and process side of it and say, 'What does this mean to the new workforce in the future? How are they going to react, and how are they going to coexist with this technology?'" This collaborative approach addresses ethical considerations and ensures that AI is developed and deployed responsibly. Fostering open lines of communication with organizations while adopting new technology provides a collaborative environment where insights are shared, challenges are addressed, and innovations flourish, propelling both the business and the technology forward in unison.
