As has happened in other "revolutions", the new technological era with artificial intelligence as its protagonist is unleashing a wave of transformation that will force changes in the way things are organized and structured, as well as in the way people work, particularly in terms of the skills profiles that will be required.
During the session "The Driving Forces of Tomorrows Businesses: Technology, Sustainability and People", at the Portugal Digital Summit 2024, Ana Figueiredo, CEO of Altice Portugal, pointed out that although the maxim is to automate more, it is important to "never lose the human touch", defended Rogério Campos Henriques, Executive Chairman, Fidelidade Group, and that the centrality of innovation should be "halfway", according to João Pedro Oliveira e Costa, CEO of Banco BPI.
We can look at Altice as a technology company, "but Altice is fundamentally a services company", underlined Ana Figueiredo, "we provide services and connectivity through technology to serve our customers".
With growing technological evolution and the adoption of artificial intelligence, she believes that the new technological generation will change, as others have, the way we organize ourselves, how we work and even the skills profiles that will be needed.
Ana Figueiredo believes that it will also give humans superpowers. "If the industrial revolution brought the possibility of machines being able to do tasks at the level of physical capabilities and computing gave us the ability to process information at great speed, AI will give us the superpower to speed up, automate and even increase productivity."
Until we get there, we need to make the transition, "which involves transformation and the adoption of a new cycle".
Altice is already applying AI technology to support customer, with, for example, around 40% of calls answered at MEO being handled by chatbots or having integrated AI. Monitoring, trouble shooting, anticipating and acting on network availability is another area.
Presenting Fidelidade as an "itech" and "itouch" company, Rogério Campos Henriques said that the purpose of the company he manages is "to protect people today and help prepare the future of tomorrow" and that this involves ensuring that technology has the power to transform business, but guaranteeing that everything Fidelidade does is "all about people".
Above all, a balance has to be struck so as not to dehumanize the relationship with customers, at a time when there is "a certain fascination with automating everything"
"We have to be able to know when it makes sense to automate and when it makes sense to have a human touch. Automate more, but never lose the human touch," stressed Rogério Campos Henriques.
Banking has always been a pioneer in many areas of innovation and in artificial intelligence "it is also at the forefront", says João Pedro Oliveira e Costa, and for various reasons.
Banco BPI's CEO pointed to the "huge amount of data", competition from fintechs and the demands made in terms of regulation, and finally added the issue of cybersecurity, which have forced banks to make "a brutal investment".
He also warned about collateral damage and where to place the centrality of innovation, which is neither in companies nor in customers, "it's halfway there".
Talent is needed and "fits" all generations.
The idea that the ongoing "revolution" will require the creation of new profiles and new qualifications was a point of agreement between the three panelists at the Portugal Digital Summit.
When it comes to training and retraining talent, João Pedro Oliveira e Costa has no doubts: "First, the person has to want it: be committed and have the will to go further.
"It is possible to attract and retain talent in Portugal, but it has to be a goal for everyone and for the person themselves," said João Pedro Oliveira e Costa.
For the CEO of the BPI Group, the issue also lies in companies being attractive, with sufficiently challenging roles. "Hiring someone to do what someone else does in the same way isn't worth it. We need to reinvent the way we manage".
In addition to changes in the way managers act, "because it doesn't make sense to lead in the same way as 20 years ago", and attractive salaries, "so that people can have a decent life", João Pedro Oliveira e Costa believes that companies should also adopt a social component, "a purpose that can even transcend the organization". Collaboration between companies is also needed to keep people.
With a lack of "new" talent and the demographic problem facing Portugal (and Europe in general), taking advantage of home-grown talent is a must, argued Rogério Campos Henriques. "We have to make a serious investment in our people and prepare them for the future that is coming. We have to invest in young talent, but also in less young talent."
Ana Figueiredo agrees that we need all generations, although there's a long way to go, which has to be done by companies, involving all management positions, but it's also very important to have people's commitment and the government component "to implement measures that can fill these gaps".
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