Why genAI is the force multiplier you need for effective IT service management

Enough has been said about generative AI and its capabilities to support and transform business operations, from personalizing customer and employee service to predictive analytics. It’s no wonder more organizations today are implementing genAI across their technology stack given how businesses are always looking for ways to improve productivity and boost efficiency.

In this context, the promises of genAI can be enticing, particularly in IT service management (ITSM). Kenneth Gonzalez, Head of Analyst Relations, Freshworks, highlights some key findings from Freshworks’ Freshservice IT Service Management Benchmark Report 2024 (FBR 2024), which surveyed more than 9,400 organizations across over 100 countries, that corroborates the value of generative AI in ITSM.

“Proper use of generative AI for smart assistance can speed up ticket resolutions by 34.58%. And unlike traditional form and ticket-based systems, generative AI-powered self-service agents can provide complex assistance in various languages, transforming every touchpoint to be more inclusive and effective in resolving queries. We also found a 26.55% decrease in average first response time, demonstrating the value of AI in ITSM,” explains Gonzalez.

Our State of the CIO 2024¹ survey further underscores the importance of AI. 89% of IT decision-makers are researching, piloting, or currently using AI-enabled technologies, an increase from 72% in 2023 to demonstrate a high level of trust in AI to simplify and streamline tasks. In addition, 59% of IT decision-makers (ITDMs) plan to use AI for process automation.

While generative AI has the potential to plug the gaps for more seamless and efficient workflows, there is know-how involved if businesses want to maximize the benefits of AI implementation within their organization.

Utilizing AI in IT and employee service management

Because of the hype built around generative AI, IT leaders may feel pressured and act in haste to implement AI into their IT environment. Instead of diving straight in and implementing generative AI for the sake of it, they should first look at the business from a macro approach and develop a clear strategy around how they want to use these AI-powered tools to support their objectives.

Gonzalez adds that if there is one takeaway from the use of generative AI, it is that generative AI applications should not be left to operate in silos. This is because its true value lies in connecting end-to-end ITSM architecture.

“Done well, AI-supported tools can make a significant impact. We take Porsche eBike Performance as an example. After the company streamlined service requests and expedited IT service delivery with Freshservice, it experimented with virtual agents and chatbots and quickly realized real returns on investment,” explains Gonzalez. “Freshservice’s AI capabilities, such as conversational support and solution article generator, are now regarded as the backbone of its IT operations to deliver intelligent and user-centric IT support.”

The result? Porsche eBike Performance saw a boost in IT governance and asset control, improved scalability and efficiency, and a reduction in employee onboarding setup time from 30 minutes to seconds.

Key takeaways for CIOs looking to adopt genAI

The Freshservice IT Service Management Benchmark Report 2024 highlights a few important points for CIOs to consider when exploring genAI tools. The first is charting a course grounded in practicality. This means identifying genuine use cases and measuring ROIs to see the real impact of AI.

To achieve this, executive-level partnership is required by collaborating with HR, sales, and finance departments so CIOs can look beyond the IT lens and focus on the bigger picture. The report also notes the importance of discerning AI solutions, reminding CIOs not to be swept away by the allure of superficial AI solutions.

As generative becomes widely available, IT leaders can get more creative and explore various ways to use it to their benefit. Read more about how it can improve ITSM to deliver better productivity and what organizations are doing to create better value for employees and their businesses when you download the FBR 2024 here.

¹ Foundry, State of the CIO 2024, Jan 2024