Organizations and their users often seek AI access to knowledge but rarely understand its full implications.
As subject matter experts or content contributors, how many times do we have to manually click on multiple internal enterprise-wide platforms (or locations) to find the structured and unstructured information we need securely…NOW?
What is the cost in terms of time and money?
Let’s step back and reflect! How many in our organization are struggling to find the latest information, the digital assets of record, to do their job as it relates to every line of business?
There must be a better way.
In Deloitte’s Global Human Capital Trends study(1) they found that AI access to knowledge ranks in the top three issues influencing company success, yet only 9% of the organizations feel ready to address it.
Survey responses included:
- Over 50% of surveyed workers found it difficult to locate required information, and 80% reported needing to recreate documents because they couldn’t locate them in their company’s network.
- 71% of individuals who found information easy to access, perceived its value as above average, emphasizing the link between accessibility and perceived value.
If organizations are carrying out these tasks manually and at great cost, it’s time to consider a better way to bring out the best of AI and search in heterogeneous landscapes.
How Streaming Services are Analogous to AI Access to Knowledge?
We can all relate to watching our favorite TV show or movie.
Imagine if your streaming service could only give you basic channels, but did not allow you the freedom of choice and seamless integrations with Netflix, Disney+, Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV+, BBC iPlayer, and/or WOW (Sky Deutschland). This access is expected.
Clearly it is advantageous to connect to multiple apps and systems, pulling information from diverse sources.
Question: Would you want to be limited to the basic service only, without the technical capability to get the access to what you want and need?
This example highlights that whether we want access to our favorite streaming services, digital asset, or knowledge, it is important in both our professional and personal lives to pinpoint what we want, when we want it, regardless of where it is located for business or home use.
Beyond the technical capabilities, why move forward unless there is a clear return on investment (ROI).
The ROI Equation: Knowledge = Competitive Advantage
Organizations struggle to define and measure the exact impact of their knowledge access initiatives.
Consider quantifying the ROI that applies to all lines of business including sales, marketing, communications, HR, onboarding, call centers, finance, operations, supply chain, suppliers, business networks, IT and product support.
Here is a simple equation…
“X” Hours (to find information) x “Y” Users = “Z” Total Hours Spent Each Year
Suggestion: Assess your organization’s activities per line of business and calculate the math.
If there was a way to reduce the time and costs associated with this manual activity, would you be interested?
Suggestion: Use conservative numbers to equate the time, cost, and ROI for your organization?
If this ROI formula sounds hard to believe, consider how PepsiCo Saves 5000 Hours per Year with the Capacity Answer Engine.
The Capacity Answer Engine has a proven track record of saving their customers’ thousands of hours, which equates to dollars saved, by providing secure (ISO/IEC 27001 certified), AI access to knowledge in seconds versus hours (or never found manually in the first place).
This solution provides a library of 100+ connectors which require a huge investment to build, maintain and optimize using a federated search and indexing capability combined with Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) (with an emphasis in the “Retrieval”) to bring out the best of AI and search together.
For example, Microsoft Copilot isn’t designed to perform a federated search or index on internal company documents or digital assets directly. However, Capacity Answer Engine, which is part of the SAP Store and Microsoft Azure Marketplace, can provide knowledge to Copilot via RAG to become the cited bibliography for an organization’s generative AI.
How AI Can Unlock Knowledge Across the SAP Ecosystem and Beyond
So how does this apply to the SAP ecosystem?
When looking at the SAP Business Suite landscape combining AI, data, and applications with the SAP Business Technology Platform, let us consider one or more of the following: SAP S/4HANA Cloud Public or Private Edition, SAP Ariba Strategic Sourcing Suite, SAP Business Network, SAP Commerce Cloud, SAP SuccessFactors Employee Central, SAP Integrated Business Planning for Supply Chain, and others.
Each SAP product or solution has a plethora of digital assets found in multiple internal global locations (or sites) that are at the core of running the business.
Most organizations have heterogenous environments, which includes 3rd party applications, tools, platforms such as:
- Document Storage (e.g., SharePoint, Dropbox, Google Drive, GitHub)
- Systems (e.g., Jira, Slack)
- Messaging Platforms (e.g., Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Copilot)
- Dashboards & People Search (e.g., Microsoft Power BI)
- Publishers & Aggregators (e.g., Paid subscriptions, IDC, NielsenIQ)
Limits in the number of data sources and incomplete integration coverage can be problematic. Also, mixing internal with external searches may result in inaccurate, outdated, misinformation from questionable sources.
What is needed is the pre-built connectors from the Capacity Answer Engine library, which are maintained for ongoing performance, scalability, security, and continuously syncs as information is updated, leveraging ID management role-based access control, and ensuring that users have the appropriate access to information and systems based on their job roles and responsibilities.
Looking Ahead: AI Access to Knowledge Will Reshape What We Know—and How We Use It
With the constant changes of market conditions, facts, data, digital assets, products, solutions, services, regulations, compliance, and risks, it is crucial that employees have fast, secure access to the most accurate and up-to-date information.
Organizations that enable its workforce to leverage federated search and index navigation of the constant, overwhelming output of internal organization information (& intellectual properties) will have a higher rate of success with revenues, growth, operational efficiencies, and reducing costs.
Leaders, business and IT experts should consider:
- Recognizing the importance of the right information at the right time, anywhere in the organization.
- Embracing AI access to knowledge to empower the workforce today.
- Prioritizing rapid access to enterprise-wide digital assets as an accelerator, not a barrier.
- Optimizing next-generation tools such as the Capacity Answer Engine.
Once this Capacity Answer Engine solution is in place, organizations can consider reinvesting the cost savings (and better use of employees’ time) to shift towards higher priority, higher value activities.
Many organizations are already seeing these tangible benefits with a growing importance going forward.
Where do you stand?
Let’s explore this topic further—what questions, comments or ideas do you have?
– How would you rate your organization on a scale of 1 to 10 (10 = Best).
– Can you search multiple videos to find the specific topic or key word you’re looking for?
– What are your thoughts on the AI access to knowledge in your organizations?
– Does your organization have federated indexing for AI and Search capabilities?
Very much appreciate your insights! Happy to start a discussion per your posts below.
(1) Source: Deloitte Insights: The new knowledge management – The human factor activates the collective intelligence
Useful Links
– AI-Powered Game Changer: Revolutionizing Access to Knowledge – LinkedIn | SAP Community
– Capacity Answer Engine
– SAP Store – Lucy AI by Capacity Answer Engine
– Capacity Answer Engine pioneers next-gen enterprise search using Phi models from Microsoft
– RAG vs ChatGPT
About the Author
Rich Blumberg is a long time SAP Community member and contributor. For 20+ years he’s been an SAP consultant working with SAP ecosystem organizations around the globe. He’s the President of World Sales Solutions, LLC, (WSS) a business development and low-code no-code services company. In his spare time, he is a Drexel University Alumni Board of Governors Emeritus volunteer, ENGin English tutor for Ukrainian citizens, and an aspiring guitar player.