More critically, AI can provide a more equitable view of an employee’s performance, taking some of the bias out of hiring, firing, and promotion, he says.

Businesses already have the data they need to improve customer service and the products customers are complaining about, says ServiceNow’s Van Over. Instead of simply waiting to receive complaints on social media or through surveys like net promoter scores (NPS), Van Over says businesses should proactively mine data at every step in a customer’s journey. “Businesses have data on who is using a product or service, how they’re using it, and where they’re getting stuck,” he says.

Companies can then feed that data to an AI platform, which would then recommend solutions to customers who complain—or anticipate problems before they come up, he says. “This would far out-scale any customer service office you could build,” he says. Crucially, companies wouldn’t have to do away with their existing tools like surveys, chatbots, or customer service teams. Rather, AI provides a means to augment these methods.

Most companies already have the technology to deploy human-centric solutions. They’re just missing budget and foresight, says Van Over.

“You want to achieve a business model that is a cyclical engine of customer feedback and innovation,” he says. “That is the engine for success.”