TRUE Intelligent Automation is more than RPA. It involves RPA, to be sure, but in a way that acknowledges that RPA (even if powered by AI) is only the first step. TRUE Intelligent Automation is (1) an organization’s ability [the people part], (2) to use a single, flexible, and resilient low-code development environment [the technology part] to automate business processes with smart, integrated enterprise applications that can be built quickly, and that are easy to maintain over time and in the face of constant change.
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Are robots slaves? On the contemporary relevance of Čapek’s R.U.R.
In reading R.U.R. we are forced to acknowledge that human-centered technology can’t mean freeing humans from work, because there’s something about work itself that is an inextricably part of what it means to be human. Čapek asks us to be more nuanced in how we view the relationship between human beings and technology, and to carefully consider how technology might complement work rather than replace it entirely. And it is here, in this call for nuance in support of a truly human vision of technology that R.U.R. is as relevant today as it was when it was first performed in 1921.
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This is why ‘Digital Transformation’ is so difficult to define
One of the biggest problems with ‘digital transformation’ is that everyone use sthe term differently. At times, ‘digital transformation’ is used to describe a set of social conditions. At other times, it refers to something we have to do. Still at others (and more commonly) it is something we must consume. Simon Chan has lamented…
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Nobody ACTUALLY needs ‘Digital Transformation’
I’m really interested in how ideas become things with the power to shape reality. My interest is not idle. It’s also not strictly academic (despite the fact that I have written a book on the subject). It comes from a desire to explode hype cycles by working with businesses to understand and address real issues…
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AI, Higher Education, and Standardizing Values in Human Decision-Making
Our current use of AI in higher education involves automating parts (and at times the whole) of the human decision-making process. Where there is automation there is standardization. Where there are decisions, there are values. As a consequence, we can think of one of the functions of AI as the standardization of values. Depending on…
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It’s time to get over the accuracy of predictive models in higher education
How should we approach the evaluation of predictive models in higher education? It is easy to fall into the trap of thinking that the goal of a predictive algorithm is to be as accurate as possible. But, as I have explained previously, the desire to increase the accuracy of a model for its own sake…
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Predictive analytics are not social science: A common misunderstanding with major consequences for higher education
This is the second in my series on common misunderstandings about predictive analytics that hinder their adoption in higher education. Last week I talked about the language of predictive analytics. This week, I want to comment on another common misconception: that predictive analytics (and educational data mining more generally) is a social science.
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