Digital technologies are rapidly changing the way businesses operate. There is an increasing demand for partially or fully digital products and services; companies interact with customers and supply chain partners through digital channels; internal processes and operations such as production or manufacturing or office management also rely on digital technologies. The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated these processes and highlighted the benefits of "digitizing everything." Companies across all industries are increasingly using artificial intelligence (AI) systems to support their innovation processes, supply chains, marketing and sales, and other business functions. Companies using AI are reporting efficiency gains through automation and improved decision making thanks to more relevant, accurate, and timely predictions.

In collaboration with Dr. Agatha Leszkiewicz (Assistant Professor of Marketing at the University of Twente) and Tina Hormann (PhD student at the University of Twente), Professor Manfred Krafft (Director of the Chair of Marketing Management) has written a book chapter on "Smart Business and the Social Value of AI". The latter is defined as the combined value that results from the introduction of AI for multiple stakeholders of a company. The chapter is part of the 28th volume of the Advanced Series in Management book series titled "Smart Industry - Better Management" and is co-edited by Professor Tanya Bondarouk (University of Twente) and Professor Miguel R. Olivas-Luján (Pennsylvania Western University).

In the book chapter, the authors discuss the benefits and costs of AI for a business-to-business (B2B) company and its internal, external, and societal stakeholders. Considering legal and ethical concerns, they assume that the societal value of AI will increase over time as barriers to adoption decrease, technology costs decline, and more stakeholders leverage the value of AI. They also identify contributions to the societal value of AI by highlighting the benefits of AI to various stakeholders in the enterprise, business customers, supply chain partners, and society at large.

Has this sparked your interest? You can access the entire chapter via this link.