THERE IS A FLIP SIDE to the “don’t be left behind” rhetoric of technology innovations. Once a tech concept gets big enough to reach the zeitgeist, people will try to sell it to businesses indiscriminately. You can’t always assume that the one selling is concerned with whether the one buying actually needs it. One of the exciting aspects of January’s PPAI Expo Conference was the massive crowds that showed up for the day’s great sessions on automation and artificial intelligence. These speakers drew standing-room-only audiences. I was particularly intrigued by the presentation of Eric Granata, CAS, founder of business service provider PromoPilot, which focuses on AI solutions. In his session, “Streamlining Success: Automation Solutions for Distributors,” Granata touched on four things that shouldn’t be automated: • Tasks requiring human judgment. • Low-volume tasks. • Unpredictable tasks. • Problems that don’t exist. In my role as business systems analyst lead at PPAI, I am well versed in the ways that automation can and has saved us time as an industry. Be Wary Of Using AI Where It Doesn’t Belong You’ve probably received an email written by AI. That doesn’t mean you should let it write yours. By Tanaisha Dunbarger Image generated using Adobe Firely with images from males_design / IGORdeyka / Shutterstock.com 18 • APRIL 2025 • PPAI Voices | Innovation
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