Conversational Agents in Organisations: Strategic Applications and Implementation Considerations

Conversational agents (CAs) promise to create significant organisational value, by transforming how organisations operate and serve customers. Yet, the malleability of this technology poses challenges to both researchers and practitioners because of the wide range of strategic applications they can enable. Drawing on the lens of routine capability, this study investigates strategic applications of CAs, and their associated implementation enablers and challenges. Via an exploratory case study of eight organisations that have successfully implemented CAs, this paper contributes to the literature on the value and implementation of conversational agents in particular and cognitive technologies in general by developing a typology of CA strategic applications and their implementation considerations. For practitioners, the findings highlight the interplay between technology, user, and project management factors that need to be addressed to ensure the successful delivery of the value of CAs.