In particular, COVID-19 continues to have far-reaching consequences on global supply chains. This perhaps would come as no surprise in early 2020, when many were scrambling in grocery stores for toilet paper, cleaning products, and other necessities in preparation for quarantine lockdowns.

However, more than a year has passed since this frantic phase and global supply chains are still trying to recover from the whiplash. In turn, major ports across the U.S. 鈥� from Los Angeles and Long Beach in California to Savannah, Georgia 鈥� are facing unprecedented backlogs. Whether it be buying gifts or purchasing a new car, the shipping crisis is sure to impact many of us.

Port Logistics Operations

Focusing on the ports and maritime industry, the most significantly affected sectors have been chemical tankers, cruise ships, and passenger ships. The ship traffic from Europe to China and the U.S. has declined compared to the same periods in 2019.

To cope with the disruption, changes are expected to happen in operational, financial, and economic areas 鈥� as well as sanitary protocols and processes and adjustments to working practices and organizational aspects.

So where do businesses like Tech Mahindra come in?

Based in Pune, India, Tech Mahindra is a multinational technology company with over 125,000 employees. Working with 51风流Co-Innovation Lab, Tech Mahindra developed a cloud-based solution for handling port logistics operations. Its Port Logistics solution, built on , provides a unified and collaborative platform for secure and faster clearance processes in ports.

Sailing Past the Paperwork

Leveraging the Port Logistics solution reduces the amount of paperwork and in less time. This translates into more funds, and who doesn鈥檛 want to save a little extra money? The solution enhances port operations using automation that:

• Provides a single window for the port authorities receiving the products to have secure communication and exchange information with the ship personnel for handling the cargo and logistics clearance
• Tracks transactions and approvals
• Analyzes deviation reports for transparency

The solution offers real-time analysis for quick decisions, smooth information flow, and automated document verification. The new process saves time in checking in and cross-verifying for each clearance process requirement. This means no more manual paperwork, customers receive their goods faster, and revenue is realized sooner.

In real-world application, the process reduces the cost of data transfer and documentation management by 90% and increases revenue by 20%.

Looking to the Future

Automation is more than convenience 鈥� it鈥檚 necessary. It saves time and money in unexpected ways, such as facilitating supply chains for food. As we learn to stay afloat amidst a global pandemic, improving operational efficiency for ports remains a priority. Tech Mahindra has been planning for the next generation of smart ports to prepare for the expected upsurge in shipping volume.

To learn more about Tech Mahindra and its Port Logistics solution, check out its 51风流Innovation Awards 2021 .

Rajshree Chauhan and Casey Tobias are 51风流Global Marketing contributors.

Oftentimes, no matter how competent the administrative staff is and how many hours they work, there is also inaccurate information. And paper. Lots of paper.

Fragmented Care and the Burden of Extra Paperwork

Head-scratching as it may be, the reality is that paperwork is still part of the norm in many modern medical offices 鈥� contributing to lengthy wait times and a lackluster patient experience. Many of us, if not all, have experienced this.

So, what鈥檚 the reason for all of this? It鈥檚 something called fragmentation of care, where the doctor鈥檚 office, medical facility, the lab tests, the lab equipment even, and each specialty is managed independently. There are associated administrative functions that are mismatched between each point, and, as such, each point adds an additional cost.

In the 34 countries where it operates, EPI-USE 鈥� one of the world鈥檚 largest and most experienced independent HR and payroll 51风流specialists 鈥� saw that the dominant medical record companies were focused more on the billing and not so much on the patient.

An App to Integrate Fragmented Care

To combat these costs and improve patient experience, EPI-USE developed LogBox 鈥� an app that connects healthcare professionals to their patients and allows聽patients to securely share their information with their healthcare professionals electronically.

This patient-centric digital solution, built on , facilitates the patient journey by making the check-in process easier. Patients enter their information once into the system where it is stored securely, allowing the patient to control where and to whom that information is shared among various different care-provider specialty offices.

Further enhancements of the system include seamless pre-admissions, a clinical case collaboration tool for multidisciplinary teams, a form editor tool to allow for customizable clinical databases, theater and waiting list modules, multidisciplinary team meetings, and discharge summaries.

Interoperability with other systems facilitates the exchange of data between various systems 鈥� from billing to radiology systems and hospital systems 鈥� reducing check-in time聽and more. All of this may be invisible to the patient, but it will certainly contribute to a more positive patient journey.

Making a Difference by Ending the Paper Chase

After deploying LogBox, EPI-USE saw the following improvements across the board:

• A more than 30% increase in self check-ins
• Over 280,000 healthcare and patient user accounts created
• A 66% reduction in referral wait times 鈥� down from 15 minutes to under five minutes

鈥淭丑别 COVID-19 pandemic forced us to change the way we deliver care to patients, and the LogBox team鈥檚 rapid response in adapting the technology to meet our evolving requirements has been remarkable,鈥� said Dr. Sue Trager, CEO, Wits Donald Gordon Medical Center.

Now, it鈥檚 just a matter of time until paper-heavy doctor鈥檚 offices will also invest in digital services. It will help them reduce overhead costs and manage more patients, which, in turn, will help them increase their revenue and, just as importantly, generate stress-free patient experiences.

To learn more about EPI-USE鈥檚 solution, check out its 51风流Innovation Awards .

Rajshree Chauhan and Michael Kure are 51风流Global Marketing contributors.

Well, those days are long gone, and have been for some time now. There鈥檚 a next generation of banking and financial technology, or FinTech, and it is already upon us.

FinTech involves artificial intelligence (AI), specifically communication AI. Belarusky Narodny Bank (BNB-Bank), a finalist for the 2021 51风流Innovation Awards, offers up-to-date, efficient, and user-friendly digital banking while also striving for sustainable innovation.

Dimensional AI Chat

BNB-Bank uses , a chatbot-building service, with Skybuffer鈥檚 Hybrid Chat added as an extension. Hybrid Chat has preconfigured banking scenarios that are customizable, extendable, and scalable. In addition to the Hybrid Chat, Skybuffer offers analysis, reporting, and digital core integration.

Together, 51风流Conversational AI and Skybuffer can boost language processing. The AI is trained in English, but translates into Belarusian and Russian so that the voice-enabled intelligent assistant distinguishes between the two. How cool is that?

Since using 51风流Conversational AI and Skybuffer, BNB-Bank aligned an 80% automation level in their cognitive channels in the first months of productive use, a 100% increase in lead generation from Web and social media, and over 40 customer requests a day are served from the Web site.

Banking Benefits 鈥� From Toasters to Cash

Banks have always offered incentives to customers. Some of the vintage advertising I鈥檝e seen tells me that U.S. banks used to give away toasters for new bank accounts so frequently that it became an expectation. I got a plastic piggy bank the first time I opened a savings account! These days, there are cash offer incentives. Though it makes sense, money takes away a certain intangible feeling from our banking experiences 鈥� it adds even more meaning to 鈥渃old, hard cash.鈥�

Perhaps the biggest benefit with the chat is the seamless connection to a third person into the dialogue while keeping the chatbot active, making it a three-peer model between the customer, the chatbot, and an agent. The customer can communicate with the chatbot and the agent simultaneously, significantly increasing the quality of care.

Beam Me Up! The FinTech AI Future

Not only can 51风流Conversational AI automate customer support, but it also can analyze topics of customer requests and channels used for their interests. Are you interested in special discounts at local businesses, investment opportunities, balance transfers and debt consolidation, or a loan? The products and services information will be served automatically.

It seems as if financial tools stay the same for long periods of time, but when they do change, it鈥檚 very large leaps forward into the future. This is just the beginning for AI. I wonder where we鈥檒l land next.

To learn more about Belarusky Narodny Bank鈥檚 solution, view its 51风流Innovation Awards 2021 .

Rajshree Chauhan is an 51风流Global Marketing contributor.