How can I use AI with my job?
For some careers and positions, this is a no-brainer; for others, it may not be so straightforward. In my current role as a sales engineer, there are parts of my job that AI benefits and others that require the human touch. Let’s dive deeper into what I mean. Perhaps this thinking and looking at it with eyes wide open will help you in your AI journey.
Let’s start with what a sales engineer actually does. Perhaps it’s not common knowledge (I certainly didn’t know about the role until about four years ago) or various definitions that are difficult to sort out. For starters, I am the right hand of the account executive (AE), who is the salesperson. They own the relationship with the client or prospect and are responsible for bringing in business to the firm. I help them with technical issues, questions, problems, demonstrations, proofs of concept, etc. My role is to be the trusted advisor to the prospect or client and help them confidently make the purchase. Sometimes, that means I have to be the business consultant, helping them understand how the firm benefits from the software (in my market, it’s software, but more broadly speaking, it could be equipment or really anything that is non-trivial) and how the purchase makes things better. Sometimes, I am the professor, explaining the complex in a way that everyone understands. Other times, I am the friend who can be frank and honest over a beer. My role shifts from deal to deal, but all the while, I am trying to help the prospect make the right decision at the right time.
With that in mind, let’s look at ways that AI could help me be more productive:
For starters, it can help me write better. Oftentimes times, I need to provide written instructions, label screenshots with steps to reproduce something, and explain complex topics. Lots of times, how I write it is just as important as what I write. And using AI to help with mundane things like spelling and grammar or more nuanced things such as ease of understanding or keeping things short and to the point. AI helps me write more clearly, so a single email is met with acceptance rather than leading to a bunch of back and forth to get the point across.
AI can help me with research about a prospect (where they went to school, what they have been writing about or speaking about, or just what they are interested in, and the firm they work at). We use this to understand better the human behind the Zoom meeting or email signature. Additionally, what does their annual report (10-K) have to say? What did the CEO say was top of mind for the coming year? How can our solution help align with the vision of the company, CEO, CTO, etc.? These connections and links help better understand the firm’s and the decision-makers’ motivations. A solution that aligns with core values and key initiatives is far more likely to be procured than one that does not, features and functionality aside.
AI can help me with technological research. A technology name is dropped during a meeting, and I don’t know about it. ChatGPT/Bard/Claude to the rescue, “Tell me about X like I am 5 years old”. This also helps me understand integration points: how does our solution align with their tech stack? Some tools will tell me what they are using, but I still have to figure out (if I don’t already know) how we integrate with them.
I could go on, but I think you get the point dear reader. There are ways that AI can benefit someone like me, in my current role. But what about my job, or firm, or non-profit, you may be thinking? How does AI make things better for me. Well, let’s think about another example, how about a small consulting agency. There are sales people (or maybe just the founder) who could benefit from the list above, research is a great use case for AI. How about employees trying to navigate process and procedure, wouldn’t it be great if they could ask an AI to help them understand the travel policy, or how to book a conference room in the new system. What about client onboarding, what if a new client could have access to a customer care AI to help them with getting accounts setup, or installing new software, or how to connect with their customer success team? AI has a LOT of clear benefits, some that are about more opaque, and some that are largely untapped (for now). All in all though, you don’t have to think about AI as some monolithic entity that needs to be in charge of business decisions, it could just be a helper to the humans that make the decisions, and that is what it is great at today.
There is little to lose, maybe you have a job that doesn’t allow for AI to be helpful, perhaps your firm is unique and AI doesn’t align with your culture, that’s ok, there are always exceptions to the rule. But for the majority of us, AI is a helpful thing, and will only get better.
