Vodafone takes active interest in AI technology

Many businesses in the country are taking necessary measures to advance and maximise profit and productivity to remain competitive in today's global market.

Such businesses, therefore, take up artificial intelligence (AI) technology to try to reduce operational costs, increase efficiency, grow revenue and improve customer experience.

This is also because artificial intelligence and its related technology has a wide range of uses in businesses, including streamlining job processes and aggregating business data.

To be able to act quickly and effectively to ensure success and stay ahead of competitors, Vodafone Ghana has completed a training exercise on artificial intelligence and machine learning (ML) in Accra.

The training, meant for 21 key executives of the telecommunication firm, was conducted by Lancaster University Ghana (LUG). 

The eight weeks training, which is part of a commitment by the company to provide learning and development for its staff, shed light on the need for responsible AI research and development and how businesses can leverage it for growth. 

The facilitator of the training programme, Dr Pius Gadosey, who is also the Deputy Head of the LUG Computer Science Department, focused on introducing AI and ML concepts, algorithms, practical applications, current possibilities and limitations. 

Career path

At the closing ceremony, the Provost of LUG, Dr Emmanuel Arthur, underlined the essence of the training, reiterating the need for people to learn continually to advance their career path due to the evolving nature of the work and technological space. 

He explained that the LUG was on the course of helping institutions bridge gaps in terms of needed skill sets and equipping them for efficiency and career progression.

“Lancaster University has recognised that although people have qualifications from universities, there are specific skills that the industry is looking for.

“And we have recognised gaps in those skills. So, what we are doing as an institution is talking to other institutions to understand what the skill gaps are, and when those are identified, we provide training in that regard, strictly tailored to their needs,” he said. 

He said he was confident the training would help position organisations to meet market demands and needs in the light of changing customer experiences. 

“Any organisation that is not taking AI seriously has a big problem, because the technological space is one that every organisation must look out for,” he said. 

Dr Arthur added that career progression and enhancement were an institutional responsibility but also importantly, the responsibility of the individual in the quest to fashion out their career, hence the need to invest the available resources to make the best of their qualification.

Participants reaction

The Head of Enterprise Solutions at Vodafone Ghana, Danso Kwakye, in an interview, observed that the course was crucial for taking data-based decisions. 

“It is very insightful and practical and will help me in the way we design solutions for our enterprise customers and make sure that these solutions go a long way to delight our customers,” he said. 

The Manager in charge of Performance Analytics and Insights at Vodafone Ghana, Sophia Otu-Ayeh, said she was certain the training will help her better forecast numbers and understand the prescription and description of numbers and revenue forecasting to help the organisation project into the future.

“The entire experience was very insightful because it helps move our analysis from descriptive to predictive and there is no better way than using AI and ML, which means one will get a more efficient module to help the analysis that we currently do,” she added.