Leeds-based Evri has announced plans to invest £1m in its AI strategy to “transform the customer experience.”
The country’s biggest dedicated parcel delivery company said the investment would focus on enhancing customer service, including smarter use of data, better parcel security and optimising workforce productivity.
More long term, it is planning to explore and test the use of AR headsets for couriers.
It is working in partnership with AI consultancy, Robiquity to create an AI Centre of Excellence team.
“Our significant investment in AI underscores Evri’s commitment to continuous improvement and innovation. This strategy will empower our people and optimise our operations, ultimately enabling us to deliver a best-in-class experience for everyone we serve,” stated Marcus Hunter, Chief Technology Officer at Evri.
“It demonstrates that Evri is a tech-forward business and a really exciting place for new talent to work – we want to be the number one parcel delivery company globally. We put a real focus on intelligent automation in the middle of 2023, and we have been supported by Robiquity for the start of this exciting journey. The team at Robiquity have been crucial in building the foundations – allowing us to move at pace with implementing the early stages of our strategy. The significant benefits achieved through Intelligent Process Automation in the first six months have given us the platform to explore other AI, with a view to implementing later technologies to help shape the future of our business.”
The 3 key areas for Evri are: Customer Service – using AI to “simplify, speed up and improve the consistency” of its parcel delivery services by automating simple data collection and identification of issues. This, it said, would free up its customer service team to focus on more complex issues.
The second is parcel security to help it identity if a parcel is being left in a safe place – the tech will analyse data against previous delivery photos. It will analyse claims data, and automatically check geo-location and delivery photos to identify potentially false claims.
The final area is optimising workforce planning through AI, by analysing data and predicting future demands.
“We are delighted with the opportunity to support such a forward-thinking and ambitious business as Evri,” added James Procter, Chief Operating Officer at Robiquity.
“They have an unwavering vision that AI can transform how they operate, and ultimately provide huge benefit to their customers. We are already seeing massive benefits delivered in the first six months, with much more to come. This is testament to the partnership approach adopted between us. We are looking forward to supporting Evri on their applied AI roadmap and celebrating further successes along the way.”
