Exploring Now Assist in Virtual Agent

  • Release version: Washingtondc
  • Updated February 1, 2024
  • 3 minutes to read
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    Summary of Exploring Now Assist in Virtual Agent

    Now Assist in Virtual Agent utilizes large language models (LLMs) and generative AI to streamline topic discovery, enhance user interactions, and reduce reliance on live agents. This feature simplifies the setup and configuration process, allowing users to launch the experience quickly without needing specialized expertise.

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    Key Features

    • Guided Setup: Configure Now Assist in Virtual Agent within minutes using a user-friendly guided setup.
    • Multi-Platform Availability: Access Now Assist through web portals, mobile apps, and Microsoft Teams.
    • Generative AI Skills: Enhance user experience with features like the Now Assist Q&A Genius Results skill, which provides actionable responses, and the Multi-Turn Catalog Ordering skill, allowing users to refine requests seamlessly in conversation.
    • Topic Creation: Admins can create LLM topics easily within the Now Assist Admin console.
    • Performance Monitoring: Track usage and performance metrics through the Conversational Interfaces console and the Now Assist Admin console.

    Key Outcomes

    Implementing Now Assist in Virtual Agent can lead to improved issue resolution rates, a reduction in live agent interactions, and a more efficient user experience overall. Customers will benefit from faster response times and access to comprehensive service options, thereby enhancing overall satisfaction with the Virtual Agent capabilities.

    Now Assist in Virtual Agent uses large language models (LLMs) and generative AI skills to improve deflection rates and reduce the amount of time-consuming work that Natural Language Understanding (NLU) topic discovery requires.

    Now Assist capabilities bring generative AI to Virtual Agent. Using LLMs for topic discovery simplifies the amount of setup and configuration required for Virtual Agent. Topics that use keyword and Natural Language Understanding (NLU) discovery often require months of development and the involvement of dedicated subject matter experts. Unusual issues or questions may lead a user to contact a live agent instead.

    Use the guided setup to configure Now Assist in Virtual Agent in a few minutes. No expertise is necessary to launch the experience. For more information, see Configuring Now Assist in Virtual Agent.

    Now Assist in Virtual Agent is available through portals on the web client, the mobile app, and Microsoft Teams.

    Now Assist skills in Virtual Agent

    Now Assist skills in Virtual Agent enhance the user experience by combining AI Search with chat. These skills can increase issue resolution in Virtual Agent and reduce deflections to a live agent.

    The following figure shows how the requester uses natural language rather than keywords in the chat. Now LLM Service determines the most likely option based on the requester's input and sends a synthesized response with possible action items. Queries can apply to both information searches and service catalog requests.

    Figure 1. A synthesized response example with conversational and non-conversational catalog options
    A summary of the iPad options along with catalog options to either Go to request or Start request in the Virtual Agent.

    The Now Assist Q&A Genius Results skill shows users the best possible answer to a query, in the form of actionable options displayed along with the results. The bot may generate answers based on what it found, or return actionable options or links. Users have the option to see more results as needed.

    The Now Assist Multi-Turn Catalog Ordering skill gives users access to available options in the Service Catalog. Users can request an item, such as a mobile phone. The user can then provide more information to refine the search. For example, they may refine their request to a blue 256-GB iPhone. They can even request a new item instead, all in the same conversation, and the generative AI creates its responses using natural language.

    The Now Assist Topics skill enables admins to create LLM topics for Now Assist in Virtual Agent. For more information, see LLM assistants. Activate the Now Assist Topics skill in the Now Assist guided setup. For more information, see Configuring Now Assist in Virtual Agent.

    For more examples of having a conversation with Now Assist in Virtual Agent, see Using Now Assist in Virtual Agent.

    Figure 2. An example of the View all topics option from within the chat widget
    View all topics shows all Virtual Agent Designer topics.

    Now Assist in Virtual Agent skills are available in the Now Assist Admin console. For full catalog functionality in the chat window, enable the generative AI experience for catalog item request submissions. For more information, see Configure Now Assist in Conversational Catalog Request.

    Figure 3. Now Assist in Virtual Agent skill in the Now Assist Admin console
    Features tab in the Now Assist Admin console, showing Conversational experience skill card.

    Benefits

    Now Assist in Virtual Agent provides the following benefits.

    Benefit Feature User
    Configure Now Assist in Virtual Agent in a few minutes, from either the Conversational Interfaces console or the Now Assist Admin console. Guided setup experience virtual_agent_admin or admin
    Now Assist skills can be turned on within the guided setup. Activate a Now Assist skill virtual_agent_admin or admin
    Deploy Now Assist in Virtual Agent on multiple portals using the web client, the mobile app, and Microsoft Teams. Configuring Now Assist in Virtual Agent virtual_agent_admin or admin
    Generative AI enhances the user search experience with the ability to generate answers and enabling the user to select the Show more results option for a new search. Now Assist Q&A Genius Results skill requesters
    Give users in-chat access to available options in the Service Catalog. Now Assist Multi-Turn Catalog Ordering skill requesters
    Now Assist lets Virtual Agent switch easily between requests, using plain language when new queries are made in the same conversation. Mid-topic switching during Now Assist in Virtual Agent conversations requesters
    Monitor performance metrics for Now Assist in Virtual Agent from the Conversational Interfaces console. Conversational Interfaces console virtual_agent_admin or admin
    Monitor value metrics (Now Assist usage versus Now Assist in Virtual Agent) from the Now Assist Admin console. Now Assist Admin console virtual_agent_admin or admin