Matt Wicks, co-CEO for technology and innovation at The Virtual Forge, explains the value of its AI tool mycontentscout for public sector bodies
Most public sector organisations hold a massive amount of valuable information across the organisation but it is often fragmented, scattered across a range of sources and formats and difficult to find.
This can make it hard for officials to pull up key points from text, audio or images that can provide quick wins in planning and delivering services, or in reinforcing the learning within their organisations. They are often frustrated by protracted searches of emails, file systems, intranets and websites, with the information not being in the obvious place or existing in unstructured formats.
According to a McKinsey report the average knowledge worker spends nearly two hours per day trying to find information to complete their tasks. It can involve looking for documents, trying to get permissions for access to relevant systems, listening to audio, scanning images and searching their own memories. This can be a massive drain on organisational efficiency, especially in large organisations such as public authorities.
The Virtual Forge has responded with the development of mycontentscout, an AI tool that provides quick access to the valuable nuggets of information and content held internal systems. It makes it possible to search a vast amount of file types, documents, images, videos and audio recordings, not just those that exist as standalones but also those that are embedded within others.
Connections for content
Content can be added from a variety of sources : Sharepoint (via a connector), legacy file systems or added directly to the system by administrators. It can then search across the documents, videos and images, respecting the end user permissions, and answer questions in normal language on matters ranging from public health to environmental policies and even annual leave rights.
mycontentscout then finds any information relevant to answering the question – in documents, images, videos and audio recordings – provides details of exactly where it all came from, and directs the user to the precise point in the relevant files. An important feature is that it can find one significant piece of content within another file, such as an image embedded in a Word document, extending the effectiveness of its searches.
The process also produces an AI generated summary of the findings in language that is easy to understand, providing the user with an overview response to their question.
It is possible to drill down into any of the files in any of the formats. In the case of audio and video, mycontentscout produces transcripts of the content that can be read to find anything relevant to the search. It can search within images for significant details, and analyse individual frames of video to find visual clues, such as a particular slide in a presentation.
The tool integrates with the Power BI platform to provide an understanding of the content of any dashboards created in the organisation, and follows the permission structures through common architectures such as Active Directory to ensure that only the appropriate people have access to specific pieces of information.
e-Learning value
It can also be integrated with learning management systems to help the user find details of any e-learning programmes they have been through. It is an asset in going back to points on which you need to refresh your memory and helps to reinforce the process of e-learning.
This all comes with a function to rate search results and provide feedback on the experience of using the tool.
In short, mycontentscout provides a one stop shop for locating information to support a range of activities: finding details needed in case management, research for planning changes in services and policy, reinforcing learning or simply exploring the content. It can run intelligent analysis of all content and is designed to be easily deployed and integrated in an organisation.
It can be used alongside other solutions and custom data model advice from The Virtual Forge. The company draws on its expertise in designing and developing data driven, cloud based software to provide customised solutions for clients – building innovative tools from scratch or enhancing existing solutions – and to support their activities in the use of data.
A recent example has involved the data science function to help Haringey Council develop a dynamic pricing model for parking in the borough, taking into account factors such as resident status of the driver, emission levels of the car, traffic and weather conditions at the time. It has now been implemented for parking locations across the borough, balancing the council’s raising of revenue with its desire to support residents and meet the relevant strategic priorities.
You can book a demo of mycontentscout here.
