Digital Labor: Meet Moxie
Digital Labor: Meet Moxie
I was recently at the Hospital to visit a friend when Moxie rolled by with the look of a determined and dedicated employee delivering specimens and pharmaceuticals to different departments. Moxie has been known to flash a heart sign at other employees and patients passing by and making mewing sounds like a kitten.
But not to worry….there is nothing inappropriate about Moxie’s behavior……Moxie is not a human, but rather a robot.
Moxie is part of the growing digital labor force. And I quickly found myself following it around the hospital to see how it worked and even more interestingly, how people were responding to it
Moxie’s Tasks
Moxie can be called on by medical staff to transport physical assets between departments. Moxie does not transport any materials that require a signature, such as controlled pain killers or radioactive materials, due to it limited security. And, Moxie also does not deliver any samples that have a limited exposure time, such as blood samples, because it is too slow, or it could get delayed.
Moxie can avoid other people walking around the hospital; slowing down or speeding up based on the traffic around it. It also notifies of its arrival with a little ringing sound.
My local hospital has adopted three MOXI robots, along with experimenting with AI-enabled doctor’s assistants.
Training
Moxie was trained on the layout of the hospital by having a person drive it around the space. And it continues to improve its navigation as it is utilized. It also used scan bars scattered throughout to identify different locations including elevators, departments and open spaces.
Apparently training of the robot took some weeks before it was able to operate on its own, including one major stumble down a flight of stairs. Luckly no humans were injured, just the robot.
Employee Reception
The employee reception has generally been positive. When it was first introduced, many feared it would take away jobs from people, but they soon found out that it was not reducing jobs, but rather making it easier for most.
Some employees like to anthropomorphize Moxie by calling it “her” and giving it a name “Moxie.” They have also dressed it up in medical garb and held a birthday party for it. I spoke to several people who thought it was “cute”, especially when it purrs or flashes its different signs at passersby.
Other staff members do not like the fact that it has a quasi-human shape (e.g. head, neck, eyes, etc.). They feel like it is a piece of equipment and should be treated like a piece of equipment. One hospital administration said they like the human-like characteristics so that people can relate to it.
I asked one employee if they got training on how to work with the robot or how it would fit into their work. They responded that they received training on where the emergency shut-off was, but that was it. Little change management training.
One of the employees in the Café’ mentioned that the children visiting and staying in the hospital just loved it. They would follow it around (much like I was) and see what it did when they jumped in front of it or touched it. They also laugh at its charging position, which looks like it is standing in the corner staring at the wall
Bottom Line
Digital labor is here now. I am sure many of you have experienced interactions with digital labor or employe digital labor today. Do not underestimate the training time or account for potential mistakes….and maybe a fall or two.
Organizations must do a better job educating and training employees, customers and partners on the potential benefits, risks, governance and metrics associated with digital labor. Understand their concerns and questions and address them up front to improve potential value and decrease risks.
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