AI is no longer a futuristic concept. Today, it’s an integral part of both personal and professional life, providing solutions that were once unimaginable. From automating mundane tasks to providing insightful data analytics, AI has become a go-to tool for individuals and businesses alike.

While it has been all the latest buzz, AI is not a new concept at Mono. We’ve been exploring AI’s potential for two decades, developing innovative tools to enhance operations across industries.

Our long-standing expertise means we’ve been part of the AI journey from its early stages, well before it became the mainstream topic it is today.

However, while many see AI as a potential job threat, at Mono, we believe AI is here to assist, not replace. The goal is to empower people by giving them easy access to the information and tools they need to succeed.

Virtual assistants, in particular, have revolutionized how companies handle customer service, internal queries, and day-to-day management. These assistants, powered by AI, can understand natural language, respond to inquiries, and provide real-time support.

Enter Dokko: Mono’s virtual assistant

As mentioned, at Mono, we’ve been building AI solutions for years, developing tools that help businesses across industries operate more efficiently.

Our virtual assistant, Dokko, is a prime example of generative AI in action, designed specifically to help with knowledge management.

Dokko serves as a centralized knowledge hub, powered by advanced Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) and using the latest Large Language Models (LLMs). It has a wide range of applications across various industries and internal operations. It helps with customer engagement, providing real-time support, and assists in project management, ensuring teams have quick access to important updates. Dokko is also used for compliance training, safety protocols, and even specialized fields like insurance processing and medical diagnostics.

However, one of its key uses within our company is for onboarding new employees. By offering instant access to company resources, policies, and procedural information, it ensures a smooth transition for every new hire (while also offering helpful reminders or information about changes to more experienced staff).

A smooth start for new employees

Onboarding new employees can be challenging, with a lot of information to absorb in a short amount of time. Here’s where Dokko steps in. It enables new employees to access any company-related information they might need. Whether they have questions about company policies, project tools, or specific processes, Dokko is there to assist - just like a knowledgeable colleague. With an extensive knowledge base of all things Mono, from the company’s history to HR policies, Dokko answers common queries like:

• “What are the office hours?”
• “Who do I contact for IT support?”
• “How do I request time off?”
• “What’s the process for ordering new equipment?”

Instead of searching through documents or waiting for a human response, new employees can simply chat with Dokko. It provides instant, accurate answers, making it easier for them to settle into their roles quickly and confidently.

Custom-built knowledge base

To help Dokko effectively assist employees, it first had to learn all there is about Mono, so we built a custom knowledge base that contains all the important information. This includes company history, HR policies, and specific departmental processes.

The way we taught Dokko and helped it learn was through each department contributing its own files, ensuring that all relevant information is gathered in one central location. The best thing about it is that it doesn’t need any special preprocessing, formatting and training procedures - we just uploaded a bunch of documents and notes that were previously lying around in different internal and external systems and data stores. The knowledge base is regularly updated to remain current, allowing Dokko to always provide accurate answers to different inquiries. It also takes into account the roles and security privileges of each user, making sure they can see only information that is compatible with their security status.

Additionally, after being in business for so many years, we’ve encountered a wide range of situations and experienced significant growth - both in terms of employees and clients. We also moved into a new building, which added to the complexity of managing company operations. With this growth came an influx of rules, regulations, and internal processes that needed to be shared with our team. Unfortunately, this information was scattered across various platforms and had multiple versions, making it challenging to keep everything organized, updated, and accessible for our employees in a streamlined way.

With its ability to centralize all our scattered rules, regulations, and company knowledge into a single, easily accessible platform, Dokko became our perfect solution.

A personalized, engaging experience

What sets Dokko apart is its natural language interface, which allows users to interact with it as they would with a human. No need to worry about asking too many questions - Dokko is always available and never gets tired of providing help.

This kind of approachable, friendly AI experience is key to making new employees feel welcomed and supported from day one.

Not only does this save time for managers and HR teams, but it also ensures that every new employee gets consistent, accurate information.

More than just an onboarding assistant

While Dokko plays a key role in onboarding, its capabilities extend well beyond answering standard questions for new employees. It’s a valuable resource for tackling more complex technical inquiries as well. Developers, for instance, can use Dokko to seek detailed explanations about project architectures, coding best practices, or specific troubleshooting steps, which saves time and enables quick problem-solving without interrupting other colleagues.

Moreover, we are continuously working on making Dokko an even more versatile tool for our development teams. One of the next steps is to evolve Dokko into a software development assistant capable of understanding and suggesting code improvements by learning from our local code repositories. With AI that can recommend code snippets, detect patterns, or suggest optimal solutions based on past projects, Dokko will soon become an indispensable asset for our technical teams, helping them work more efficiently and effectively.

AI is here to help, not to replace

The rise of AI has understandably sparked concerns about job security. But at Mono, our experience with AI has shown us that its true potential lies in augmenting human capabilities.

Rather than replacing employees, AI tools like Dokko help them by handling repetitive tasks and providing real-time assistance, allowing humans to focus on higher-value, creative work.

In the case of onboarding, Dokko ensures that every new hire feels supported and informed, without overwhelming HR staff with routine questions.

The future of onboarding with AI

As AI continues to evolve, so will the ways we use it in everyday business operations. At Mono, we’re excited to keep refining Dokko and exploring new ways it can enhance the employee experience. By combining cutting-edge AI technology with a deep commitment to employee success, Mono is ensuring that its onboarding process remains efficient, engaging, and personalized. With AI at the core of our operations, we believe the future of work isn’t about humans vs. machines. It’s about humans and machines working together, creating a workplace that’s smarter, more efficient, and more supportive for everyone.

In this blog post, we’ve highlighted just one example of how AI and virtual assistants like Dokko are transforming everyday work at Mono. As AI technology continues to advance, the possibilities for improving workflows, enhancing employee experiences, and fostering collaboration are endless.

If you wish to build your own virtual assistant, Dokko is ready to store some new knowledge and help you transform and automate your business.