How ABM Industries Uses AI To Support 100,000 Frontline Workers

In this episode we talk about frontline work, safety, AI agents, employee experience, and the tech strategy behind keeping 100,000 workers informed, supported, and confident on the job. Trilok Manchanila from ABM breaks down how AI is changing everything from PTO visibility to multilingual policies to safety alerts that actually prevent incidents. This is real-world AI. Practical. High stakes. And already moving the needle. We discussed: Frontline employees need instant answers, not call-center delays. ABM supports 100,000 workers who serve clients onsite every day. AI agents remove friction by giving PTO, policy, and benefits info instantly. Safety alerts are personalized and triggered by real-world conditions. Standardization is the quiet power move. Every worker gets the same info, same time. Multilingual capabilities eliminate translation delays and increase trust. Retention improves when workers feel supported, not confused. AI reduces ambiguity for workers who represent ABM inside client spaces. Orchestrated AI agents provide the biggest value so far. Choosing the wrong SI partner creates long-term mistrust and slows innovation. Employee confidence and client satisfaction both improve with better guidance. Safety is the next frontier where AI will rewrite the entire playbook. This episode was recorded live at ⁠Oracle AI World 2025⁠ as part of a leadership series defining the world of work and AI Chapters: 00:18 Live at Oracle AI World 00:32 Getting an MBA in AI this week 01:16 Technology and business strategy aligning in real time 02:17 AI evolution outpacing traditional adoption cycles 03:03 People are here to actually learn 04:02 Everyone is talking about AI, not the conference 05:00 Why people feel personally invested in AI problems 05:27 Trilok introduces himself and ABM 06:10 Aligning tech strategy with business strategy 06:35 How fast AI expectations are shifting 07:12 Choosing between LLMs, custom builds, and agents 07:54 Finding the right partner (and what happens if you pick wrong) 09:32 The failure modes companies overlook 10:24 Why mistrust ruins future innovation 11:12 How Oracle’s leadership builds confidence 12:48 ABM’s frontline workforce and mission 13:28 AI for safety guidance and situational alerts 14:26 2 percent of workers calling about PTO equals call-center chaos 15:05 Policy clarity and standardized answers across locations 16:18 How AI changes the employee-client conversation 17:57 Real numbers: retention is improving 18:54 Translation used to take weeks. Now it’s instant. 19:52 Why equality of information builds employee confidence 20:53 Early signs of frontline empowerment 22:12 Safety improvements and future opportunities 24:06 Where AI will drive the biggest gains in the next two years Guest Info Trilok Manchanila, VP Enterprise Architecture and Data, ABM Industries LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/trilok-manchinila-54b3244/ Connect with us William Tincup Linked://www.linkedin.com/in/tincup/ Ryan Leary LinkedIn://www.linkedin.com/in/ryanleary/ Connect with WRKdefined Site: http://www.wrkdefined.com TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wrkdefined LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wrkdefined Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WRKdefined/ Twitter (X): https://twitter.com/WRKdefined Substack: https://wrkdefined.substack.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices