Recently, I had the privilege of serving as a judge at the 19th Management Exposed Business Plan Competition 2024, hosted by the Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Indonesia (FEB UI). This experience provided fascinating insights into the convergence of human expertise and artificial intelligence in evaluation processes.

The judging panel brought together diverse expertise spanning HR, finance, business, and operations to evaluate ten pre-selected finalists. Each contestant presented high-value business propositions that sparked engaging discussions among the judges. The evaluation process followed structured criteria and assessment indicators, leading to the selection of winners through collaborative deliberation.

What made this experience particularly noteworthy was my preparatory approach. Prior to the competition, I conducted a thorough analysis of the submitted business plans using both traditional evaluation methods and AI-assisted assessment. The AI system helped analyze and rank the proposals based on objective criteria (though I kept these preliminary rankings private to maintain the independence of the judging process). Interestingly, the final rankings determined by the human panel closely aligned with the AI-generated assessments.

This alignment raises intriguing questions about the future role of AI in evaluation processes. While AI demonstrates remarkable capability in objective analysis, the human element of judging – particularly the nuanced understanding of innovation, market dynamics, and social impact – remains irreplaceable. The rich discussions among judges, drawing from varied professional experiences and intuitive understanding of market realities, brought a depth that current AI systems cannot replicate.

This experience reinforces my belief that while AI will increasingly support decision-making processes, the human element – our ability to sense, feel, and intuitively grasp complex social and market dynamics – remains invaluable in evaluating business innovations.

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