CFSA is excited to welcome Hugues Mailhot, Vice-President, Sales and Marketing, Explorai to speak at the 2025 CFSA Annual Convention in Cleveland OH April 6-8. 
As the funeral industry evolves, suppliers of caskets and funeral products must adapt to increasing demands for efficiency, personalization, and digital transformation. This session explores five critical use cases where artificial intelligence (AI) can optimize operations, improve customer experience, and enhance supply chain agility:
- Automating Administrative Tasks – AI tools for order processing, invoicing, inventory management, and scheduling.
- AI-Enhanced Customer Interaction & Product Selection – Chatbots for customer support, virtual assistants for funeral directors, and AI-driven product recommendations to help families select caskets, urns, and related items.
- Generative AI for Personalized Services – AI-assisted obituary writing and AI-powered tools to help families design custom ceremonies and memorial products.
- Predictive Analytics for Demand Forecasting – AI models to anticipate market demand, optimize inventory, and reduce waste.
- Digitalization & Heritage Preservation – AI solutions for digitizing funeral records and creating interactive memorial experiences.
AI is not about replacing human expertise; it is a tool that enables suppliers to streamline processes, reduce costs, and better anticipate market needs. However, implementing AI solutions in the funeral industry requires ethical considerations, particularly when dealing with bereavement-sensitive products and services.
Learning objectives:
- Understand how AI can enhance efficiency, reduce costs, and improve service delivery in the funeral supply chain.
- Explore ethical considerations when implementing AI in a sensitive industry.
- Learn how predictive analytics can optimize inventory management and production planning.
- Discover AI-driven solutions for product personalization, obituary generation, and customer engagement.
- Gain actionable insights into leveraging AI to enhance business competitiveness in the evolving funeral market.
This informative session is included in full conference registration and is sponsored by Victoriaville & Co. Register today at https://www.cfsaa.org/annual-conference/.