As a result of the ongoing trend of “the Great Resignation,” where employees are quitting their jobs voluntarily due to various factors such as lack of career growth opportunities and high living expenses, the contact center industry is experiencing the consequences of increased agent attrition and difficulties in onboarding new agents. However, with the emergence of new technology such as cloud-based systems and conversational AI tools, contact centers are now able to enhance their productivity and provide customers with improved experiences.
Dispelling Misconceptions About Contact Centers
The discussion initiated with the aim of refuting prevalent misconceptions surrounding contact centers, starting with the notion that they are entirely transitioning towards digital means, rendering voice calls or agents obsolete. However, call center agents are now both less and more important, as customers often prefer self-service or chatbots initially, but eventually require human interaction, making an agent’s role more critical than ever.
The second myth addressed was the assumption that the “Great Resignation” is a novel phenomenon for contact center agents. In reality, agent attrition has long been prevalent in contact centers and has only been exacerbated by the pandemic.
The Impact of Technology on Modernizing Contact Centers
Before the pandemic, the term “agile” was rarely associated with contact centers, but now, with the ongoing trend of the Great Resignation, businesses are rethinking their operations to improve customer satisfaction.
Contact center leaders have been able to deploy remote working tools and adopt new hiring strategies to attract the best talent. These changes have been made possible by advancements in technology.
While contact centers were previously focused on voice communication, mobile phones have allowed agents to be more flexible and meet the evolving demands of customers.
Conversational AI Empowers Agents to Perform as Super-Agents
Another myth about conversational AI is that it is limited to chatbots, but the technology has a broader application in the contact center industry. Conversational AI can enhance the performance of agents by providing insights into customer identities, sentiments, and emotions. With this information, agents can show empathy and resolve issues more efficiently.
The technology can help agents understand customer sentiment, prevent the risk of dealing with angry customers, and ensure that calls reach the most suitable agent for first-call resolution. Contact centers produce vast amounts of data that cannot be handled by a single person, but AI engines can analyze all the data and listen to every call to turn agents into super-agents.
Conversational AI is also essential for agent retention by promoting the company’s positive culture and commitment to employee and customer success.
Turning the Great Resignation into a Great Opportunity
One positive outcome of the Great Resignation is that it provides a chance for contact centers to enhance their agent experience and operations. Although there may be doubts regarding AI, the technology is now mature and can be leveraged.
However, companies need not rush into deploying AI solutions to address all their contact center challenges. A more effective strategy is to begin with a gradual approach and move from testing to implementing AI tools to understand the benefits of conversational AI.
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