National Contact Centre Day recognises the crucial role contact centres play in the UK economy, celebrates the professionals who bring them to life, and inspires future talent to consider the sector as a rewarding career path. But is that all changing with AI?
Around one million people work in contact centre operations in the UK. They are at the frontline of customer experience, responsible for providing 24/7 support, solving complex problems and delivering care at critical moments. Despite this, “the role is not often viewed as an exciting one,” starts Richard Buxton, Technology & Innovation Director – Collaboration at Node4.
“For many, it evokes visions of the packed call centre offices of the past, full of ringing phones and clamouring voices. Even modern contact centres with their omnichannel capabilities are sometimes seen to be quite repetitive – especially for entry level workers.”
Paul Thomas, SVP EMEA at Aiphoria, agrees that technology hasn’t always helped make the work more interesting. “For decades, companies were vigorously trying to automate every single step of the human-to-human interaction to optimise costs and squeeze as much as possible from the call-center operators.
“Layers of rigid old school automation made it nearly impossible for a customer to get through to a real human, while operators were stripped away of any agency and creativity of problem-solving in order to follow strict guidelines. What resulted was service that was mediocre at best, and a job that was not at all fulfilling; this is not the way forward.”
AI: Your new coworker
Contact centres are now looking to AI to improve customer service and fulfil the low-effort, mundane roles that would have typically fallen to entry level workers. This has led to growing fears that artificial intelligence could make contact centre roles obsolete, with Gartner predicting that AI will autonomously resolve 80% of common customer service issues by 2029.
“Don’t fear – this doesn’t mean workers are being replaced!,” counters Node4’s Buxton. “With AI agents handling the simplest customer queries, human agents will transition to ‘exception handlers’, trusted with supporting on more complex issues. These will require the depth of knowledge and empathetic approach that makes human agents invaluable – and provide a key opportunity for agents to level up their skills and expertise.”
“AI can provide additional support for agents when complex requests come in, providing key information as and when it’s needed to help reduce research-induced wait times while on calls,” agrees Russell Attwood, CEO of Route 101. “With this, and the automation of simpler tasks, agents are able to focus on the more engaging and complex cases that require the human touch. This leads to the job becoming a more skilled and interesting role.”
“Perhaps one of the most impactful implementations of AI in contact centres is in triage,” notes Jay Fitzhenry, Technology & Innovation Director – Digital at Node4. “AI agents can support in resolving a query as soon as it arises or escalating the issue to a human agent if the request is more complex. This approach ensures customers receive help in a timely manner with a level of expertise that befits the situation. Even if AI can’t resolve a customer issue itself, it remains valuable as a ‘co-pilot’ to human agents.”
“AI is not removing the human from the contact centre, it is reshaping and rehumanising their role within it,” furthers Aiphoria’s Thomas. “History shows that each technological leap, from the PC to the smartphone, created new professions at scale. AI will do the same, with human oversight remaining as crucial as ever before.
“In fact, we are already seeing new roles emerging alongside AI agents, including AI trainers and prompt managers. With strong human-in-the-loop strategies, contact centres can become places where technology handles the volume and people deliver the value. The question is not ‘Will AI take our jobs?’, but rather ‘How will AI transform our jobs?’”
That said, Route 101’s Russell Attwood cautions that “implementing AI technology is not a blanket fix-all solution, and must be done with care. Businesses cannot just add AI into their existing infrastructure and hope it sticks. Organisations should completely overhaul their operational strategies, updating performance metrics to provide support to employees so they can work effectively alongside AI. This means taking the focus away from traditional measurements such as Average Handling Time and focusing on providing dedicated customer service.”
The competitive advantage
Despite the benefits, there is still mixed sentiment around AI technology, with many organisations concerned about the potential customer or employee backlash from AI implementation.
Node4’s Fitzhenry believes these reservations need to be laid to rest. “Those who lack the same capabilities as their competitors will not be able to provide the same levels of support, resulting in reduced engagements, damaged brand reputation and loss of customers.
“These companies will also risk losing their most skilled workers to other contact centres that offer agents the opportunities to work with the latest technologies, build their skills and, ultimately, have a more exciting career. The lack of skilled agents coupled with a declining customer base will cause those who fail to embrace AI to fall behind and fade into obscurity.
“To remain competitive, contact centres can’t bury their heads in the sand,” he concludes “Starting out on an AI journey can be a daunting task, but they don’t have to go it alone – with the right technology partner to guide them, they can fully upgrade their systems and upskill their workforce to ensure they are operating on a competitive level. When it comes to AI, the situation is clear – the risks of non-adoption are simply too high to overlook.”