Contact Centers Understand the Importance of AI But Lack Expertise

Increasingly, enterprises are coming to understand the value of artificial intelligence (AI) in their business solutions. As customer service expectations grow across every type of industry, fast-moving organizations are gaining a competitive edge by using AI and automation to deliver better service and boost productivity.

Notice the phrase “fast moving,” however. Most companies don’t fall into that category, which means that a majority of companies are behind on their AI deployments. 

A recent Talkdesk Research report, “The Future of AI 2022: Progressing AI Maturity in the Contact Center” found a strong consensus on the subject – 85 percent of those interviewed recognized the value of artificial intelligence. Despite that, companies are hedging their approach by continuing to invest, but curbing deeper deployments in the near-term due to challenges around organizational alignment, security, and gaps in talent.

There are plenty of plans for AI under development. Seventy-nine percent of customer experience (CX) professionals say their company plans to increase investments in the year ahead. Fifty-two percent acknowledge that, without AI and automation, customer satisfaction will decrease and 48 percent expect a decline in contact center team productivity. Yet, the use of AI and automation in contact centers has scaled back. for example, their use in self-service declined from 69 percent in 2021 to 60 percent today.

Part of the decline can be explained by a misalignment between goals and reality in AI plans. CX professionals, while acknowledging the value of AI, are less confident in their own understanding of the technology. Those feeling moderately to extremely familiar with AI in the contact center dipped from 93 percent a year ago to 87 percent. Similarly, companies that say their use of AI technology is advanced fell to 35 percent. Resistance to change within organizations and lack of strategic vision were commonly cited hurdles, as was a lack of in-house IT expertise on the topic.

“As contact centers continue to evolve from cost to growth centers, falling short on AI maturity can negatively impact not only the most important contact center KPIs, such as customer satisfaction and productivity, but also broader business goals tied to revenue and lifetime customer value,” said Ben Rigby, Talkdesk SVP and global head of product and engineering, AI, automation, and workforce. “Working closely with a CX technology partner that has deep AI expertise can allow organizations to break through the barriers to deployment and achieve their AI ambitions.”

Edited by Erik Linask