How have Contact Centers evolved?
Contact Centers, as we knew them earlier, have undergone a remarkable transformation over the years. Once confined to simple telephonic interactions, they have evolved into omnichannel experiences for customers. The technological shift has been gradual, and the phase of evolution is still ongoing. The phases of the evolution of contact centers can be categorized into the following larger stages:
What have been the significant changes in approach/technology over the years?
- Single channel to omnichannel: Movement from telephone-based customer support to multichannel, including email and live chat, to now delivering omnichannel customer experiences with personalized experiences
- Major technological shifts: Automatic call distributor technology, toll-free numbers, internet – websites, email and social media platforms led to the need for an Omni channel. The movement from on-prem to cloud, reactive to proactive and the need for customer journey tracking and AI-powered interactions has led to further developments
What are the major technologies that will make an impact in the future?
Customer care leaders are facing their greatest challenge now. They now need to prepare their organizations for an AI-enabled future while meeting ever-high customer expectations.
Leading analyst firm Gartner revealed that three key technologies that are likely to have a transformative impact on future customer service and support include:
While these three technologies are pivotal for success, customer care leaders should also look at analyzing their customer care functions and embed other key technologies / trends in the design; other key technologies / trends that should form a part of their analysis should include
Source: Gartner Hype Cycle for Customer Service and Support Technologies (2023)
Gauging the market movement – The Market Pulse
As cloud delivery, the need for digital channels, conversational AI maturation, and connected and personalized customer experiences amplify, a market movement is witnessed toward new-age contact centers and new tech capabilities. Still, there is a long way to go; the market potential for contact center technologies and spending is expected to reach $34.6 Bn by 2026
| Particulars | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 | CAGR% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CCI Licenses, Software and Services | $6570 Mn. | $5725 Mn. | $6385 Mn. | $6162 Mn. | $5613 Mn. | $5214 Mn. | $4400 Mn. | -5.1% |
| CCaaS Licenses, Software and Services | $5481 Mn. | $7166 Mn. | $8947 Mn. | $10899 Mn. | $12657 Mn. | $14453 Mn. | $16311 Mn. | 17.9% |
| Conversational AI and Virtual assistant | $332 Mn. | $920 Mn. | $1988 Mn. | $3582 Mn. | $6027 Mn. | $9444 Mn. | $13925 Mn. | 72.2% |
Source: Forecast Analysis: Contact Center, Worldwide by Gartner
What is creating the demand-pull?
- Workplace policies: Support for hybrid and remote workplace policies, along with maturing provider offers, will accelerate cloud contact center adoption
- Maturing AI innovation: Conversational AI maturation will accelerate contact center replacement by 10% through 2026 as organizations look at operational efficiencies
- Movement towards CCaaS: Cloud-based contact centers enable quick multichannel customer engagement. CCaaS is expected to represent 49% of the global agents worldwide by 2026
Leader's factbook – How Leaders should look at redesigning their contact center and customer experience?
The next couple of years will witness a major disruption. The disruption that we are looking ahead to is a transition from a care paradigm nurtured by agents to one managed and steered by AI technologies.
While the change is evident, imbibing it into the business structure will not be easy for business leaders. Internal business challenges related to rising call volumes, high levels of employee attrition and persistent talent shortages can become significant if not managed properly.
Hence, business leaders must juggle multiple priorities and define a path that best suits their business interests.
Source: McKinsey-Where is customer care in 2024?
The key to success lies in focusing on three core strategies: Reprioritizing core operations, Creating a future-ready AI ecosystem and rethinking skills.
- Reprioritizing core operations: Focus on phone conversations remains important while the flexibility of digital channels at an optimum cost structure
- Future Ready AI: Optimum use of Chatbots, large language models, customer intelligence from conversations, customer experience personalization
- Rethinking Skills: Agent assistance, knowledge-based searchability, automated post-call summary and connected ecosystem
