Five9 today announced the results of a survey that found contact centres face major technology gaps and workforce optimisation problems as customer service becomes more complicated post-COVID.
The Five9-sponsored research report, The Contact Center Workforce of the Future, reveals that more than half of contact centres (55%) experienced a higher volume of customer interactions over the last 12 months, just outpacing an increase in contact complexity (47%).
However, survey respondents reported significant customer experience obstacles, including legacy technology (51%), staffing issues (44%), and a lack of integration between digital and voice channels (37%).
Specific workforce and technology challenges uncovered in the research include:
- Respondents’ average rate of agent turnover was 58% year over year, with increased workload and a lack of growth and advancement opportunities cited as the top two reasons for attrition
- Lacking the necessary tools to effectively perform in the position, and repetitive, monotonous tasks had the greatest negative impact on agent performance
- More than a third (35%) of respondents said engaging across all communications channels in a relevant/personalized fashion was a challenge, and 64%indicated that they need to increase the number of agents who support multiple channels
- 92% of respondents believe their agent-facing applications are not as effective as they could be
As the report notes, these findings suggest opportunities for contact centres to embrace a digital workforce of AI-powered assistance for customers and agents. This includes technology such as intelligent virtual agents (IVAs) and real-time agent coaching applications.