Upcoming Trends in the Contact Center Industry

• The Cloud: While The Cloud has been on the scene for a while now, we can expect to see more and more movement from on-site equipment to the cloud. In fact, a recent article from GARTNER on the Top Tech Trends for 2015 had this to say:

“Cloud is the new style of elastically scalable, self-service computing, and both internal applications and external applications will be built on this new style,” David Cearley, vice president and Gartner Fellow said. “While net­work and bandwidth costs may con­tinue to favor apps that use the intel­ligence and storage of the client device effectively, coordination and manage­ment will be based in the cloud.”

I am in full agreement with the two above mentioned sources in regards to the trends we can expect to see in 2015. The question for me and others in my position is: “Are we ready for these changes?” I believe we are; for if there is one thing those of us in this tech­nology-driven industry have learned in recent years, it is that changes will come quickly and the more adaptable and nimble your systems are the better chance you have of keeping up with all the change.

However, another question that we must ask ourselves is, “Is our staff able to quickly and readily adapt to these changes?” By readily I mean, do my staff and your staff embrace the change or do they resist it? Change can be hard for everyone and as human beings, we have an inherent dislike for change. However, one qual­ity that we strive to foster in our staff is that of “embracing change” and seeing it as an opportunity to increase our knowl­edge and skill set rather than seeing it as something to be endured. We do this through strong in­ternal communication as well as pro­viding ample training in areas where technology demands new skills. Ensur­ing that everyone feels equipped to deal with technological advances is impera­tive to a seamless transition.

“Ours is an industry driven by technology and therefore, it is imperative that we make a priority in monitoring coming trends and implementing the changes that technology dictates”

In my years as an executive leader, I have also observed that the generation known as, “The Millennials” are sharp and intuitive when it comes to technol­ogy. Look to engage your “Millenni­als” in the teaching of new technolo­gies to others. Not only will you raise a highly-capable training staff, but you will also equip your next generation of leaders.

vement is imperative in all aspects of customer service. Analyzing customer behavior, agent skills, interaction distribution and service KPI’s, require investments in analytical systems.  Service analytics are your “Eye in the Sky” in achieving service goals.

The top 5 strategies above are the start of a “Re-Emergence” strategy that focuses on the customer, not just the distribution and automation.  Great customer service tends to be when service is simple, anticipated and intelligent. Re-emergence needs to refocus on the fundamentals, which make up a great experience, like the Record Industry is realizing about vinyl records.