The traditional contact center agent, who focuses on reading scripts and following rigid processes, is becoming obsolete. In fact, 95% of contact center leaders believe that AI will enable agents to focus on more complex, unique customer interactions, according to a CCW Digital report. But what does that look like in practice?
Imagine a customer service interaction where agents actively listen, understand the nuance of the problem and use their expertise and experience to find a unique solution. That’s the role of the consultative agent.
While this shift frees agents from repetitive, clerical work, it’s not an automatic process. Culture, systems and skills must evolve too.
In a recent webinar, “Empowering the Consultative Agent with Next-Gen Technology,” TaskUs Sr. Director for Consulting and Digital Transformation, Joe Anderson and CCW Digital Managing Director, Brian Cantor, explore this critical transformation and what it takes to define and support this new agent archetype.
Here are three takeaways from their conversation:
1. Agents will need a ‘higher degree of judgment’
Traditionally, agents strictly follow written guidelines as quality metrics and performance depend on it. But Brian warns that, “The second you make an agent follow a very rigid robotic process is the second you essentially take the human out of them.”
In a consultative role, agents must be able to understand why a customer is frustrated and apply the right level of EQ in order to help them. New skills and competencies, like active listening and empathy, are key for this shift. Additionally, policies must be flexible.
“Organizations that have a true customer focus give their agents the autonomy to go beyond in decision making and do what’s right by the customer in that moment,” according to Joe.
2. Technology should augment, not replace
AI is great at answering repetitive tasks and providing scripted answers for things like payment due dates or forgotten passwords. But even simple issues may still require human intervention.
“Consumers are typically fine with self-service except when the technology breaks down… there might be some bug that’s preventing the password reset from working,” Joe explains. “A human has to step in as soon as frustration kicks in, ideally before the interaction gets highly emotionally charged.”
Technology also makes the work easier by providing all the necessary information in one place, for example. As Joe points out, “We have to use automation to target parts of the agent experience that stand in the way of making them more empowered and more human.”
3. Metrics for success and value are evolving
Agent performance has been based on productivity, average handle time and QA scores that focused on whether they followed the process). As the role becomes more consultative, KPIs are shifting toward customer satisfaction (CSAT) and net promoter scores (NPS).
Organizations must recognize that customers are entering interactions with more complex and emotionally charged issues, so even the way companies evaluate CSAT and NPS also has to change.
The value of a consultative agent also goes beyond transactional metrics like upsells and cross-sells. As Brian explains, “When people believe in a brand, they’re inherently going to want to buy more.” Loyal customers will also have fewer questions, which then creates operational savings for an organization.
Joe adds, ”Creating happy customers creates a much bigger feedback loop than transactional interactions simply focused on another sale.”
Tune in to the discussion for the full playbook.
