CONNECTING THE CUSTOMERS
BY BRENDAN READ, CONTACT CENTER PIPELINE; Q & A WITH EXPERT PANEL
KEEPING THE CUSTOMER INTERACTION TRAIN ON TRACK
AI IS NOW HELPING CUSTOMERS MOVE FORWARD.
ILLUSTRATION PROVIDED BY ADOBE IMAGES
Customer interactions can be likened to railroad cars in a train being pulled by a locomotive. Each interaction, like the train, is on a journey, and each customer has a destination, like the cars that are carrying the products. On locomotive-powered trains, couplers or drawbars enable the railroad cars to move forward by transmitting the energy from the locomotive( s) propulsion systems. Contact centers perform a similar function with customer interactions. The agents( human and now AI) pull the customers along.
But how the trains and contact centers perform depends on many factors: like the power of the companies that are moving them, operational environments, and the tightness of their connections. They share the challenges of avoiding splitting apart or, worse yet, derailments.
To find out how the customer interaction train is moving, to see how clear the track is, but also to look forward and respond to any troublesome issues, we had virtual conversations with our panel of industry supplier experts. They are:
• Sarita Fernandes, Vice President, Product Management, Avaya
• Lisa Orford, Global Vice President, Product Management, Contact Center, 8x8
• Sarika Prasad, Director, Product Marketing, Five9
24 CONTACT CENTER PIPELINE