AI won't displace contact centre agents significantly until 2026

According to new research released by Cavell, the customer service (CX) industry is not expected to see a significant reduction in the number of contact centre agents due to the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) until after 2026.

The Q2 2024 CCaaS Market Evolution Report conducted interviews with leading CCaaS (Contact Centre as a Service) and contact centre providers from companies of various sizes across the UK, Western Europe, and the US. The research aimed to provide a comprehensive understanding of the future of contact centres.

One key finding of the report is that although companies are keen to experiment with AI-powered systems, their primary focus remains on using these systems to assist agents rather than entirely replace them. The industry continues to struggle with trusting automation beyond the scope of agent assistance and still depends on agent confirmation to verify the information and recommendations made by AI systems.

Finbarr Begley, Senior Analyst at Cavell, commented, “AI and Automation are the big talking points in CX for 2024; however, the reality is slower than the hype. Companies are still wary of the technology and mostly looking to deploy it initially to augment human actions rather than in fully automated systems. This strategy will keep humans actively in the loop to catch mistakes before reaching customers."

"The next stage for companies in the automation journey will be using advanced data analytics to tailor customer journeys and building trust in the automated solutions with customers and employees alike," said Begley.

The report also delves into other trends affecting the CCaaS marketplace. One highlighted trend is the ongoing pressure of technology convergence, which is intensifying competition between companies that have not traditionally been competitors. Another focus area is the complexity involved in properly deploying AI-enabled integrated technology solutions.

Additionally, the research forecasts that the total value of the UK’s CCaaS market will reach USD $564 million by 2028. There is also a projection for the number of agent jobs expected to be lost to automation and the growth in cloud contact centre solutions.

The report underscores a growing focus on the SME market within the CX industry. There has been an increase in the availability of off-the-shelf SME-focused packages, which is expected to drive further market growth. This shift indicates an industry trend towards making sophisticated customer engagement tools more accessible to smaller enterprises.