Salesforce[1] has published[2] the fourth edition of its State of Service[3] report, based on a survey of over 7,000 customer service agents, decision-makers, dispatchers, and mobile workers across 33 countries. The report covers a wide range of topics including the shift to digital channels, remote work, and field operations.
What interested me the most, however, are findings on how the pandemic has accelerated the transformation of customer service[4] from a necessary cost center to a strategic asset -- and the implications that have for digital transformation. As agents are called on to act as strategic advisors to customers with complex issues, automation of the more routine processes that once defined the role is on the rise. That, combined with a clearer understanding of the role artificial intelligence[5] (AI) will play in the years to come, hints at exciting things to come.
Customer Service Volume - and Complexity - Is Up
The public health emergency and resulting economic crisis that shocked the world left no industry or role untouched. Marketing spend plummeted[6] as corporate bankruptcies reached their highest level[7] since The Great Recession, leaving many workers on edge about their job security. But those working in customer support may feel relatively secure given how these very events upped the demand for their services.
Whether to navigate change policies for trips they could no longer take, manage orders of products that made life at home more enjoyable, or process new unemployment claims, the public flooded[8] service channels during 2020. In fact, the majority (54%) of respondents to the Salesforce survey reported an increase