New Survey: AI Dominating Customer Engagement Automation Strategies, Necessitating a Pivot to Open Platforms for Contact Centers

Rhea-AI Summary

Verint's study reveals that contact center leaders prioritize AI and digital channels over telephony for CX automation. The report highlights the challenges faced by contact centers and the importance of openness, automation, and AI in delivering exceptional customer experiences. However, the survey shows dissatisfaction with current CCaaS solutions and the need for more efficient and flexible platforms.

Positive

• Contact center leaders prioritize AI and digital channels over telephony for CX automation
• Importance of openness, automation, and AI in delivering exceptional customer experiences
• Verint delivers an open CX automation platform for agile, scalable omnichannel customer engagement with data and AI at its core

Negative

• Survey shows dissatisfaction with current CCaaS solutions
• First-generation, telephony centric CCaaS solutions underperform in omnichannel engagement, reducing administrative burdens, and leveraging engagement data
• Less than half of the respondents are satisfied with the use of AI, automation, and bots for self-service and agent-assisted tasks

MELVILLE, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- A new Verint study reveals only 10 percent of contact center leaders believe telephony will have an impact on CX automation over the next 12 months while 53 percent indicated artificial intelligence (AI) and 23 percent said digital channels will be the driving forces behind their CX automation efforts.

The survey of 300 contact center leaders in the U.S., U.K., Australia and New Zealand, was conducted by Verint^® (NASDAQ: VRNT) and sheds light on current and emerging contact center challenges. The report specifically looks at the critical role of openness, automation and AI in addressing how brands need to do more with less while simultaneously elevating CX. It evaluates the use of Contact Center as a Service (CaaS) solutions and their effectiveness in an era where AI is playing a starring role in customer engagement transformation.

The survey shows that first-generation, telephony centric CCaaS solutions are failing to create a more efficient contact center and under perform in three ways: 1) poor support for omnichannel engagement; 2) no effective mechanism for reducing administrative burdens on the contact center; and 3) engagement data isn’t leveraged or optimized.

In addition, 75 percent of survey respondents said they leverage CCaaS solutions for customer engagement. However, the survey results show that many leaders are not satisfied with the performance of their CCaaS solutions. For example, 80 percent of those surveyed felt that using AI, automation and bots for self-service and agent-assisted tasks are important features but less than half (41%) are satisfied with their current solutions. Along the same lines, 82 percent feel easy integration into third-party systems is important, but only 46 percent are satisfied with this capability in their organization.

“Our research underscores the imperative for contact centers to embrace openness in their technology platforms,” says Verint’s Jenni Palocsik, vice president, marketing insights, experience and enablement. “The shift from telephony-first to AI-driven solutions is evident, and organizations that prioritize flexibility and innovation will lead the way in delivering exceptional customer experiences now and in the future.”

Verint delivers an open CX automation platform for agile, scalable omnichannel customer engagement with data and AI at its core. The platform enables businesses to choose applications based on their needs, access comprehensive engagement data, and augment their human workforce with specialized AI-powered bots. This approach enhances agent and customer experiences by unifying engagement data, ensuring continuous AI training, and augmenting the human workforce with specialized AI-powered bots.

Download the full Open CCaaS Advantage Report. Visit Verint Open CCaaS Platform to learn more.

Methodology

The survey was conducted from mid-October to mid-November 2023. Participants were selected from an invitation only, business-to-business research panel and were required to have a role of director, vice-president, senior vice president, executive vice-president or C-level executive. Their main job responsibilities had to be related to the contact center at organizations in the U.S., U.K. and Australia with contact centers having at least 500 employees.

About Verint

Verint^® (NASDAQ: VRNT) helps the world’s most iconic brands continuously elevate the customer experience (CX) and reduce operating costs. More than 10,000 organizations in 175 countries – including over 85 of the Fortune 100 companies – rely on Verint’s open customer engagement platform to harness the power of data and AI to maximize CX automation.

Verint, The Customer Engagement Company^®, is proud to be Certified™ by Great Place To Work^®. Learn more at Verint.com.

This press release contains “forward-looking statements,” including statements regarding expectations, predictions, views, opportunities, plans, strategies, beliefs, and statements of similar effect relating to Verint Systems Inc. These forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and they are based on management's expectations that involve a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions, any of which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by the forward-looking statements. For a detailed discussion of these risk factors, see our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2023, and other filings we make with the SEC. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date of this press release and, except as required by law, Verint assumes no obligation to update or revise them or to provide reasons why actual results may differ.

VERINT, VERINT DA VINCI, VERINT OPEN CCAAS, THE CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT COMPANY, BOUNDLESS CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT, AND THE ENGAGEMENT CAPACITY GAP are trademarks of Verint Systems Inc. or its subsidiaries. Verint and other parties may also have trademark rights in other terms used herein.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240206871686/en/

Media Relations

Sue Huss

sue.huss@verint.com

Investor Relations

Matthew Frankel

matthew.frankel@verint.com

Source: Verint

FAQ

What did the Verint study reveal about the impact of telephony on CX automation?

Only 10 percent of contact center leaders believe telephony will have an impact on CX automation over the next 12 months.

What percentage of contact center leaders indicated artificial intelligence as a driving force behind CX automation efforts?

53 percent indicated artificial intelligence as a driving force behind their CX automation efforts.

What are the main challenges highlighted in the Verint study?

The study highlights challenges related to poor support for omnichannel engagement, reducing administrative burdens, and leveraging engagement data in first-generation, telephony centric CCaaS solutions.

What percentage of survey respondents said they leverage CCaaS solutions for customer engagement?

75 percent of survey respondents said they leverage CCaaS solutions for customer engagement.

What is the main area of dissatisfaction with current CCaaS solutions according to the survey?

Less than half (41%) are satisfied with their current solutions for using AI, automation, and bots for self-service and agent-assisted tasks.

Who conducted the survey and when was it conducted?

The survey was conducted by Verint from mid-October to mid-November 2023.

What is the main focus of Verint's open CX automation platform?

Verint's open CX automation platform focuses on agile, scalable omnichannel customer engagement with data and AI at its core.