AI in customer service operations: The intersection of automation and human empathy
In the world of IT, customer service and support is rapidly changing, even if the core function of the service desk remains unchanged: To provide employee support within the workplace. With the rise of generative AI, we are witnessing a shift in customer service, as traditional IT support evolves into something more dynamic and intelligent.
It's no longer just about solving hardware and software issues. Today, the service desk is an orchestrated hub capable of handling complex, knowledge-based queries, organizational challenges and more. This transformation is opening the door to a new era of human-AI collaboration. Analyst firm IDC is forecasting accelerated AI investment in customer service and IT operations over the next four years.
When automation and advanced AI capabilities coexist harmoniously with human intuition and empathy, it enables us to provide employees with fast, context-aware solutions that still feel personal and considerate.
Why AI customer service matters
For global enterprises, IT service desk operations are often the front-line of employee experience, directly impacting productivity, satisfaction and even business reputation. As issues evolve from simple hardware fixes to navigating intricate knowledge or process-related inquiries, how we provide support must also evolve.
AI has the potential to bring unprecedented automation to customer service, enabling faster resolutions and proactive problem prevention. This ultimately cuts costs and reduces service interruptions.
However, it's not just about efficiency. When facing tough conversations — such as dealing with escalating issues or user frustrations — human empathy is still irreplaceable. A well-designed service desk powered by AI enables agents to focus more on connecting with users, navigating challenging emotions, and ultimately enhancing the user experience. By allowing AI to handle routine customer service tasks and information retrieval, humans can focus on the aspects of the job that require emotional intelligence.
This combined approach ensures financial, operational and reputational quality for businesses, providing holistic customer service that resonates on both a functional and a personal level.
The changing dynamics of the service desk
Today’s contact centers and service desks are evolving quickly due to several factors: technological advances in AI, changing employee expectations, and the increasing complexity of issues presented by end users.
Traditionally, IT service desks handled straightforward queries: password resets, basic troubleshooting, etc. Today, AI has automated much of this, so service desks are now asked to resolve issues like organizational processes, cross-functional knowledge gaps and more nuanced operational bottlenecks.
Integrating AI into customer service operations requires both technology and empathy. No matter what approach you take, the keys are the same: transparency, efficiency and a human touch.
The key drivers of this change include AI's growing ability to handle inputs like text, audio and screen captures, and rising employee expectations for seamless, intelligent support. This shift isn't immediate; it's an ongoing evolution that will see AI gradually integrated into helpdesk tools over the next few years.
The difference will be particularly evident across different geographies and industries, as some markets may be more prepared to implement advanced AI in customer service than others. However, the trend towards AI-driven helpdesk operations is undeniable and will continue to grow globally.
Best practices for implementing AI-driven customer service
So how should a large global organization navigate this change? The key to implementing a successful AI helpdesk is adopting a multi-faceted approach. Technology, of course, is crucial. Integrating AI into customer service operations — through retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) and generative AI capabilities — enables automated, transparent support and better access to up-to-date knowledge.
However, technology alone isn't enough. A complementary shift in culture and strategy is also required. Organizations must not only invest in training service desk agents to use AI tools, but should also enhance their soft skills. Empathy is vital for handling complex user situations.
Training methods should include role-playing exercises to simulate challenging customer interactions, enhanced by AI to provide realistic and adaptive scenarios. Active listening workshops and emotional intelligence assessments can also enable helpdesk agents to understand and respond to user emotions more effectively.
Tailoring AI to your business
Choosing the right approach depends on an organization's specific needs. For some, focusing on automation to reduce manual tasks is key, while others may benefit from enhancing real-time decision support, enabling agents to provide more meaningful assistance.
For instance, integrating ServiceNow and Nexthink with collaboration platforms offers transparency and real-time insights that agents can use during calls or chats to ensure the highest level of support. Moreover, because we are addressing a sensitive workplace context, collaboration and transparency are crucial in any AI customer service implementation.
At Atos, we are keenly aware of the potential privacy and accountability implications of working with AI, among others. That’s why we collaborate closely with scientists, analysts and partners to address these concerns and ensure trusted, ethical AI implementations for our clients.
The future of AI in customer service operations
As outlined above, AI’s role in the IT helpdesk is currently centered around simple, repetitive tasks, but as enterprises grow to become more sophisticated AI users, it will expand.
Future use cases will include augmenting the enterprise knowledge base by extracting insights from archived service tickets using natural language processing. This knowledge can be applied to intelligently triage incoming tickets by priority or severity, as well as ticket categorization and clustering to route them to the right support teams.
Other potential use cases include real-time risk prediction, or further in the future, AI-informed process optimization.
No matter what AI customer service or helpdesk use case you envision, the keys to success are the same. Any AI-driven transformation is built on transparency and efficiency, but the human touch is absolutely essential. To learn more about how Atos is enabling enterprises to implementing AI in their service desk operations, you can find out more about our offerings here.
Posted on: November 5, 2024
Janusz Marcinkowski
Digital Workplace Innovation Consultant
Member, Atos Research Community
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