By 2028, not one of the Fortune 500 companies will have fully eliminated human customer service, according to Gartner.
Despite widespread speculation surrounding the replacement of customer service jobs with AI agents, Gartner experts say that a completely agentless future is both unlikely and undesirable.
“AI and automation are transforming how customer service organisations serve customers, but human agents are irreplaceable when it comes to handling nuanced situations and building lasting relationships,” says Kathy Ross, senior director analyst in the Gartner Customer Service & Support practice.
“We expect fewer human agents, but not completely agentless organisations,” Ross adds. “The most successful organisations are those that balance technology with the human touch – redeploying their teams to focus on growth and customer satisfaction.”
Gartner further predicts that by 2027, 50% of organisations that expected to significantly reduce their service workforce due to AI will drop these plans as many will have failed to achieve their agentless staffing goals.
Rather than pursuing aggressive headcount reductions, organisations should use technology to scale support and empower agents to deliver more meaningful customer experiences.
“Service and support leaders should leverage AI for efficiency, but not at the expense of human talent,” says Ross. “While AI excels at handling routine and well-defined problems, it often struggles with exceptions and high-risk scenarios. Leaders who strategically focus their workforce to support complex, high-value customer interactions will set their organisations apart and drive long-term growth and satisfaction.”