Algorithms at work in the contact centre

Interactive voice recognition (IVR) is a technology that was first used in the 1970s by bank tellers to verify customer balances. It followed other phone technologies such as touch-tone dialing, 1-800 numbers, private branch exchanges (PBX), and is a precursor to the...

The contact centre generation gap

Bruce von Maltitz, co-founder and joint-CEO of 1Stream, discusses the generation gap that is increasingly apparent in the business environment, and how contact centres can evolve to make the most of it. There is a growing repository of literature focussed on the...

Transform the call centre with social media

Digital technology is fast transforming the service providers and communications contact centre industry. Social media engagement has already risen by 23% and phone transactions handled by call centres has dropped by 12%, according to Dimension Data’s 2016...

How chatbots will evolve into practical tools

With research showing that the number of new app downloads is slowing down, it’s clear that customers are becoming pickier about the apps on their phones and tablets. The slowdown also points to a phenomenon of ‘app fatigue’ – we’re...

Technology trends shaping the contact centre

2016, a year that garnered endless negative press, brought significant economic and political upheaval, both in South Africa and internationally. And while these challenges put the local market under severe pressure, with many businesses being forced to downsize, the...

Customer service leaders should be a step ahead

The customer service landscape has become more complex than ever, with various communication channels being introduced. This has presented new methods of interactions between businesses and their customers. When a business is running a contact centre, there are...