“[Fill in the Blank] is the new currency!”

No. Not Bitcoin, Etherium, or even Ripple.

The new currency is: “Attention” (if you’re in Advertising), “Intention” (for Sales) and “Loyalty” (for Marketing). But it is “Autonomy” (for The Rest of Us). That’s why the introduction of Jacada’s new Autonomous CX (Customer Experience) Suite is so timely. Jacada has over 27 years of experience designing self-service solutions for large enterprises and has warmly embraced the idea that the most rewarding experiences for both customers and for agents relies on a certain amount of intelligence augmentation, whereby machines take care of the redundant and boring aspects of support interactions, but largely enable humans to make informed decisions on their own.

Autonomous CX is made possible by Jacada’s core Interact Platform (now on its 10th version). It’s approach and architecture follows the basic idea that the same information and resources and automated processes that are represented on agent screens for assisted service should inform virtual agents and visual IVR systems for self-service instances. Its latest packaging and presentation emphasizes the integration Robotic Process Automation (RPA) to ensure that the routine, repetitive tasks can be handled algorithmically, freeing live agents to act as personal assistants that are capable of tackling more complex (and supposedly) more gratifying tasks.

The value of this approach is quantified as “making contact centers smaller while making customer experience better” which, on its face, sounds like a threat to the employment prospects for both agents and contact center managers. But the opposite turns out to be true, at least in intent. The approach reflects the reality that voice calls into a contact center occur later in a customer’s overall journey than ever before and that they customarily carry with them more urgency. Generic search and discovery of options for both purchase and support of goods and services is carried out through Web search or by navigating a Web site or using a mobile app.

Agents, either live or virtual, are called upon when a customer or prospect has more complex ideas in mind. At this point speed, efficiency and understanding are expected. Companies have to deliver the right answers or recommendations in natural language and at scale. Customers, by definition, are autonomous (our ought to be) and agents, with some intelligent assistance, will find that autonomy approach makes their jobs more rewarding.

Categories: Intelligent Assistants, Articles