It’s no secret that contact center operations are becoming more complex. An increasing number of channels, combined with multiple CRM systems and homegrown applications, makes it increasingly difficult for contact centers to manage data and serve up the right information, at the right time, to agents.

In Bright Pattern’s recent survey of contact center decision makers, 40% of respondents said they use three or more systems to handle channels in the contact center.

The Typical Contact Center

Having multiple disparate systems is just inefficient, adding time and frustration to daily interaction handling. You can see what that looks like in practice in this typical contact center scenario:

1. Agents need to log in to multiple interfaces at different times of day to support changing volumes in one channel or another
2. Customer data is spread across multiple systems, making it difficult for agents to build a picture of the customer’s context
3. Agents have to navigate between multiple screens on a cluttered desktop as they attempt to handle multiple interactions simultaneously
4. Contact center performance suffers as agents burn up time searching for the information that the customer wants
5. Customers get frustrated at having to repeat information if their inquiry is routed from one channel or agent to another
6. The customer experience is inconsistent and becomes dependent on an individual agent’s knowledge, case volume, and access to complete customer data

The Empowered Contact Center

So, how do you overcome these limitations? Build your contact center on the agent empowerment model model, which focuses on simplifying access to the tools and data that agents need to solve customer problems faster and more accurately.

After all, empowered agents don’t necessarily need more tools—they need better ones. The agent’s desktop is the cornerstone. It should facilitate better conversations, help agents handle more complex inquiries, and boost their productivity.

Your Tools & Tech Checklist

When evaluating best-in-class tools for your agents, ask yourself these questions:

• Do your agents have access to unified information that offers all needed customer data within a single screen?
• How easy is it to provide agents with context data such as customer profile and history that might be scattered across multiple applications and CRM systems?
• Can your agents quickly and seamlessly switch between channels and provide a consistent level of service to customers?
• Do the tools enable agents to find relevant information quickly and provide access to shared knowledge and peer expertise?
• Do your tools support a real-time, closed-loop feedback, so that agents can continuously embrace and improve best practices?

With the right tools combined with improved training and better self-service, empowered agents can focus less on looking for information and more on serving the customer.

Learn more by downloading our e-book.