Working from home (WFH) came into its own five years ago last spring when the COVID-19 pandemic struck. But contact centers were using WFH on a limited scale before then: which was why they were faster to go remote than other business functions when offices were suddenly closed.
Lately, companies and governments have been pressuring remote-working employees to return to the office (RTO). But flexibility, worker appeal, real estate cost savings, and yes disaster responsiveness has given WFH staying power, notably on a part-time hybrid basis. A development that is being aided and abetted by advanced, including artificial intelligence (AI)-driven technologies.
Tim Houlne, CEO of Humach, is one of those contact center WFH pioneers. He used evolving technologies to make that work method successful. So, to understand where WFH has been – and where it is going - here is our (virtual of course) interview with Tim.
Q. You have been involved with contact center remote work/WFH for over 30 years. How did WFH begin in the contact center? What led companies to look at it? What was it used for? What were the benefits and the challenges back then?
You’re right; I saw the WFH opportunity early on because we thought it could solve a number of corporate objectives, including cost efficiency, talent acquisition, flexibility (like for seasonal demand), and longer service windows.
Once companies realized they could improve the customer experience (CX) with a better cost structure while maintaining workforce control, the rest was easy.
I also saw that WFH could help companies respond to disasters, like hurricanes. Along with the potential of broadband networks, VoIP, cloud computing (contact center-as-a-service or CCaaS, CRM), collaboration, and remote support, all of which were in their infancy then, to enable remote working.
“...major parts of the economy are still working from home at least part time.” —Tim Houlne
But like all innovations, WFH adoption takes time because it’s a different mental model. It breaks corporate norms. But once that dam breaks, there’s no stopping a good idea.
Q. How did companies initially deploy WFH for contact center applications?
At first, companies used WFH for contact center applications as a response to various challenges as I had outlined. Here are the methods they selected.
On-Staff Agents gained popularity for core services where continuity, training, and strong company knowledge were essential. Companies that needed to maintain quality control leaned towards this model.
BPO On-Staff Agents increased in popularity as businesses sought to balance cost efficiency with quality service offerings. Many companies preferred this for ongoing, high-volume customer service applications without the overhead of permanent hires.
BPO Independent Contractors (ICs) became favored due to their high flexibility. They were ideal for specialized projects, short-term needs, or when testing new markets without commitments to long-term employment.
Q. There were new BPO companies that were formed using in-house and ICs WFH agents. Did companies choose to outsource them because they did not want/were not sure how best to set up and manage WFH on-staff agents? OR because they were an alternative to on-premise BPOs?
It was a combination. In both cases they sought ease of management, flexibility, scalability, cost control, and access to talent. Outsourcing became very popular, obviously, as a means of rapid scale and was ideal for cyclical businesses.
In other situations, more captive teams could provide more consistency and expertise which helped customer interactions.
Q. Outline the growth of WFH in the contact center. Did it occur in a straight line or in stages or waves? What were the key events and developments?
1990s: Early Adoption
- Companies began experimenting with remote agents, primarily in telemarketing and customer service niches. They were limited by technology and internet connectivity, which hindered widespread adoption. Most contact centers operated on-premise.
2000s: Gradual Acceptance
- Advancements in technology, in particular, improvements in internet speed, VoIP, and CRM made remote operations more viable. A number of businesses initiated pilot programs for remote agents, particularly during peak seasons. This was also the birth of BPOs in WFH.
2010s: Significant Growth
- More companies recognized the benefits of remote contact centers, such as lower overhead costs and improved employee satisfaction. And the rise of cloud-based solutions facilitated seamless remote operations. Remote work was no longer a crazy idea. It was now mainstream.
2020: COVID-19 Pandemic
- The pandemic accelerated WFH, and within a couple of months nearly everyone was working remotely. They quickly adopted and became proficient in new tools like video meeting and collaboration applications.
Post-2020: Ongoing Evolution
- Long after the pandemic, major parts of the economy are still working from home at least part time. This gives organizations a high level of flexibility.
Q. Where do you see the state of WFH today and where is it going?
I think it is far less about WFH and far more about asking what provides the best CX. And that’s where AI comes in. The same thing about AI is true that has been true throughout this entire movement: whatever makes tasks easier for the worker can improve the CX.
“How can new technologies...help those workers - including remote workers - be more effective?”
I estimate that 30% of workplace tasks can be automated, and call centers and other customer-facing organizations that are equipped with AI stand to win. And that’s not necessarily to the detriment of employees. AI agents can and do help them today and will do so tomorrow.
But companies need a strategy to use these human workers to make their AI agents smarter and more effective. This will lead to a wave of upskilling frontline workers to be “AI Whisperers” who understand and effectively use the technology.
Q. Many companies now require RTO. Where does that leave remote working, including in the contact center? Is WFH doomed?
I do not believe WFH is doomed because the benefits of the model far outweigh 100% RTO. I have always believed in a hybrid approach to WFH and work from office, depending on the requirements for specific businesses and verticals.
AI and automation will cause a restructuring of jobs and skills and the benefits from using the world as your recruiting pool are undeniable. If it offers a competitive advantage, companies will continue to embrace WFH.
Q. The Trump Administration wants to onshore jobs. Will that also mean contact center work? If so, do you see opportunities for onshore BPOs to pick up business that had been nearshored/offshored and have the calls handled by WFH agents? Or will more of those calls be automated?
AI and automation will take the place of many near- or offshore jobs that leveraged labor arbitrage. The bigger question is how many contact center jobs can be replaced with digital agents? 40% - 60%? 90%?
AI Agents are now built with specific skills. An agent built for healthcare can instantly talk to billing systems, patient records, and insurance databases without custom code, unlocking thousands of new opportunities to automate workflows. You still need a human in the loop (HITL), but digital agents can do so much more than simply collect and disseminate information like the contact center of the past.
Q. With the downsizing of the federal government, do you see opportunities for WFH BPOs, including ICs, to pick up some of the work, like the customer service of those departments? Or do you foresee the federal government automating with AI more of those jobs?
I believe there will be a shift to AI and automation first, including at the federal and state governments.
This creates a new opportunity for outsourcers that are not afraid to cannibalize their existing labor businesses. AI systems still need tuners, conversational design specialists, prompt engineers, bias testing, ethical review, etc., all requiring HITL.
Q. Some states have, and have sought, to regulate ICs. What has been and will be the impacts on the costs and viability of the IC BPO model?
I don’t think the IC model is going away; the gig workforce is here to stay. The fundamentals of IC versus employee are still the same from management of the workforce and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) standpoints, so building and maintaining an IC business model will not change. There are too many businesses that leverage ICs to put that genie back in the bottle.
Q. Disasters also affect WFH agents. What are the best practices to protect WFH agents and to ensure continuity?
Business continuity is a major advantage of a distributed workforce, WFH or not. Kind of like a redundant network, if one node gets knocked out, data can be rerouted. I saw that in the natural disasters this year.
The flooding tragedy that unfolded in Asheville, N.C., last year for example, was devastating for WFH workers in that area. But if they were part of a distributed workforce, the company could continue to operate.
This year we’ve seen hurricanes, flooding, wildfires in urban areas, and massive winter events. Businesses would be well-suited to consider the likelihood of these events in continuity planning.
So, here’s what companies need to ask:
- Where are your workers?
- What technology can empower and protect their work?
- Where is your data stored? What redundancies do you have built in?
- How can AI agents help pick up slack when there are inevitable interruptions?
Q. What are your recommendations to contact centers that are looking to maintain and grow their use of WFH?
I think contact centers should be thinking more broadly beyond WFH. How can new technologies, particularly Agentic AI, help those workers - including remote workers - be more effective? How can AI help provide a better CX overall? And what can call centers do to help upskill workers to participate in the AI economy?
The truth about AI is that it can’t operate today in a vacuum. It needs training and tuning and oversight. That’s where call center employees can come in if they are properly upskilled in so-called, “AI Tuner” or “AI Whisperer” programs.