Implementing AI is still a tricky task. After all, it takes time to customize an AI model for specific use cases, funnel the data to it, and use that to train the solution.
As such, many vendors are dedicating more resources to increasing the usability of AI. Cisco is no exception and is now making it a prerogative.
Its new “self-learning contact center” vision for its Webex Contact Center underlines this.
With this vision, Cisco will embed more AI into its CCaaS platform, which listens to customer conversations, learns, and empowers the contact center with new capabilities.
Upon the announcement, Cisco introduced two new solutions that bring this vision to life.
First is a “Topic Analysis” tool, which gathers customer transcripts, unearths trends, and presents them to managers using visuals.
The next is an “Agent Answers” solution. This monitors customer conversations and surfaces relevant information for contact center agents to support a successful call resolution.
Agent Answers will also draw insights from a customer’s self-service and conversational AI experiences. It then passes these on to agents when the customer escalates to the contact center – empowering them with more customer context.
While these solutions may underwhelm initially, they are continuously learning. Over time, they will become more intelligent.
It is likely that Cisco will release further many more self-learning AI solutions for CCaaS, having recently required MindMeld and BabbleLabs – increasing its expertise in the arena.
Moreover, it also underlines the vendor’s commitment to an AI-driven future – as did its additional AI solutions, released this week at Enterprise Connect.
Cisco’s Additional AI Innovation for CCaaS and CPaaS
Cisco released two more AI-powered solutions alongside its Topic Analysis and Agent Answers tools. One for its Webex Contact Center and another for Webex Connect.
For its CCaaS platform, it released an “automated chat summaries for agents” tool. This automates summaries of customer conversations on live chat, which reps can lift to streamline post-contact processing.
Then, for its CPaaS platform, there is a tool that leverages generative AI to automate code for rapid customize of customer journeys.
The “low-code flow builder” allows CX leaders to describe a function – such as “validate an email address” – and instantly generates the appropriate code.
With this tool, Cisco hopes to allow CX designers to develop and build upon their customer journeys at speed.
Discussing these innovations, Jeetu Patel, EVP and GM, Security and Collaboration at Cisco, said:
As we double down on our AI investment, we’re empowering our customers to deliver exceptional hybrid work and customer experience outcomes based on their datasets while relentlessly protecting their confidentiality and privacy.
Further announcements included Cisco adding its AI-powered noise removal capabilities to PTSN calls, allowing phone line users to benefit from voice optimization.
Meanwhile, the vendor also teased capabilities such as caller analytics in a conversational IVR, which interprets the voice inflection and tone of the customer.
The contact center may pair that data with customer intent to influence routing decisions.
However, Webex will continue to drip-feed such AI capabilities, prioritizing the user experience over speed of development – as it builds towards its vision for the self-learning contact center.
