Nearshore Americas
BPO AI

Call Center Crisis: AI Integration Leaves Agents on the Brink

A few weeks ago, a Filipino BPO worker sparked a heated discussion on Reddit with a chilling prediction: “I keep saying this… AI will replace the BPO industry.”

For many in the sector, this isn’t just a fear—it’s their daily reality.

As AI wipes out entry-level jobs, customer service agents find themselves caught in the crosshairs of a relentless wave of automation.

Those who managed to weather the first storm are now fighting to stay afloat, grappling with technology that, ironically, has piled even more tasks onto their daily routines.

In the Philippines, often called the world’s contact center capital, call center agents now reportedly see robots as their real bosses. Many feel like they’ve turned into lifeless “zombies.”

Generative AI brought tools like “Copilot” into the picture. Sold as a tech assistant, it feeds agents instant information and summarizes past customer conversations to resolve issues faster.

But Copilot is more than a sidekick. It monitors every word, flagging agents as “inefficient” for even minor errors. Too many mistakes? Agents land on the dreaded “floating desk,” risking their salary—and their job.

Far from easing the burden, AI has made life harder. A recent Upwork survey found a staggering 77% of employees across industries reporting heavier workloads after AI integration.

Upwork’s study was not specifically focused on the BPO sector but covered a range of industries. A Filipino BPO worker recently told Rest of World that at his old job, without AI, he handled 30 calls during an eight-hour shift. Now, with AI, he’s forced to handle the same volume before lunch.

Anton Zimarov, a Silicon Valley entrepreneur, co-founded Erbis, which delivers AI solutions for business operations.

“AI systems are excellent at streamlining processes and setting benchmarks, but these benchmarks—like shorter handling times or higher call volumes—can inadvertently pressure agents,” said Anton Zimarov, a Silicon Valley entrepreneur and co-founder of Erbis, a company delivering AI solutions for business operations.

Over the past year, nearly every contact center has adopted artificial intelligence to streamline operations. The immediate results were impressive: reduced costs and increased productivity. However, this shift unintentionally placed machines in competition with human agents.

“This is indeed a concerning trend,” said Xuchen Yao, CEO of Seasalt.ai, a company offering various tools for managing contact centers. Yao argued that the real problem lies in implementation.

“Imagine a call center where AI flags any call over 7 minutes as inefficient. An agent helping an elderly customer might need extra time to explain and resolve the issue. But the AI won’t care—it still marks the call as inefficient,” he explained.

AI tools now reroute calls to human agents and also serve as quality assurance managers. “Performance tracking can erode the quality of customer interactions and agent morale,” Zimarov warned.

Contact Centers or Pressure Cookers?

This machine-driven system has turned the workplace into a pressure cooker for agents. The Upwork report revealed that over 30% of workers are considering quitting due to the stress.

“AI is not inherently flawed, but its success depends heavily on the alignment of its deployment with human-centric outcomes,” Zimarov added.

Many contact center operators seem reluctant to accept that machines lack empathy. This is why customers often insist on speaking with human agents.

Xuchen Yao is the CEO of Seasalt.ai, a Redmond, Washington-based company that offers various tools for building and managing contact centers.

Yao noted similar patterns in the mobility sector and gig economy, where AI algorithms regulate worker performance and productivity, often prioritizing efficiency over worker well-being.

“In our own contact center implementation with elderly customers in Singapore and Taiwan, the longest call we observed was 2 hours 40 minutes,” Yao said, highlighting the flaw in rigid time limits.

“While automation accelerates task management, it doesn’t necessarily simplify the complexity of calls agents handle. AI often delegates simpler inquiries to self-service tools, leaving agents with only the most challenging interactions,” Zimarov added.

Yao urges the BPO industry to find a way to harness AI’s potential without compromising the well-being and job satisfaction of their human workforce.

It’s clear that bots are poised to replace more agents in the future. The challenge for human agents lies in mastering the handling of complex tasks

“To remain relevant, contact center agents will need to upskill and focus on tasks requiring empathy, complex problem-solving, and nuanced communication – areas where AI still falls short,” Yao noted.

Narayan Ammachchi

News Editor for Nearshore Americas, Narayan Ammachchi is a career journalist with a decade of experience in politics and international business. He works out of his base in the Indian Silicon City of Bangalore.

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