2017 Aspect Agent Experience Survey · Q. Based on your experience as a customer service...

©2017 Aspect Software, Inc. All rights reserved

Aspect Software, in partnership with Conversion Research, conducted a national study of 500 Active Customer Service Representatives aged 18-55 years old to uncover the attitudes, preferences and behaviors reps have about their jobs.

2017 ASPECT AGENT EXPERIENCE SURVEY

©2017 Aspect Software, Inc. All rights reserved 1


Project overview & objectives

The objective of this specific study was to investigate, from a variety of different perspectives (age, gender, size of customer support center, levels of engagement) the differing and similar attitudes, preferences and behaviors reps have regarding contact management software, the use of chatbots in customer service, workplace priorities and perceptions.

Survey Methodology• A custom-crafted online study with a minimum aggregate sample size of 1,000

Americans, aged 18-65, regionally representative and divided by gender as per most recent census projections (with ~25% oversampling of those aged 18-34)

• Survey fielded online to match the behavior and expectations of this population

• This study took place in March, 2017

2


The State of Agent Satisfaction

77%

78%

61%

70%

72%

0% 50% 100%

TotalGenX/BoomersMillennialsFull timePart timeMaleFemaleHigher EngagementHigher Empowerment

Q. How satisfied would you say you are currently with your job as a customer service representative? (1-5 scale)

70%

61%

62%

62%

3

62%The number of agents who said they are satisfied in their current customer service role.

Agents who feel engaged and empowered are notably more satisfied.Takeaway


And a healthy number of agents plan to stay where they are

37%

61%

36%

56%

71%

0% 20% 40% 60% 80%

Total

Male

Female

3+ Years

1-3 Years

3-12 months

Older Millenials

Younger Millenials

63%

71%

4

65%The number of customer service agents who intend to stay where they are currently employed. Surprising no one, millennials are the greatest flight risk in contact centers.

65%

The longer agents stay, the less likely they are to be looking to leave.Takeaway


However, agents are not very optimistic about their career opportunities in the contact center where they work

Q. Do you feel there are opportunities for you to be promoted and/or advance in your career at the customer support center orcustomer service center where you are currently working?

53%

49%

37%

47%

45%

53%

44%

31%

40%

47%

41%

0% 20% 40% 60%

Higher Empowerment

Higher Engagement

GenX/Boomer

Older Millennials

Younger Millennials

1000+ Employees

100-1000 Employees

<100 Employees

Female

Male

Total

5

The smaller the contact center, the fewer the perceived opportunities for advancement.

Takeaway

41%The number of agents who are optimistic about opportunities for advancement in the contact center where they work.

©2017 Aspect Software, Inc. All rights reserved©2017 Aspect Software, Inc. All rights reserved 6

And then come the chatbots to steal their jobs


• The use of virtual customer assistants (chatbots) will jump by 1,000% by 2020.

• Bot interactions in the banking sector (those completed without human assistance) will move from 12% currently, to over 90% in 2022.

• It’s the end of the contact center agent as we know it. Or is it?

Analysts predict chatbots will be replacing most customer service jobs:

7

Gartner Predicts 2017: CRM Customer Service and Support http://ow.ly/qT5r30bJOlvChatbots: Retail, eCommerce, Banking & Healthcare 2017-2022 http://ow.ly/pmv430bJOxN

Chatbot interactions in banking

2017 2022

90%

12%Analysts’ gloomy outlook doesn’t take consumer preference into complete consideration.

Takeaway

http://ow.ly/qT5r30bJOlv

http://ow.ly/pmv430bJOxN

Many consumers have a growing appetite for automated interaction in customer service


Of consumers feel good about both the company and themselves when they solve a problem related to that company without having to talk with an agent.

66%Of consumers think chatbots will allow for faster resolution/question answering.

61%

2017 Aspect Consumer Experience Index https://www.aspect.com/globalassets/2016-aspect-consumer-experience-index-survey_index-results-final.pdf

https://www.aspect.com/globalassets/2016-aspect-consumer-experience-index-survey_index-results-final.pdf


Q. Based on your experience as a customer service representative, what ONE type of question or issue do you prefer to handle – easy, moderate or complex?

Currently Handle

WANT to handle

Easy Moderate Complex

47

3023

4640

12

What kinds of questions do agents WANT to get on an average day?

Task Type Breakdown

Q. What percentage of questions that you receive in a given week would you say are “easy”, “moderate” and “complex”?Higher engaged agents are 14% more

likely to want to handle complex questions.

Takeaway

10ptsAgents desire to handle moderately complex questions is 10 percentage points higher than the total they currently receive.


How easy/hard are the questions customer service agents get on an average day?

A question that can be answered or issue resolved in 2-3 minutes and is a single issue call.

EASY

A question that can be answered or issue resolved in 3-10 minutes and needs some discovery on customer history and company policy, and contains multiple questions/ concerns.

MODERATE

A question that takes 10 minutes or more to be answered or issue resolved and takes troubleshooting and/or the assistance or several company resources to be handled.

COMPLEX

10

©2017 Aspect Software, Inc. All rights reserved©2017 Aspect Software, Inc. All rights reserved 11

The larger the customer service center, on average, the fewer easy customer questions

11

100 person or smaller contact center

54%

Contact center between 100 – 1,000

agents

45%

Contact center over 1,000 agents

40%

Q24. Thinking about the total number of customer questions and issues you handle in a typical week as a customer service representative, what percentage would you say are “easy”, “moderate” and “complex”?


The larger the contact center the more agents are up for handling challenging questions

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

Percent of Complex questionsagents WANT to handle in a

given week

Percent of Moderate questionsagents WANT to handle in a

given week

Percent of Easy questionsagents WANT to handle in a

given week

Large contact centers Small/medium contact centers

12

61%Of agents in large contact centers are more likely to want to handle complex questions vs. agents in small/medium sized contact centers.

36% of all agents said handing complex tasks make them feel more committed and satisfied in their work.

Takeaway


How do agents feel about their contact center using chatbots for customer service?

Q. Please tell us how likely you feel each of the following results would be if the customer support center or customer service center where you currently work started to use chatbot technology to help handle the most frequently asked.

35%

36%

44%

0% 20% 40% 60%

Will give me a certain degreeof autonomy and

responsibility

I will feel more satisfied andcommitted to my job

I'll be handling less mundanequestions and applying my

intellect

13

50%Of millennial agents feel they would feel a greater sense of commitment and satisfaction if they were given more complex questions to handle


As employees, they feel more satisfied in their jobs and more committed to the

company

59%Feel that handling more

complex customer issues improves their skills

79% 72%

Makes them feel that they are having a bigger impact in the company

64%

Will enable them to provide more personalized

service experience for customers

Customer service agents feel chatbots will indirectly lead to improving their value to the organization:



Q. Please tell us how much you agree or disagree with the following statements about handling more complex customer questions or issues

Engaged employees vs. the average

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

Improves my skills Makes me feel like I'mmaking an impact

Makes work moreinteresting

Feel more satisfied andcommitted

Improves my prospects forcareer advancement

Average More Engaged

15

Giving complex customer service questions to engaged agents to handle presents the greatest opportunity for development, impact.

Takeaway


Q. Please tell us how much you agree or disagree with the following statements about handling more complex customer questions or issues

Generational breakdown on handling complex customer service issues

Gen Z• Most likely to feel its helps

them make an impact• Most likely to feel it puts

them more in touch with customers

• They feel better, more satisfied/committed

• Most likely to feel it will improve prospects for advancement

But…

• Makes them feel frustrated because they are measured for speed.

Millennials• Feel it improves their skills• Believe it provides an

opportunity to provide a more personalized customer experience

• See it as an opportunity to shine for management

But…

• Least likely to feel better, more satisfied/committed

• Least likely to feel they are making an impact

• Least likely to feel its helps them make an impact

Gen X/Boomers• Most likely to say it improves

their skills• Group most likely to feel it

makes work more diverse and interesting

• Least likely to get frustrated• Feel it provides an

opportunity to give more personalized service for customers

But…

• Least likely to see it as an opportunity to shine for management

16


Consumers still want real people to handle complicated questions

*According to the 2016 Aspect Consumer Experience Index17

42%Of consumers said they want live agents to help them handle complex questions and requests.

71% of consumers feel that chatbots would not be good for complicated trouble shooting.

Takeaway


• 61% of consumers feel chatbots will allow for simple to moderate requests to be handled more quickly but 42% said they prefer live agents to help them handle complex questions and requests.

• An overwhelming majority (86%) of consumers feel that they should always have an option to transfer to a live agent.

• Only 29% of consumers feel that chatbots would be good for complicated trouble shooting and just 32% felt automated interaction would work well in solving a complex request.

• The majority of agents see a number of opportunities for growth and contribution when handling a larger number of complex customer requests.

Here is where agents and chatbots come together: Consumer preferences indicate that personal assistance is still in demand for complex issues:

18

Chatbots and customer service agents working together present growth opportunities for the employee, improved customer satisfaction for the consumer, and improved efficiency for the organization.

2017 Aspect Consumer Experience Index https://www.aspect.com/globalassets/2016-aspect-consumer-experience-index-survey_index-results-final.pdf

https://www.aspect.com/globalassets/2016-aspect-consumer-experience-index-survey_index-results-final.pdf


Agent Engagement:

Customer service agent engagement is

best described as “feeling good about,

satisfied with, and committed to your

job.”


The State of Agent Satisfaction

77%

78%

61%

70%

62%

Total

Male

Female

Higher Engagement

Higher Empowerment

Q: How satisfied would you say you are currently with your job as a customer service representative? (1-5 scale) 22

62%Of customer service agents report being satisfied in their job

Engaged and empowered agents are notably more satisfied vs. the average.

Takeaway0% 100%50%


Employment optimism however, is lower than satisfaction with customer service agents

Q. Do you feel there are opportunities for you to be promoted and/or advance in your career at the customer support center orcustomer service center where you are currently working?

53%

49%

37%

47%

45%

53%

44%

31%

40%

47%

41%

Higher Empowerment

Higher Engagement

GenX/Boomer

Older Millennials

Younger Millennials

1000+ Employees

100-1000 Employees

<100 Employees

Female

Male

Total

23

More than a third of all agents (35%) don’t plan on staying where they are

currently employed. Takeaway

41%The number of agents who are optimistic about opportunities for advancement in the contact center where they work.

Engaged and empowered agents are more optimistic than the average.

0% 60%40%20%


62%62%58%

Employee engagement as a whole is on the decline

Engaged customer service agents represent big productivity and customer loyalty opportunities for organizations.

Takeaway

The Agent Experience survey data clearly indicates engaged agents are happier and plan on staying in their jobs longer.

However, a recent study by Aon Hewitt revealed that employee engagement dipped for the first time since 2012.

*The 2017 Trends in Global Employee Engagement Report, Aon Hewitt

2012

60%

65%

2013 2014 2015 2016

Global employee engagement*

http://www.aon.com/engagement17/


of agents feel an environment where

they are respected as individuals is important

to their engagement.

However…

94%

Respect

feel responsibility and autonomy is important to their engagement.

However…

76%

Responsibility

of agents say the ability to move up in their

organization is important to their

engagement.

However…

75%

Opportunity©2017 Aspect Software, Inc. All rights reserved 26

Factors holding back customer service agent engagement

26

of agents say their current employer

provides such opportunities

46%

of agents feel their employer is providing such an environment.

65%

agents feel like the contact center they work in gives them

autonomy or responsibility.

61%


Q. Based on your experience as a customer service representative, using the star ratings, Please let us know how much you agree or disagree with the following statements about goals and contests.

Agents are also more responsive to goals vs. contests

Agents across the board feel goals-based programs are more impactful to their overall performance.

Takeaway

Help me reach my goals more consistently

Help me better respond to customer questions/issues

Enable me to service customers faster

36% 33% 32%

52% 49% 44%

Goals-based motivation

Contest-based motivation

16pts.There is a sizable difference between agent preference for goals to help them reach their objectives vs. contests to do so.


Engaged agents: far more responsive to contests vs. non-engaged agents

Contests set by management help me…

Employee motivation and engagement, not better contests, are needed to help agents achieve their goals.

TakeawayEngaged

Non-engaged

reach my goals more consistently

better respond to customer questions/issues

Service customers faster

43%

20%

38%

18%

38%

17%


Engaged agents are even more responsive to goals vs. non-engaged agents

Goals set by management help me…

Engaged agents thrive on clear goals. Non-engaged agents are only slightly more motivated with goals vs. gamified programs.

TakeawayEngaged

Non-engaged

reach my goals more consistently

better respond to customer questions/issues

Service customers faster

63%

24%

59%

22%

52%

24%


Summary

Want to handle more complex customer situations

Are more satisfied and are more committed

Are less likely to leave

Are positive about moving up in the organization

Are more motivated by goals and contests

Engaged agents:


58%Of customer service agents are using their smartphones to text, chat or message outside of work

Customer Service Agents Directly Relate their Job Satisfaction to the Ease of Managing their Life at Work

81%Of agents feel that getting in touch with management for things like calling in sick or picking up shifts should be as easy as getting in touch with friends

TakeawayAgents, especially Millennials, use their phones for everything and expect the ease of a smartphone to be well received in their workplace.


Takeaway

This Carries Across to Work Expectations as Well

Prefer to use self-service functionalities via their smartphone to manage

their work lives

66%

Feel it is important to be able to message

management via a smartphone

60%Agents have a strong desire to use their smartphones, the device they frequently use to communicate and manage their personal lives with, to message and manage their work lives as well.

This is remarkably stable across all generations.


Takeaway

If agents want to get in touch with management after work:• less than half say text/SMS is an option• just 13% can get in touch via a desktop app, only

12% via a chat app • A mere 8% said that they could use a mobile app

Employers are Not Offering the Tools Agents Prefer to Use

Agents also would prefer to use a self-service application vs. talking to their manager on the phone.

Text/SMS Desktop App Chat via app Mobile app

8%

46%

13% 12%


The Impact

Takeaway

2/3of agents say being able to manage their work lives with the best software possible will make them:

TakeawaySelf-service technology within the workplace can also be a key differentiator for agent satisfaction and engagement.

More satisfied More committed

More productive at work


Takeaway

60% of agentsfeel happier

65% of agents feel more engaged at work

62% of agents feel they provide better customer service

Takeaway1/3 of agents feel that being able to get in touch with customer service management whenever they want is just as important as a competitive salary

Employers Who do Respond Can See Business Impact

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2017 Aspect Agent Experience Survey · Q. Based on your experience as a customer service...

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