Voice remains central to customer service, despite the continued expansion of digital channels and AI. That was the clear message from this webinar, hosted by Rod Jones and featuring Steve Morrell from ContactBabel, Martie de Beer from Telviva, Vanda Dickson from Smartz Solutions and Corey Springett from Callbi Interaction Analytics.

Steve’s research found that live voice accounted for 62.6% of UK contact centre interactions, with its share remaining relatively stable over the past decade. South African findings placed live voice at 59%, rising to approximately 65% when telephone self-service was included. Customers continue to turn to human conversations when their needs become complex, emotional or urgent, including younger consumers who are generally comfortable with digital channels.

The discussion challenged organisations to rethink how they invest in and manage voice. AI offers practical opportunities to streamline authentication, support contact centre agents, automate summaries, and reduce unnecessary administration. However, reducing average handling time does not automatically improve customer satisfaction or first-contact resolution. Technology must serve a well-designed customer journey, with smooth transitions and full context carried over when an interaction moves from automation to a human.

Speech and interaction analytics have emerged as essential tools for understanding why customers struggle, identifying process failures, and improving both human and AI interactions. The panel highlighted a significant oversight: organisations frequently apply quality assurance to human agents while giving their AI agents less scrutiny.

There was also a strong warning about employee wellbeing. As automation removes simpler enquiries and shortens handling time, contact centre agents face increasingly demanding conversations with fewer opportunities to recover. Skills, performance measures, support structures and the professional standing of these roles must evolve accordingly.

The discussion closed with a commercial challenge: organisations need a clearer understanding of their true cost per interaction and the measurable financial impact of improvement. Participants were also encouraged to contribute to ContactBabel’s South African research to strengthen industry benchmarking. The overarching message was clear: voice is evolving, and its future depends on the thoughtful integration of people, processes, technology and customer needs.

Five key takeaways

• Keep voice central to CX strategy. Customers still value human conversations for complex, emotional and urgent matters, regardless of their preferred channels.
• Optimise the end-to-end customer journey. Apply automation where it helps, preserve context during handovers, and measure resolution alongside speed and cost.
• Hold AI agents accountable. Apply quality assurance and interaction analytics to automated conversations, using customer feedback to identify failures and refine responses.
• Protect and develop contact centre agents. Increasing complexity demands stronger skills, appropriate performance measures and working practices that address cognitive load and burnout.
• Understand the economics. Establish reliable interaction costs and demonstrate how process improvements and technology investments affect customer outcomes, operating expenditure and profitability.