As customer service teams grapple with rising workloads and the challenge of managing vast information streams, AI-powered automation is emerging as a valuable tool to help enhance call center agent wellness.
By prioritizing agent wellbeing, organizations can also demonstrate their commitment to the morale of their workforce, fostering a positive work environment and attracting and retaining talented agents.
AI solutions, including recent innovations from Cisco, now enable proactive interventions aimed at reducing agent stress and improving overall performance.
These tools can automatically schedule breaks, adjust agent schedules, and even manage the channels that agents support, all in real-time response to demand fluctuations.
This automation doesn’t just ease the burden on agents—it can positively impact organizations and customers as well.
By reducing the time agents spend on repetitive tasks, AI systems allow them to focus on more complex customer issues, which can lead to quicker resolution times and higher customer satisfaction (CSAT) scores.
For organizations, improved agent wellness often translates to reduced turnover, better service consistency, and stronger employee morale, which are all critical for maintaining a high-quality customer experience.
Troy Plott, vice president of WFM for NICE, explained traditionally, workforce management emphasized high occupancy, with agents handling back-to-back calls.
“Today, however, increased agent engagement has proven to enhance CSAT,” he said.
By integrating advanced AI forecasting and machine learning scheduling, organizations can not only improve service consistency and quality but also reduce costs by decreasing repeat calls.
“Consumers benefit directly from this approach, receiving attentive and reliable service that reflects a well-supported, engaged workforce,” Plott said.
Vinod Muthukrishnan, vice president and chief operating officer, Webex customer experience solutions, Cisco, said ultimately, these AI-driven capabilities represent a shift toward more adaptive, empathetic support structures.
“By helping agents manage their workloads more effectively, companies can achieve a more sustainable balance between meeting customer expectations and supporting the well-being of their frontline teams,” he said.
He explained AI-powered agent wellbeing support can contribute to reducing agent burnout in several ways.
By automatically scheduling breaks and adjusting shifts, these tools help agents with a healthier balance of work.
He pointed out taking call after call from frustrated customers is not uncommon in this industry.
“With the ability to swap coverage to lower-stress customer service channels—such as messaging, email and more—agents have appropriately varied experiences,” Muthukrishnan said.
This reduces the risk of burnout, which is a common problem in high-stress contact center environments.
“Anyone who has worked in a contact center will tell you it is a tough job,” he said.” It is impossible to improve customer experience if you do not focus on improving the employee -agent experience.”
He explained reducing agent burnout is important for long-term customer service quality.
“Burned-out agents are more likely to experience decreased job satisfaction and often do not have the ability to provide standout customer service,” he said.
Muthukrishnan noted reduced agent burnout leads to higher employee satisfaction and lower turnover rates, which in turn improves customer service quality and consistency.
“Customers appreciate interacting with knowledgeable and dedicated agents,” he said. “By investing in agent wellbeing automation, organizations can create a virtuous cycle of employee satisfaction, customer satisfaction, and ultimately, business success.”
Plott pointed out scheduling has evolved significantly, which in turn can empower agents.
“It’s no longer just about when and where agents work; it’s now about tailoring schedules to optimize productivity and job satisfaction,” he said.
For example, in today’s hybrid environments, scheduling can now be personalized not only to agents’ availability but also to the nature of the tasks they handle.
“AI-powered scheduling allows agents to balance these varied tasks effectively, boosting flexibility and productivity while helping them feel empowered,” Plott said.
He said to manage rising workloads, organizations are embracing wellness initiatives like self-scheduled “wellness breaks.”
These allow agents to take breaks after difficult calls, helping them recharge and reduce burnout.
“Wellness support systems, including automated break scheduling, are vital for maintaining high service standards by managing stress and fatigue, which ultimately allows agents to deliver consistent and empathetic customer care,” Plott added.
From his perspective, AI-powered agent wellness drives CSAT as a natural byproduct of improved agent satisfaction.
By monitoring real-time metrics like agent sentiment scores, AI can detect potential service dips and recommend breaks, preventing poor interactions before they happen.
“This proactive approach keeps agents refreshed and prevents a spike in repeat calls, ensuring operational efficiency even during demand surges,” Plott said.
Muthukrishnan noted many consumers today like to speak with an agent to resolve an issue or address a question.
“When agents have a manageable workload, they are more likely to deliver consistent and high-quality customer service,” he said.
With the implementation of AI tools, agents are placed more in the role of customer relationship manager--agents can take their time, get to know the customer, and in the end provide a greater and more empathetic experience than if they were rushing to take the next caller in a long queue.
“Automated wellbeing tools help ensure that agents have appropriate rest periods and schedules, reducing the likelihood of fatigue-related errors in customer interactions,” he said.
