Maria Edington
Maria Edington is the Vice President of Marketing at Balto, where she works closely with contact center leaders to improve how teams function day-to-day and plan for what’s ahead. Over the past five years, she’s led initiatives focused on performance, quality, compliance, and the practical use of AI across the contact center floor. Her experience spans complex, high-volume industries including Medicare, P&C insurance, financial services, collections, home improvement, and banking—sectors where conversations are tightly regulated, high-stakes, and often the last mile of the customer experience. Maria has contributed to research on Medicare Advantage trends, MedPAC policy, and eBroker financial performance, and regularly works with operators navigating shifting compliance requirements and productivity demands. With a background in engineering, Maria brings a systems-level mindset to how contact centers work—and how they can work better. Her focus: helping contact centers modernize—adopting smarter tools, better habits, and a stronger foundation for what’s ahead.
Posts by Maria Edington
Call Center Insights in 2025: Enhance the Customer Experience
Unlock the power of call center insights to boost customer satisfaction & reduce churn. Discover the smart blend of AI and human expertise.
Call Center Automation: Definition, Trends, Benefits, & Use Cases
Explore how call center automation boosts efficiency, reduces costs, and enhances customer experience with AI-driven solutions. Read more.
Examples of AI in Everyday Life: The Unforeseen Impact on Society
From customer service chatbots to self-driving cars, AI impacts our lives in unforeseen and amazing ways. Read More.
Call Center Coaching: 8 Top Tips and Best Practices
Balto Founder and COO Chris Kontes talks call center coaching, exploring challenges and solutions to make every coaching session effective.
Top Call Center Agent Performance Metrics You Must Track
A guide to call center metrics that will improve your organizations decision making process and make your agents and customers happier.
10 Contact Center Management Tips: Best Practices, Metrics, & Roles That Drive Success
Tips on call center management, essential KPIs, and insights into the different types of management roles within call centers. Read More.
Contact Center Workforce Management: 2025 Guide
A guide to help you understand what call center workforce management is and why it’s important for your organization. Read More.
Call Center Quality Assurance: 7 Best Practices for Success
Learn why call center quality assurance is mission-critical for improving customer satisfaction and agent retention. Read More.
What Is Call Center Monitoring: Benefits, Best Practices & Tools
From key metrics to advanced AI tools, discover actionable strategies of call center monitoring to elevate both customer & agent outcomes.
Mastering Call Center Productivity: A Complete 2025 Guide
This guide breaks down how to achieve call center productivity operational excellence while keeping your team engaged and motivated.
AI-Driven Excellence in Call Center Quality Management
Explore the different opportunities that integrating AI into your call center’s quality management efforts can open up for your business.
Call Center Scripting Software: AI for Dynamic Customer Service
Call center scripting software has been at the heart of customer service operations, but alone it won't cut it anymore. Enter real-time AI.
Redefining Customer Interactions with Real-Time Agent Assist
Real-Time Agent Assist is like GPS for conversations–agents always know what to say, when to say it, and how to land it. Her’s how.
Call Center AI: The Key to Enhanced Customer Interactions
Understand why generative AI is needed in the call center, its benefits, and things to consider before and after implementation.
Health Insurance Sales Compliance in the Contact Center Guide
A guide too how AI-driven solutions can simplify compliance and boost efficiency and sales performance in health insurance sales.
Data to Deals: AI Insights for Health Insurance Sales Excellence
Explore the potential use of AI (Artificial Intelligence) insights in HIS contact centers to streamline the sales process and increasing conversions.
Replacing Customer Service Surveys with Sentiment Analysis
"Do you enjoy filling out customer service surveys?" That's the question I posed to a group of customer service professionals. The response was a resounding, "No!!!" Then why do we pester our customers with surveys? You can eliminate post-transaction surveys with a new sentiment analysis technique called the sentiment arc. It works by analyzing the
Redefining the Future of Enterprise Contact Center Solutions
Uncover the value of modern enterprise contact center solutions, how they seamlessly integrate into your ecosystem, & why you can’t afford to ignore them.
Unlocking the Power of Ideal Customer Profiles (ICPs) in Sales
An introduce to the concept of Ideal Customer Profiles (ICPs) in sales & how you can leverage Artificial Intelligence (AI) in creating it.
Customer Experience in Financial Services: A Comprehensive Guide
In this guide, we delve into the driving factors behind customer experience in financial services to maintain customer trust and loyalty.
The Future of Sales: An In-Depth Look at Revenue Intelligence
Revenue intelligence involves collecting and analyzing data with Artificial Intelligence (AI) for the purpose of extracting actionable insights that drive more sales and boost revenue.
Maximizing Deals: How Sales Call Recording Boosts Revenue
The main purpose behind sales call recording is to collect valuable information that you can use to coach sales reps, keep track of your conversations with customers, and tackle recurring issues that lead to lost sales.
What Is Contact Center AI?
Explore the benefits of implementing contact center AI and how you can utilize its capabilities to reach your business goals. Read More.
How to Improve Call Center Productivity
Learn how to understand what call center productivity is, how to measure and track it with metrics and KPIs, and ways to improve. Read More.
Best Call Center Software for Healthcare
Insights you need to know when researching and evaluating the best best call center software for your healthcare organization. Read More.
Advanced Call Center Technology | Trends and Features You Should Know
How to maximize the performance of your agents by staying up to date with call center technologies and trends. Read More.
1-on-1 Onboarding Tips for Your Contact Center
When it comes to agent experience, contact centers have made significant strides in recent years. Nonetheless, many still have work to do to overcome a longstanding reputation. Attrition rates for contact center agents generally hover around 30–45%, and they reached as high as 100% during the COVID-19 pandemic. There are many reasons for these high
What Are You Thinking? How Executive Perception of the Contact Center Makes or Breaks Success
The direction of a company is largely determined by the vision of the executive suite. Look no further than the recent Twitter takeover by Elon Musk to see how much — and how quickly — leadership can pivot a company’s trajectory. Contact centers are no different. Whether executives view their contact center as a profit
What Is Conversation Intelligence Software?
Learn what conversation intelligence is and how to leverage in the call center to enhance customer experience and increase ROI. Read More.
The CMS Compliance Crackdown is Coming. Here’s How to Prepare
Let’s take a look at the role a contact center may play in the CMS compliance crackdown, as well as how to best prepare.
Balto Releases Q3 '22 Edition of Real-Time Index, Highlighting 150M+ Call Trends by Industry and Use Case
Balto has released an update to the Balto Real-Time Index, a tool that collates trends, insights, and in-depth analysis for contact centers.
5 Ways to Capture Tenured Agents' Knowledge for Improved Contact Center Performance
Tenured agents know better than you. Learn how tenured agents can elevate your operations & some strategies to tap into this resource.
Tips to Identify and Mitigate Insurance Fraud in the Contact Center
Contact center-based fraud costs operators $500+ per transaction. Learn how to identify and mitigate insurance fraud in the contact center.
Balto Announces Partnership with Five9 to Empower Agents with Conversation Excellence
Balto is now available on the Five9 CX Marketplace as an accredited integration with Five9 Intelligent Cloud Contact Center.
Why Spanish is Today's Largest Growth Opportunity for Contact Centers
“Press #2 for Spanish” interactions open the door to a massive growth opportunity for call centers with the Spanish-speaking market.
Keeping Your Experienced and Top-Performing Agents Engaged
High-performing agents are an invaluable resource as they promote stellar customer experiences. Here's some tips to help you keep them.
How to Achieve Personalization in Banking Contact Centers
Today’s consumers have peak expectations for the level of personalization they’ll receive from the banking services contact center.
Balto Now Embedded Inside Salesforce for Single Pane of Glass Experience, Unleashing Agent Performance
The app-free version of Balto for SF creates seamless integration — minimizing technical interference for IT teams and agent workflows.
The Magic of a Single Pane of Glass in Today’s Most Successful Contact Centers
More contact centers are looking to simplify app management. The solution? A single pane of glass where all apps live in a unified system.
How Conversational AI Is Transforming the Agent Experience in Contact Centers
Blair Pleasant discusses how a fresh technology-based approach can elevate the contact center agent experience. Read more.
Is the Contact Center Supervisor Position Flawed?
Chris Kontes, Balto Founder and COO, discusses if the contact center supervisor position is flawed beyond repair. Read more.
Balto Now Embedded Directly Within Major CCaaS and Workflow Systems for Simplified Contact Center App Management
. Read More.
Balto Selected for Fast Company’s Fourth Annual List of the Best Workplaces for Innovators in the United States
. Read More.
Will AI Replace Contact Center Agents?
Review the data to debunk that myth once and for all that AI will not and cannot replace contact center agents. Read More.
Why Active Listening Is an Essential Soft Skill in the Contact Center
Active listening naturally enhances other soft skills like empathy and establishes rapport, all beneficial to contact center agents.
4 Time-Tested Strategies to Overcome the "I'm Busy" Objection
Here are four phone sales strategies you can implement right now to beat the "I'm Busy" call center objection for good. Read More.
Balto’s New Real-Time Index Collates Call Trends and Analysis Into One-of-A-Kind Insights for Contact Centers
. Read More.
Balto First to Introduce Real-Time Guidance in Spanish for the Contact Center
Balto introduces Real-Time Guidance in Spanish, first in market to offer conversation excellence to U.S. Spanish-speaking contact centers.
Converged: Why We Partnered with Balto, the AI-Powered Contact Center Coaching Experts
Balto is delighted to partner with Converged Technology Professionals, a trusted business communications provider for contact centers.
Balto CEO Marc Bernstein Wins CCW Next Generation Leaders Award
Balto CEO & Founder Marc Bernstein was honored at the 2022 CCW Excellence Awards by winning the Next Generation Leaders award.
KPI Series: How to Measure Manager Productivity
As a part of Balto's continuing KPI series for contact centers, we’re turn our attention to manager and supervisor productivity.
The Role of Voice in an Omnichannel World
Blair Pleasant shares her outlook on the evolving role of voice in an increasingly omnichannel world. Click to read.
Tech Talk: Balto’s Real-Time Redaction Keeps Personal Information Safe
Balto gives a peek of the AI technology that powers real-time guidance. This week we share the details of Balto’s next-gen redaction model.
Agent Assist vs. Real-Time Guidance: What's the Difference?
Real-time guidance and agent assist are two solutions for enhancing performance in contact centers. Read to learn the key differences.
How an Evolving Contact Center Has Transformed the Agent Experience
As the expectations of the contact center continue to evolve, so must the agent experience. Learn the 3 variables agents primarily rely on.
KPI Series: Reducing Manager Requests and Escalations
As a part of Balto’s continuing KPI series, this week we focus on manager requests and how to reduce them. Learn more.
Lazy AI in the Contact Center Part 3: Spotting Subpar Semantic Technology
Lazy AI negatively affects many facets of the contact center. Learn how to spot subpar semantic technology.
Arm Yourself with Knowledge: Sales Tips from Tim Claudin
Tim Claudin, Director of Sales at Balto, offers tips to help sales pros leverage their knowledge into greater success. Read More.
Balto Real-Time Guidance Now Available as Premium App on Genesys AppFoundry
Balto announces that its AI-powered enterprise conversation excellence solutions are now available as a Premium App on Genesys AppFoundry.
Balto Named Hot Vendor by Leading Analyst Firm, Aragon Research
Balto announces its inclusion in the list of Hot Vendors in the 2022 Special Report by Aragon Research, Inc. Learn more about the report.
Lazy AI in the Contact Center Part 2: Neglecting Agent Experience
Lazy AI negatively affects many facets of the contact center. Learn how the wrong solutions neglect agent experience.
Balto Wins Talkdesk Digital Showdown Competition, Awarded $10K for Charity
Balto wins first place in the May 2022 Talkdesk Digital Showdown and awards the $10,000 grand prize donation from Talkdesk to LaunchCode.
KPI Series: 5 Actionable Steps to Improve Agent Satisfaction Scores in Contact Centers
As we continue our series of KPIs that contact centers measure, let’s talk about agent satisfaction scores and how to improve them.
Lazy AI in the Contact Center Part 1: How Sales Outcomes Suffer
Lazy AI negatively affects many facets of the contact center. Learn how sales outcomes suffer with the wrong solutions.
Challenge Old Ideas, Solve Problems: Sales Tips from Rob Westervelt
Rob Westervelt, Sales Director at Balto, has some tips about how sales pros can reframe their own perspective and achieve greater success.
Balto Sponsors University of Nebraska-Lincoln Annual Sales Pitch Competition
Balto was honored as featured product sponsor and judge for the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s annual sales pitch competition. Learn more.
KPI Series: Measuring and Improving QA Scores in Contact Centers
In this post of the KPI Series, we’re examining Quality Assurance (QA) scores, why they are important, and how you can improve them.
Call Center Training: A Guide for Success
In this guide, explore vital call center training tips, methodologies, and trends that will take your organization to the next level.
A 10-Step Action Plan for Combating Contact Center Attrition
Follow this 10-step action plan to effectively combat contact center attrition and keep your agents motivated, happy, and productive.
Industry Intelligence Playbook Insights: How to Set Appointments That Stick
How can agents not only set more appointments but also set appointments that stick? Learn specific methods for setting sticky appointments.
KPI Series: The Importance of Conversion Rates and How to Improve Them
This week on Balto's KPI series, we are focusing on conversion rates, why they are important, and how to improve them.
3 Ways to Eliminate Agent Mistakes on Calls
88% of mistakes on calls are a result of ineffective training. How can managers refactor their training to avoid these outcomes?
KPI Series: How to Measure CSAT and How to Improve Your CSAT Scores
In this blog , Balto focuses on CSAT, why it is important, and steps you can take to improve your CSAT scores. Read More.
KPI Series: Reducing Contact Center Agent Ramp Time
The longer the ramp time is the more revenue that’s lost. So, contact centers want to reduce ramp time as much as possible. Read more.
KPI Series: How to Reduce Your Call Center Average Handle Time
Whenever handling customer contacts, you want to provide the best service in the shortest amount of time. Read more about average handle time.
Enhancing Human Communication with AI: How It's Done and Why It Matters
We'll explore how modern contact centers can improve communication standards by partnering well-trained agents with AI solutions. Read more.
6 Things All Successful Sales Calls Have in Common
Sales turn are what contact centers into profit centers. These are 6 characteristics that separate all successful sales calls have in common.
How to Ensure Top-Performing Agents Are Recognized
Recognizing top performers costs very little and can significantly improve employee satisfaction. Read More.
One and Done: How to Effectively Coach Agents the First Time
Tim Claudin, Director of Sales at Balto, and Jason Cutter, CEO & Founder of Cutter Consulting Group, reveal tips on how to coach effectively.
Balto Leads the Contact Center Market in Real-Time Guidance with 150+ Customers
with over 50 available integrations. Read More.
3 Crucial Soft Skills for Contact Center Coaching and Leadership
Contact center leaders must sharpen essential soft skills to foster success on their teams. Read to explore 3 crucial soft skills.
Why Contact Centers Must Create a Company Culture That Nurtures Agent Independence
Learn to create a company culture that fosters independence via intrapreneurship, and how it can benefit your organization.
Balto Gives Users Access to Powerful Real-Time Guidance Platform, Announces Availability in RingCentral App Gallery
Balto's AI-powered, enterprise conversation excellence solutions are now available in the RingCentral App Gallery. Read more.
The Top 9 KPIs High-Performing Contact Centers Measure
Monitoring key performance indicators is key to running an effective contact center. Explore which KPIs are critical for your organization.
How Contact Center Demographics Can (and Should) Influence Leadership Tactics
With a wide range of agent demographics, how can leaders influence agent satisfaction and productivity along with reducing employee attrition?
Contact Center Employee Retention – 3 Solutions That Actually Work
Retaining contact center agents is possible and it doesn't always amount to higher compensation. Learn three ways to improve agent retention.
5 Negotiation Tips to Improve CSAT in Collections
Creating customer satisfaction (CSAT) is key to raising the bottom line of any collection agency. Learn 5 negotiation tips to improve CSAT.
Balto CEO Marc Bernstein Named to 2022 St. Louis Titan 100 List
Balto Founder and CEO, Marc Bernstein, has been recognized as a 2022 Titan 100 by Titan CEO and headline sponsor Wipfli LLP.
4 Ways Contact Centers Can Reverse Notoriously Poor Customer Experiences
Modern contact centers demand an integrated, real-time, and satisfying experience that can combat notoriously poor performance. Read more.
Balto Recognized As 2022 Best Place to Work By Purpose Jobs
Balto, the #1 Real-Time Guidance Platform, was announced to the 2022 Best Places to Work list by Purpose Jobs. Read about the achievement.
With Balto Academy, Balto Makes it Easier Than Ever to Be a Real-Time Expert
Balto Academy is Balto's certification program that teaches its customers how to get the most from Real-Time Guidance. Learn more.
Balto Invests in Contact Center Research With The Conversation Excellence Lab
Conversation Excellence Lab is Balto's research and data team focused on providing actionable insights for the contact center industry.
Balto Becomes First to Guide 100 Million Conversations in Real-Time
Balto, the #1 Real-Time Guidance Platform for contact centers, has successfully guided over 100 million conversations around the world.
The 7 Step Process to Sell More Insurance
Insurance sales are notoriously difficult. How can you simplify the process so reps can start selling? Here is the 7 step to increase sales.
Zing Health-Balto Partnership Gets Medicare Questions Answered
Zing Health partners with Balto to enhance customer service and inbound sales using advanced artificial intelligence call center technology.
Championing the Bold: Arch Grants Company Balto Raises $37.5 Million in Series B Funding
Balto raises $37.5 million in Series B funding for its real-time guidance platform for call centers, bringing its total to $52 million.
Balto Raises $37.5M; Pushes to Close Execution Gap for Contact Centers
Balto announces the completion of a $37.5 million Series B funding round. The funding is led by Stripes and joined by RingCentral Ventures.
Tips for Building Rapport With Any Customer
From showing empathy, being honest, and owning up to your mistakes to implementing AI, learn how to create a positive relationship with customers and provide a great experience.
Balto Announces End to QA & Coaching as We Know It
Balto, the #1 Real-Time Guidance platform, has announces the launch of two new products: Real-Time Coaching and Real-Time QA.
How To Identify and Overcome Unconscious Bias in Customer Service
Learn how to identify unconscious bias in the contact center and how you can overcome it to provide a better customer experience.
Is AI Replacing Human Jobs in Customer Service?
Some workers fear AI will replace the need for human customer service. This does not seem to be the case, despite the rise in AI popularity.
Business Guide To Scaling Sales With Tech Solutions
Scaling business sales is hard work. But with tools for internal communication, customer service, CRM, and inventory, you can gain a much deeper picture of what your business needs to continue and grow sales.
Natural Language Processing: How Machines Are Getting Better at Human Language
Natural Language Processing (NLP) is a field of artificial intelligence that breaks down human languages and makes them intelligible to computers.
Balto Named a Gartner Cool Vendor in CRM Customer Service and Support
Balto was one of four companies recognized by Gartner as a Cool Vendor in CRM Customer Service and Support in the 2021 report.
How Three Sales Teams Leveled Up With Real-Time Guidance
Sales leaders can struggle to get their reps to the next level with current coaching and training processes – Real-Time Guidance can help.
The 30% Myth: A Hot Take on Close Rates
Sales leaders often aim to improve close rates. A 30% close rate isn't a ceiling, learn how to leverage AI for unheard-of close rates.
Why Sales Leaders Shouldn’t Be Worried About The Biggest Mistakes
Balto found that sales leaders should focus their training on the calls that happen the most, not the ones where reps struggle the most.
Why Your Insurance Agents Don’t Sell As Much As They Could
The Centiment survey uncovered why agents make mistakes and the most effective training tools. Read the takeaways for the insurance industry.
5 Reasons Why Your Sales Force Should Always Be Closing
Closing isn't only asking for the sale; it’s the entire journey to get there. To “always be closing,” master these 5 steps by Rob Liano.
How To Empathize With Customers Over the Phone
Training contact center reps to show empathy can improve customer satisfaction by making them feel heard, recognized, and validated.
First Call Resolution: How To Measure, Evaluate, and Improve FCR in Your Contact Center
First call resolution is the ratio of calls that are solved the first time a customer reaches out compared to the total number of calls.
The Newest Call Center Technologies and Future Trends
Call center technology trends like AI, real-time QA, and omnichannel communication can transform first call resolution rates.
Using Speech Analytics for Call Coaching in Real-Time
Combining speech analytics with real-time coaching helps improve the quality of feedback for contact center trainees and agents.
Conversation Intelligence Leader Balto Secures $10 Million Series A Funding
Balto, the leader in Real-Time Guidance for contact centers powered by AI, announced that it closed a $10 million Series A round of funding.
Ensure Compliance with Call Quality Parameters
Setting call quality parameters is a step in the right direction, but how can you ensure compliance and provide training in real-time?
Best Practices for De-Escalating a Call
The next time you come across a frustrated customer, commit to using Balto's A.U.R.A. method to resolve conflict and de-escalate the call.
How to Create Urgency in Sales – 5 Killer Strategies
It is frustrating to have an interested prospect moving slowly through the sales pipeline. Here are 5 strategies that create urgency in sales.
13 Phone Selling Techniques and Tips to Rapidly Improve Sales Calls
Call center managers often have large groups of agents to monitor. Improve outcomes with these 13 selling techniques and tips.
Boost Revenue with Balto's Call Software for Call Centers
Balto offers call software that assists sales agents in live calls. Those deviating from the best practices can be corrected in real time.
Coaching Call Center Agents: Best Practices
Ready to get better at coaching call center agents? Master the following tips and strategies so you can follow call center best practices.
Create An Effective Call Quality Monitoring Checklists
Does your team have room to improve call quality? Creating a call quality monitoring checklist is an essential step to call excellence.
Is It Time to Update Your Call Quality Monitoring Parameters?
Because call quality impacts essential facets of your business, now is the time to review existing call quality monitoring parameters.
Balto Perfects Call Quality Monitoring Solution
Advanced call quality monitoring solutions have taken calls to the next level. AI can ride along on a call and help improve results quickly.
Sales Tips and Tricks: Overcome Sales Objections with AIOA
We discuss the number one mistake sales reps make in overcoming objections in sales and how to use A.I.O.A. to handle them with ease.
Sales Tips and Tricks: Value Confirmation Questions
We discuss how you can use value confirmation questions in sales to make sure your customer is interested in your offer.
What is Real-Time Speech Analytics?
Real-Time Speech Analytics technology understands phone conversations and alerts reps with the best things to say, live on each call.
What is Real-Time Speech Analytics For Collections?
As real-time speech analytics becomes increasingly popular in collections, we wanted to outline the key reasons agencies evaluate it.
Soft Selling in Hard World – Using Effective Probing Questions to Improve Sales Conversations
Soft Selling in Hard World. How to Use effective probing questions to improve sales conversations. Read More.