Picture your contact center as a bustling restaurant. Customers experience the attentive host and the crafted meal—the “front of house.” But the entire operation depends on what happens out of sight: the relentless, repetitive work in the kitchen. The dishwasher isn’t glamorous, but if it breaks, the whole show falls apart.
That’s where your AI journey should begin: not out in the open with high-stakes customer interactions, but in the back office—where automation does its best work, quietly and relentlessly.
1. Find Your Dishes: Identify Back-Office Work Ripe for Automation
Every contact center is stacked with work that no customer ever sees: call scoring, compiling QA reports, prepping coaching packets, summarizing call notes, etc. These are your stacks of dirty dishes—necessary, but rarely adding value in a way the customer would ever notice.
Action
Walk through your processes. Which tasks are repetitive, rules-based, and slow your people down? Make a list. If a job is mundane and nobody ever thanks you for doing it, it probably belongs on the automation roadmap.
2. Separate the Silverware: Evaluate What’s Ready for AI
Not every dish goes in the same wash. In the same way, not every back office task is ready for AI out of the box. Some processes might need tuning or better definition before AI can step in.
Action
- Is your QA program well-defined, with clear rubrics that can be translated into scorecards?
- Do you have standardized note-taking expectations that could be captured by an AI assistant?
- Can you easily describe what a “good” vs. “bad” output looks like for these internal processes?
If the answer is yes, you’re ready to start automating. If not, spend a week refining the process, so the machine knows exactly what to do.
3. Don’t Settle for a One-Off Gadget: Choose a Partner with Staying Power
Here’s where most leaders get tripped up: the market is flooded with flashy point solutions and AI “dishwasher” vendors promising the world. The difference isn’t just technology, it’s track record and vision.
Daniel Ziv, VP at Verint, says it best: “You want to pick something that is part of a platform. If it’s a stand-alone solution, you’ll end up with a dead end… tomorrow you won’t be able to drive anywhere because the system has changed.”
Action
Look for a partner with history in the space—someone whose platform will evolve with you, not just solve today’s problem. Prioritize integration, reputation, and a roadmap that keeps you ahead.
Bottom Line
Don’t put AI in the spotlight before you’ve made the kitchen hum. Start with the invisible work, automate what you can, and choose a vendor that’s been through the dinner rush before. When your “dishwasher” runs smoothly, the experience up front—where your brand lives—only gets better.
Every great meal starts with a clean plate. Every great contact center starts with a streamlined back office.
