An Exclusive Q&A with Vinod Muthukrishnan, VP & COO, Webex Customer Experience Solutions, Cisco
As AI reshapes customer service, businesses are facing a pivotal moment: How do they strike the right balance between automation and human interaction? The rise of AI-powered virtual agents has brought efficiency and scalability, but customers still expect empathy and problem-solving from human agents when it matters most. In this exclusive Q&A, Vinod Muthukrishnan, VP & COO of Webex Customer Experience Solutions at Cisco, shares his insights on the evolving role of AI in customer interactions, the challenges of automation, and how businesses can design customer experiences that blend intelligence with human expertise.
Q. How do you see the balance between virtual agents and human agents evolving in customer service?
A. The bottom line is that consumers aren’t getting the service they expect nor contact center agents getting the help they need to deliver on those expectations. Organizations must evolve from a contact center to an experience center. Based on a global Cisco study, 55% of customers avoid self-service that feels rigid and unhelpful, and 56% of agents are experiencing growing workloads.
Enter AI; AI is the foundation for exceptional experiences. As AI technology continues to advance, the balance between virtual and human agents is evolving towards a more integrated approach. AI agents are being used to increasingly handle routine inquiries and provide initial support—even fulfilling customer intent—allowing human agents to focus on complex or emotionally nuanced interactions. In this vein, AI is being implemented to assist customer service agents, empowering them with the information and context they need to deliver great customer service experiences.
Q. Are companies over-relying on automation at the expense of the customer experience?
A. Striking the right balance between automation and human touch is critical. While AI agents can handle routine tasks, are available 24/7, and don’t require a queue, customers should always be able to access human support when needed. With it being early days of AI, some brands have been experimenting and have over indexed one way or the other, resulting in the need to balance out their customer service approach.
At Webex, we believe that customer and employee experiences don’t exist in silos. To deliver exceptional customer experiences, organizations must recognize the direct connection between employee satisfaction and customer satisfaction and the role automation can play in improving both.
Q. Can you share specific examples of how companies are rethinking their customer interaction strategies? What lessons can other organizations learn from their approach?
A. Springfield Clinic provides a compelling example of how companies can transform their customer interaction strategies by leveraging modern technology. As a multi-specialty medical group, Springfield Clinic faced significant challenges with its legacy contact center infrastructure. Handling over 500,000 calls monthly, the need for a more efficient, scalable, and cohesive system became apparent.
By migrating to the cloud with Cisco’s Webex Contact Center, Springfield Clinic successfully streamlined operations and enhanced the patient experience. The new system replaced fragmented legacy solutions with a unified platform, offering the flexibility to adapt to varying call volumes and organizational needs seamlessly. One of the standout benefits was the ability to cover multiple teams across 90 locations, improving operational efficiency and patient access.
Key measurable improvements since implementing Webex Contact Center include a 43.56% reduction in call abandonment rates and a 66.49% decrease in average speed of answer. These changes have led to a faster, smoother, and more positive experience for patients, showcasing the power of an integrated approach to customer service.
Other organizations can learn from Springfield Clinic’s strategy by recognizing the importance of investing in scalable, cloud-based solutions that unify communication and enhance flexibility. Partnering with experts, such as Cisco and CX Advanced Solutions, was crucial in ensuring a smooth transition and maximizing the platform’s capabilities. This case highlights the value of continuous innovation and the importance of aligning technology strategies with evolving customer needs to set new benchmarks for service excellence.
Q. In your experience, what are the key indicators that a virtual agent is enhancing, rather than detracting from, the overall customer experience?
A. The first indicator that AI agents are enhancing a brand is reducing inbound call volume for human agents. If the AI agent—or the front door to the brand—can effectively answer questions and fulfill customer requests, there are fewer cases where a customer needs to speak with a human agent.
Q. As AI becomes more sophisticated, what role do you see human agents playing in the future of customer service? How should companies prepare for this shift?
A. There will always be a need for humans to be in the loop. Human agents will continue to play a vital role by handling complex inquiries that require empathy, critical thinking, and problem-solving. I anticipate the role of the contact center agent—a role that today can be difficult—will improve as AI becomes more embedded in the contact center. To prepare for this shift, companies should invest in training programs to equip their agents with skills to make the most of the technology and foster a collaborative environment where technology and human expertise work in tandem.
Q. What are the potential pitfalls of integrating AI into customer service, and how can companies avoid these challenges while still leveraging the technology effectively?
A. The main challenge today with AI implementation is demonstrating the value and business outcome to justify the spend. Organizations need to prove the business case. This is the crux of whether an AI use case progresses to scale from trial, which is the point we are at now in the AI development cycle. We are supporting customers by identifying suitable use cases, providing return-on-investment tools and helping them build their business cases.
Second, AI works when it improves customer experiences in tangible ways, such as eliminating wait times, availability 24/7, or effective self-service that handles the customer’s reason for contact. A degraded experience that takes the customer more time than it would have to contact a human agent is not an effective use of AI.
Another challenge is data privacy and security, which are paramount in customer service. End customers expect that the brands they interact with protect and secure their data. The implementation of AI has made it increasingly important to balance autonomy and boundedness, which is the establishment of clear limits within which AI is allowed to operate. While we at Webex are doing a lot of development in frontline AI to deliver great customer experience outcomes, our foundation of responsible, secure AI remains core to who we are. We implement robust encryption protocols and adhere to strict compliance standards to safeguard customer data. Our AI-driven solutions are designed with privacy and security at their core so that customer interactions are secure and confidential. For us, privacy and security are not afterthoughts, features, or bolt-ons. They are part of the fabric of how we develop products.
Q. How important is personalization in AI-driven customer service, and how are leading companies achieving this at scale?
A. AI significantly enhances personalization in customer service. Webex’s AI solutions analyze customer data to understand individual preferences and behaviors. This enables us to tailor interactions and recommend products or services that align with each customer’s unique needs. By proactively addressing these needs, we keep customers informed and ensure outcomes that drive higher customer satisfaction (CSAT). In many cases, this approach eliminates the need for customers to contact the center altogether.
We at Webex take it a step further with the convergence of CCaaS and CPaaS solutions. Aside from AI, omnichannel support—enabled via Webex CPaaS solutions—empowers businesses to act on these insights and interact with customers across multiple channels, such as voice, email, chat, and social media, providing a unified and seamless customer experience. Customers want to be engaged on their own terms—when and where they are—and Webex’s omnichannel support equips brands with the power to do this.
Q. Looking ahead, what do you envision as the next big innovation in AI-driven customer service, and how will it change the way businesses interact with their customers?
A. The next significant opportunity for AI is the enhancement of the end-to-end customer journey—reducing the occasions when a customer must be proactive in contacting a business. By integrating AI agents with proactive outbound communication and the ability to fulfill actions, as well as human agents who have access to backend systems capable of handling more complex inquiries, businesses can create a more seamless customer experience. This holistic approach allows for continuous interaction, where AI can predict needs and initiate contact to address potential issues before they arise. Human agents, equipped with comprehensive customer insights, can provide personalized support and ensure that all interactions are meaningful and efficient. This seamless integration will not only enhance customer satisfaction but also drive substantial business impact by increasing loyalty, reducing churn, and uncovering new opportunities for growth. Companies that embrace this integrated approach will be well-positioned to lead in customer service excellence.
Photo by Cash Macanaya on Unsplash
