What are the biggest challenges facing the industry? A loaded question for sure, but ContactCenterWorld.com put it forward to some of our members for feedback. Considering this issue can be considered a blank canvas and spin-off a number of different discussions, you might find the variety of issues facing the industry from all over the world are similar.

"In a recent Directors debate in which CallNorthWest asks this question, the top answers were as follows:
a) CRM and the single view of the customer - Understanding your customer and their needs is paramount to the success of any business. This was the single most important factor as recognised by 40% of the audience.
b) Speech recognition - It is essential if this technology is to be successfully introduced it must be able to handle different languages/accents as this has a bearing on the response. There is nothing more infuriating for a customer if the voice at the other end either keeps stating "I do not understand" or offers the wrong response.
c) Automated Call Handling - It is essential that this is focused on the customers' needs and improving their experience rather than to save money for the organisation. These two can both be successfully achieved, however, too often the company only looks at this from an inward prospective."
- Tom Kirby, Director, CallNorthWest, United Kingdom

"I think that one of the biggest challenges the contact center industry faces today is the ratio PW:WH. For example: Personal Freedom: working hours. Please note that the ordinary agents are not the problem. I believe that the personal freedom of next 2 levels upwards is the worrying spot. If, for example, a mentor or the actual team leader uses too much time for personal "things" or social digital interactions (read chat & e-mail) their team will read this and the whole group develops a "mizer-attitude." I think that "mizer" is the worst of this chain: -maximizer, optimizer, minimizer and mizer. Why, because in "mizer's" world, passivity rules. A minimizer will use at least his/her brain actively in the minimization process."
- Mr. Juhani Kaariainen, Support Professional (agent), Sweden ComHem, Sweden

"The first challenge is the understanding of the contact center game as one concept. What we have today is; every contact center manager looks at the terms of the contact center industry from a different way. Finding qualified contact center managers is a challenge on its own because finding a manager who understands the contact center concepts, mentality, terminology, operation while putting them into practice. Meanwhile, using and maintaining the highest levels of customer & staff satisfaction and building the proper contact center technology, while adhering to cost efficiency limitations, is quite difficult."
- Luay I. Alnemri, Phone Banking Manager, Alternate Delivery Channels, Arab National Bank, Saudi Arabia

"The biggest challenges faced by the contact center industry remain the same: My challenge is keeping good enough people in my center to have good service without too much cost or too much turnover. I have to staff the center to maintain the proper service level, while providing a quality service to the callers without too much cost. My advice, make sure that the proper contact channels are established and staffed for things like phone, email, chat, sms, etc."
- Greg Smart, Sr. Director, Product Management, inContact by UCN, U.S.A.

"To manage the complexity of this business: the balance between cost and opportunity. If you don't provide a good contact center service, you run the risk of loosing market share, but to provide a good service means having a return on investment and to transfer cost into new sales opportunities. We have to invest in quality agents, yes it raises the cost but eventually rraising the revenue."
- Clarice Kobayashi, Marketing and Strategy VP, Nexxy Capital, Brazil

"Contact centers face numerous challenges surrounding technology, operations, and employee development. One constant challenge is the under-utilization of technology in the contact center, often caused when the technology is not thoroughly evaluated or mapped to the overall organizational strategies. This is problematic because with the amount of money spent on contact center technologies, it is crucial that they are utilized to their full potential. Another challenge lies in the ineffectiveness of many operational processes. Manual processes and disjointed workflows reduce productivity in the contact center, resulting in financial losses and dissatisfied customers. Finally, contact centers are noticeably affected by low agent morale and high turnover rates. Contact center managers must resolve this challenge by developing employees through appropriate coaching and training programs and finding creative solutions to motivate and inspire their employees."
- Roger Lee, Director Customer Interaction Solutions, Autonomy, U.S.A.

"The biggest challenge the contact center industry faces today is engaging employees' hearts and minds. With our Generation X and Y characteristics, and even boomers staying or returning to the work force, people want rewarding and challenging work. Helping people learn and be recognized for what they learn, share with others, and achieve, is extremely powerful."
- Louise Anderson, President, Anderson Performance Improvement

"The challenge continues to be balancing service quality cost while maintaining client and employee satisfaction."
- Frank Muzzi, VP, Global Outsourcing, In Genius Solutions Inc., Canada

"To deliver a consistent customer experience: In the backdrop of leading players in the key industry verticals such as telecom, high-tech and financial services using multiple contact center vendors, end-customers are exposed to different vendors delivering  a varied customer experience. Multiple vendors need to be managed with an aim to deliver a consistent customer experience. The ability to provide localized services for new market entry initiatives: emerging markets are becoming increasingly important as North America and Europe are facing economic downturn for almost all the key verticals including high-tech, telecom and financial services. It needs a special type of skill to serve a multi-national firm in China, Brazil and India as well as North America. For example: 
- Falling margins: price pressure are intense particularly in North America while offshore cost base is on the rise. 
- High attrition: attrition continues remain high, particularly in offshore locations. Fair pay and some measures to address work-life balance will go a long way to safeguard the long-term health of the contact center industry globally."
- Suvradeep Bhattacharjee, Principal Analyst, NelsonHall, United Kingdom

"Addressing the negative perception that consumers have of the customer experience of dealing with contact centers. Automation has led to alienation of the very customers that we are trying to serve. To make the contact center of the future successful, it is imperative that we inject humanity back into the system so that customers don’t feel so disconnected."
- DL Baron, CEO and Founder, Experticity, U.S.A.

"There are various challenges, however, the biggest challenge is employee turnover. Another challenge is customer turnaround times, where customers expect answers quicker each day!"
- Lambros Papadopoulos, Contact Centre Manager, WagerLogic Limited, Cyprus

"I would say the increasing demands of the customer. Customers not only expect us to preempt their problems, but also to have solutions ready to deploy immediately. This is not always the case and so, excellent soft skills become a priority."
- Gary Moss, Global Resource Planning Manager, EDS An HP Company, United Kingdom

"Recruitment of appropriate resources and lead time to productivity. Attrition, immediate ratification and speedy career progression."
- Ruby Sheriar, Contact Center Manager, HSBC, India

"Agent attrition, lack of skilled or committed talent."
- Archie Rodriguez, Transcosmos Logicall, Philippines

"Embracing and developing new technology to ensure contact centres remain "profit" centres in the future."
- David Burns (né: Steinke), Assistant Manager, Call Centre Operations, Manitoba Public Insurance, Canada