Thanks to trends like remote work, new communication channels, and the rise of cloud technology, the old-fashioned call center may soon be a thing of the past. We’re on the road to a new, more diverse contact center, designed to meet the needs of a multi-generational consumer base.
Microsoft is one of the companies paving the way to this new age of contact center functionality. Through Microsoft Teams, businesses of all sizes now have an effective digital environment where they can collaborate, communicate, and solve complex problems. Though Teams might have started as a simple collaboration tool, Microsoft’s willingness to work alongside communication partners has rapidly taken the platform to another level.
Now, Microsoft Teams can be full solution for Unified Communications, and Contact Center technology, aligned in the same reliable environment. An evolving ecosystem of communication features and appealing third-party integrations is bringing Teams into the heart of all business conversations.
Teams started life as a replacement for Skype for Business – a service that will soon be phased out by Microsoft. As well as offering companies an environment where they could collaborate over tasks in a growing remote-work environment, Microsoft also developed capabilities to support contact center functionality with Teams.
As a technology company, Microsoft knew that it could offer the best service to customers by partnering with brands that had background knowledge in communication and the contact center environment. Although Microsoft could offer customers some access to communication functionality through it’s “Business Phone” technology, it decided to prioritize giving customers more flexibility. Rather than building a full Microsoft Contact Center from scratch, the company decided to open its technology to developers with the skills to enhance what was already available.
This progression began in 2018 when Microsoft announced Microsoft Graph APIs for Microsoft Teams. These “Application programming interfaces” makes it easier for partners to access Microsoft Teams technology and implement their own features.
Today, Microsoft offers a number of platform technologies for Teams Contact Center as a Service integration. These include: Direct Routing Connectivity; Microsoft Graph Cloud Communications APIs; Teams platform and extensibility; and Teams software development kits.
Today, Microsoft has three avenues to explore for companies interested in a Teams Contact Center as a Service solution. These include:
Looking at the three models for CCaaS functionality offered above only provides a partial view of what’s available with a connected Microsoft Teams solution. There are also various ways for developers to add further functionality into the Teams experience too.
The Microsoft Power platform also opens the door to additional opportunities for third-party vendors and partners.
Announced in November 2020, Microsoft’s Power Platform integrations for Teams support developers and communications partners in producing new solutions for Teams. Businesses can experiment with automation, AI, no-code development, and even Power Virtual Agents.
Power Virtual Agents support the creation of intelligent chatbots that can answer questions posed by customers and employees. Chatbots are available to access within Teams without any advanced developer knowledge or skillsets.
Microsoft has provided access to Teams templates which help companies to better organize their workflow within a digital CCaaS environment. Templates can extend standardized contact center customer handling with knowledge resources, apps, and guidance for each potential scenario.
With more than 115 million daily active users at the end of 2020, Microsoft Teams is already one of the most popular tools for internal communications. It only makes sense that companies would want to leverage the full benefits of Teams for external communication too.
Combing Microsoft Teams with the Contact Center means companies can offer their employees a familiar platform whenever they need to serve a customer or respond to a query. The right partner-led solution for MS Teams allows organizations to take advantage of the app’s unique features for things like omnichannel service, AI integrations and bots.
A Microsoft Teams contact center enables:
Microsoft Teams may not have started life as a contact center solution, but it’s quickly becoming one of the top choices for managing internal and external communications. Through versatile integrations, connections with partners, and extensive access to the Teams platform, Microsoft is transforming the modern contact center. In a world where 74% of customer service leaders feel their employees aren’t properly empowered to deliver the right customer service, Teams could be the answer.
As Microsoft continues to pave the way for partners to build their customers customizable and scalable contact centers within Teams, companies can address major challenges like:
Microsoft says that today’s customers have higher expectations than ever when dealing with customer service teams. That’s why the Microsoft Teams group is constantly rolling out new features and functionality to support brands looking to deliver better customer experience.
We’ve seen the rise of features like:
Organizations face a rapidly evolving future for the contact center.
Microsoft is one of the companies adapting to suit this new feature. An ever-transforming roadmap combined with an open environment for partner integrations means the potential of the Teams Contact Center is endless.
Organizations need contact center technology that is embedded in their core enterprise platform, and offers modern process automation, rapid and easy customization. Microsoft, with the help of the right partners, can offer the contact center of the future. The right Teams solution for your company could be the key to future-proofing your business and ensuring long-term survival.