Agentic AI – When AI Becomes Your Agent

As businesses face growing customer expectations and increasing operational complexity, Agentic AI – AI systems capable of acting autonomously to achieve specific goals – has emerged as a transformative force in the customer outsource industry.

Unlike traditional AI models which are limited to providing suggestions or predefined responses, Agentic AI can take initiative, reason across systems, and execute actions end-to-end, often without human intervention.

Radical gains, bro!

We get it, you’re only just getting your head around Generative AI (or AI in general) and now you’re telling me there’s something else out there for me to look at! Unfortunately, that’s the fast paced world we live in, dog-eat-dog as they say.

However fear not, Newstel is here to tell you how Agentic AI can help your customer service operations:

1. Efficiency gains – Agentic AI dramatically reduces call handling times and improves first-call resolution rates. According to a 2024 NICE report, companies leveraging AI-driven agents reported a 25% reduction in average handling time (AHT) and a 15-20% boost in customer satisfaction (CSAT) scores compared to traditional AI-enhanced centers. By autonomously resolving common issues – such as resetting passwords, tracking shipments, or issuing refunds – Agentic AI frees human agents to focus on more complex cases.
2. Unified systems – contact centres traditionally work in silos, which is the same when it comes to customer systems and software. Whereas Agentic AI acts as a unified intelligence layer, connecting these systems to resolve queries holistically. For instance, an AI agent can verify a customer’s identity, check inventory, initiate a replacement order, and notify the customer—all within a single interaction.
3. Scalability – Agentic AI enables hyper-personalised experiences at scale, analysing historical data, customer sentiment, and contextual cues in real-time to tailor interactions. Accenture’s 2023 AI in Customer Service survey found that 74% of businesses using Agentic AI saw measurable improvements in personalised service delivery, significantly enhancing customer loyalty and retention.
4. Cost Savings – with AI agents handling routine tasks, this will allow you to optimise your workforce allocation, reducing the need for large frontline teams while empowering human agents with AI-generated insights. This dual effect leads to cost savings and a higher quality of work for human agents, who can focus on high-value, emotionally complex customer needs.

Are we ceding too much autonomy to AI agents?

While the benefits are clear, enabling wholly autonomous agents comes with risks that businesses must manage proactively:

1. Loss of Human Oversight – with AI agents acting independently, there’s a risk of decisions being made without human empathy or good old common sense, which is crucial in sensitive interactions – such as billing disputes, cancellations, or complaints. Without proper guardrails, AI could escalate issues unnecessarily or, worse, take actions that harm customer relationships.
2. Ethical and Compliance Challenges – AI agents making decisions on behalf of your business may raise significant legal and ethical concerns, including data privacy, bias in decision-making, and regulatory compliance. Ensuring AI operates within legal boundaries – especially in industries like healthcare or finance – requires human-in-the-loop (HITL) mechanisms.
3. Trust and Acceptance – we understand fully that not all customers are comfortable interacting with AI agents, particularly when resolving complex or emotionally charged issues. Over-automation risks alienating customers who value human empathy and understanding – a fact highlighted in PwC’s Future of Customer Experience report, which noted that 59% of consumers feel companies have lost touch with the human element of customer service when relying too heavily on automation.

Let’s meet in the middle …

Like anything we do in life, striking the right balance is key. To get that balance, consider:

• Hybrid AI-Human Models – deploy AI for routine, well-defined tasks, while escalating complex or sensitive cases to human agents.
• Governance Governance Governance – implement policies around AI autonomy, escalation thresholds, and accountability.
• Training and Monitoring – regularly update AI models to reflect new scenarios and monitor real-time performance to catch anomalies early. One for the techies.
• Transparent Communication with Customers: Inform customers when they’re interacting with AI, and offer easy opt-outs to a human agent when needed.

Redefining the contact centre landscape, again

Once again we are at another technological turn in the road. Go left and stick with the current norms, or turn right and join the Agentic AI movement which promises to revolutionise the industry (you’ve heard this before I bet!).

Whilst it is clear to see that Agentic AI offers unparalleled gains in efficiency, interoperability, and customer experience. The risk of unfettered AI autonomy introduces operational and reputational risks that businesses must manage through thoughtful design and oversight.

By combining the speed and precision of AI with the empathy and judgment of human agents, your business can unlock the full potential of Agentic AI while safeguarding the relationship with your customers.

If you’re interested in exploring how Agentic AI can transform your customer operations – from boosting efficiency to enhancing customer experiences – get in touch. We’d be happy to discuss how to make AI work for you.