Cloud migrations have accelerated quickly into the mainstream in the customer experience industry and are emerging as a key success factor for achieving greater scalability and efficiency in the contact center. According to a Metrigy report, of the nearly 51 percent of organizations with contact center platforms, 32 percent use Contact Center as a Service (CCaaS) platforms – and the global market for CCaaS is expected to grow by 12 percent over the next five years.
While many organizations understand the benefits of migrating contact centers to the cloud – including improved flexibility, scalability, and cost savings compared to on-prem systems – some that have made the move express dissatisfaction.
According to recent Forrester research, over 80 percent of contact center decision-makers believe that their CCaaS solution is less functional than their on-prem system.
If the benefits are obvious, why are contact center leaders unhappy with the migration?
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To understand why there are feelings of dissatisfaction around cloud migrations, let’s explore some of the most pervasive myths about CCaaS:
Myth #1: Cloud Migrations Are Easy and Pain-Free
Although a cloud migration can provide significant benefits to your organization (and ultimately your bottom line) making this transition isn’t always a light lift and should not be anticipated as such. As with any change to processes and workflow, you’ll likely experience temporary disruption, and perhaps the discomfort that often accompanies change. If you and your team have been using the same technologies and processes for an extended period of time, this transition could take some getting used to. Expect that there will be a transitional period, with continued adjustments where necessary. Migrating your contact center to the cloud is a lot like renovating your kitchen…
There may be a period of temporary disruption as the remodeling is underway, but with the right materials and talented partners, you are left with an end solution that you get to reap the benefits of every day.
Myth #2: Cloud Solutions Are One-Size-Fits-All
A cloud solution that produces optimum results is not a one-size-fits-all platform but is tailor-made for an organization. Through customizations and integrations with complementary cloud add-ons, CCaaS platforms can address specific pain points and deliver greater efficiency. Organizations should work with solution providers and implementation partners to design and deploy a CCaaS platform that fits their unique goals and visions.
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Customer experience is at the heart of these tech transformations.
By collaborating with a solution integrator to map out an implementation strategy, your CCaaS platform can consist of the right combination of the elements (such as technology, design, and AI training) needed to achieve favorable outcomes. By choosing a more tailored solution, organizations can reap the benefits of CCaaS while supporting customer and business needs.
Myth #3: The “Lift and Shift” Approach Works for the Cloud
The “lift and shift” is a common cloud migration strategy where organizations attempt to take their existing processes, workflows, and configurations designed for their on-prem systems and transition to a cloud environment in a like-for-like way. At first glance, this can seem like the fastest and smoothest path to the cloud.
Why?
Because replacing a CX platform is no small endeavor. Your existing system has been tweaked and tuned over the course of years and is an integral piece of your customer service strategy. It works.
Why risk changing it?
The problem with this approach is that it’s often short-sighted. What we tend to forget when seeking a lift and shift replacement is that while the existing platform represents the accumulated knowledge of the organization, it also represents the accumulated constraints, concessions, and mistakes of the organization. Those constraints are different with a cloud platform; we need to reevaluate any concessions; and we don’t want to perpetuate the mistakes.
Instead, start with the question, “What do we want our new CX platform to do in order to achieve our stated business objectives?”
Align to a North Star and focus all your effort in that direction. You may still need to reverse engineer a function or figure out something on the old platform, but at least you are doing it to reach your business objectives and not to just perpetuate the norm.
Myth #4: The Cloud Is the Best Solution for All Organizations
With the increasing industry-wide pressure to adopt CCaaS, it’s easy to assume adopting this technology is the only way forward for contact centers.
But, that’s not the case.
A report shows over 40 percent of organizations with contact center platforms are choosing to stay on-prem. While several factors are often at play for the decision to move to the cloud – including the upfront costs, time for implementation, and slight disruption to the workflow – there are other key questions an organization must ask before deciding the cloud is right for them.
For example, is now the right time for our organization to transition to the cloud?
Is a hybrid cloud solution a better approach?
Can we find opportunities for innovation and improvement within our current platform?
Have we identified a CCaaS platform and an implementation partner that fits our needs?
The cloud can be hugely beneficial for organizations looking to unify their processes, increase efficiencies, and introduce greater scalability to their contact center. However, these potential upsides of transitioning to the cloud do not mean a complete cloud migration is the necessary next step or the best choice for all organizations.
Here are a few hard-to-swallow truths that still exist in this era of all things cloud:
- Organizations can be successful without making the move to the cloud.
- Customization is key – your organization doesn’t need to be fully in or fully out when it comes to the cloud. You can add new, advanced technologies to your on-prem systems to increase efficiency and improve flexibility.
- Cloud migrations are a journey – not a quick trip. Organizations that want to adopt this technology, but aren’t quite ready for a full rip and replace, can gradually adopt cloud capabilities at a pace that is suitable for the business, employees, and customers.
In-with-the-new doesn’t have to mean out-with-the-old. And contact center leaders don’t have to succumb to the pressure of adopting cloud technology if it’s not the right fit at the right time.
With feelings of dissatisfaction swirling around CCaaS cloud migrations, it’s important to understand what’s driving these four cloud migration myths – and what’s required to make your organization’s cloud migration successful in the short- and long-term. CCaaS presents many benefits to your customers, employees, and the overall business, but to reap those requires a full understanding of what it takes to effectively move contact center solutions to the cloud. To be most successful, the approach must be complemented with the proper care and time to realize maximum advantages.
But, it is well worth it if CCaaS is the right fit for your organization.
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