7 Contact center trends for 2025

Contact center trends for 2025 are characterized by using advanced technology to build a customer-centric culture. After all, contact centers are the lifeblood of customer service at a time when relationships and loyalty are paramount. The contact center industry will double in value between now and 2027, and will reach US$113.8 billion by 2027, according to Agile Intel and CX Network 2024. 

CX Network has taken stock of the trends that will help contact centers evolve and transform: 

1. Artificial intelligence and Agentic AI

Traditional artificial intelligence (AI) has been revolutionizing the customer experience for a while now. As the technology continues to advance, it becomes more ubiquitous, and even the doubtful are coming around. In fact, AI-powered technologies for operations is the second most popular trend changing the role of CX practitioners, according to the latest Global State of CX report.

The community is already seeing AI at work. In contact centers, large language models (LLMs) are helping customer service agents answer simple questions and resolve common problems. In fact, conversational AI, powered by generative AI, enables self-service and less human intervention. AI also can automate repetitive tasks, analyze customer data and personalize interactions. 

In the coming year, more emphasis will be placed on agentic AI, which can autonomously handle questions, even more complicated ones. This is the future of CX, according to some experts.

"If it’s an insurance company, the agent will help customers file a claim or add someone to their premium. If it’s a consumer-electronics company, it might help you with technical support. If you’re a telecommunications company, it might help convince people not to cancel or upgrade or downgrade their plan," Bret Taylor, co-founder and CEO of Sierra, told the Wall Street Journal CIO Network. Most agents today are largely customer service, and that’s really our sweet spot. If we fast-forward, agents will come to encompass your entire customer experience."

What is special about artificial intelligence is that it impacts every other trend on this list. 

2. Automation

Automation of CX and service functions is the number one investment priority, accounting for 42 percent of the vote, according to respondents of the 2024 Global State of CX survey. Indeed, in October 2024, Oracle promised to help all customers automate all customer service operations.

In addition to using AI to automate processes, contact centers are already turning to robotic process automation (RPA). This is another option for responding to repetitive tasks. When combined with artificial intelligence, RPA allows for personalization. It can handle autofill in documents, placing and changing orders and chatbots that respond to commonly asked questions. This is where process excellence meets customer experience: 

"In 2025, process discovery will be pivotal in uncovering inefficiencies and continuous optimization of workflows," said Christopher Groenne, product strategy consultant, according to SS&C | Blue Prism's 2025 Automation and Orchestration Trends. "By leveraging advanced process mining tools, AI and IA technologies, companies can gain deep insights into their operations, enabling data-driven decisions that enhance efficiency and customer satisfaction."

3. Data analytics

Nearly 40 percent of respondents to the 2024 Global State of CX survey said data insights and analytics were their top investment priority, making it number two just behind automation. Of course, one of the biggest benefits of deploying artificial intelligence and machine learning is the ability to track, organize and translate the data that customer interactions create. 

"By leveraging data analytics, businesses can also predict customer needs and offer proactive solutions," according to the CX Network Snapshot. "An artificial intelligence-powered system might, for instance, automatically provide related troubleshooting resources after noticing that a customer frequently contacts about a given product. By fixing issues before they develop, this approach not only raises customer satisfaction but also reduces call volume." 

This kind of information, along with realized data from online purchases, social media and smart appliances like wearable watches and vehicle sensors, can help contact center agents anticipate and respond to problems in real time. Data, when organized and translated into action, is the currency of customer experience. Successfully leveraging data will be a big differentiator in 2025.

4. Cloud-based contact centers

The cloud-based contact center is a software platform that allows for communication with customers through the internet. As a result of using this technology, companies can manage interactions across multiple channels, including email, chat, text messaging, social media and voice. Google Search Labs says the benefits of cloud-based contact centers are scalability, cost savings, flexibility, integration and real-time analytics. It is a one-stop shop for the other trends listed. 

In 2024, cloud-based contact centers did not get the love that one might expect. The investment in cloud contact centers was a mixed bag, according to the 2024 Global State of CX. Only 19 percent of respondents to the survey said that they had fully migrated to cloud contact center, and 15 percent said the organization was cloud native. Nearly 20 percent said they either planned to migrate to cloud in the future or have no plans for it.

However, 2025 could be the year of cloud contact centers. After all, CX Network's snapshot indicated that contact center software solutions "have become the foundational backbone of modern customer service operations." The cloud contact center market is expected to reach US$101.1 billion by 2030, according to Market Research Future. It makes it easier to scale and removes the need to keep hardware on site. In addition, cloud contact centers can enable omnichannel services, so customers could interact across all channels, including voice, email, social media, etc.  

5. Compliance and trust

Compliance refers to the laws and regulations that companies must follow in their interaction with customers and in deploying contact centers. Failing to adhere to such rules can result in legal ramifications, such as large fines.

The rules will vary based on location. It can also refer to the organization's in-house best practices and standards. Some basics are obvious like protecting personal finance or healthcare data, gaining consent for recordings and preventing consumer contact informaton from getting in the wrong hands. 

A violation can rip away at the trust that a brand has built with its customers. It may influence potential customers' decision to use a product or service. It could even degrade the employee experience. 

Monitoring interactions, creating a compliance score, coaching agents and using technology helps organizations comply. More advanced technology means companies can track all interactions without investing in additional employees, and they can more easily recognize red flags and address them. 

The reason compliance is growing in importance is that companies are seeking trust and loyalty from customers. This has grown in significance in recent years, and provides a competitive edge. Of course, compliance also reduces risk and the likelihood of having to pay hefty fines or face other punishment. 

"Given the scale of call centers’ interactions, the potential for non-adherence is high," according to Qualtrics. "Without the right approaches in place, call center compliance can easily become a difficult business process with costly risks."

6. Employee experience

Employee experience trickles down to the customer. “Study after study has shown that investing in employee experience impacts the customer experience and can generate a high ROI for the company," according to CX futurist Blake Morgan as reported in the CX guide to employee experience.

"A positive employee experience is not just an advantage; it's a strategic asset that directly improves revenue generation, boosts operational efficiency, and strengthens the capacity to meet customer demands effectively," according to Call Center Services International. 

Human resources can focus on creating a positive work culture, rewarding and recognizing good work and continuously providing learning and development opportunities. Many have said that companies equipping employees with the latest technology to simplify their work and help them become more productive and efficient can boost morale. It can also cause fear. After all, some worry that advanced technology like AI may replace humans. Leaders must address those fears as part of their efforts to better support employees. 

7. Empathy 

One way is to remind everyone about the importance of humanity in customer experience. Empathy and the human touch will play a large role in contact centers in 2025 and beyond. People are vulnerable right now. Times are tough and cold recordings and machines populate the customer experience landscape. Those companies that keep humans in the loop and use technology as a tool to better connect with people will gain a competitive edge.

Being able to personalize the experience and relate to whatever issues the customer is having will go a long way to contribute to this desire for loyalty. In fact, customer loyalty and retention is the fourth most impmortant trend changing the role of CX practitioners, according to the Global State of CX survey. 

"The data makes one thing clear: people want to deal with people," according to Qualtrics. "To us, that highlights an important point: the best person-on-person connections won't be built with a one-size-fits-all approach. Customers expect better." 

In fact, those who can wisely apply AI to customer service will stand out. 

"Many a time, when companies are doing AI-related projects, it's about how can we do the things that we have always done but in a way that is now supported by AI? Whereas particularly for CX, they should be thinking about new things and experiences that AI can help create and exploring how it can unlock their creativity," said Sirte Pihlaja, head of team for CXPA Finland and CEO of Shirute in the 2024 Global State of CX report. 

Contact center trends for 2025 matter

Ultimately, contact center trends for 2025 can guide companies seeking to personalize their customer interaction, move toward an omnichannel strategy and increase customer loyalty and retention. While technology, especially AI, will play a giant role, people must remain at the core of the operation. After all, contact centers are the hub of customer experience, and CX is nothing without humanity. 

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