How Automation and Self-Service Can Help Ease Staffing Shortages
As staffing shortages become a growing issue for businesses across all industries, automation and self-service capabilities have quickly gained the attention of many companies. These two technologies can help companies reduce the need for human intervention and streamline processes across all departments, allowing them to operate at full capacity without compromising customer experience or hiring new staff. But let’s get into specifics and see how such technology can help your business overcome this challenge without directing all your resources towards hiring.
1. Streamline Repetitive Tasks
Companies can use technology to automate repetitive tasks. From data entry to order processing, and scheduling, everything requires qualified staff when handled by employees. However, automation can help organizations lower the need for new employees by automating and accelerating mundane tasks. Task automation enables employees to focus on high-value processes without neglecting any of their duties, mundane or not.
2. Accelerate Customer Service Processes
Self-service options empower your company to offer state-of-the-art customer support without the assistance of an employee. This accelerates service delivery, even with limited staffing. With self-service centers, customers can easily search your knowledge base, get questions answered instantly, and open cases for extra assistance without ever having to pick up the phone, helping you minimize overall caseload and resolve issues faster. Some organizations deploy website help centers that give customers access to documents and valuable information on some of the most common features of their products or services and enable them to receive online assistance when and how they need it.
3. 24/7 Availability with Self-Service Technology
The perk of deploying self-service options is that these solutions are available around the clock. Regardless of your business’s working hours, your customers can find solutions to common problems and questions without being limited by your working hours. Apart from offering an excellent solution to businesses that struggle with a low number of employees, self-service options also help you secure a good position in terms of CX.
4. Increased Accuracy
Automation not only alleviates the burden of hiring more qualified employees but also helps organizations improve accuracy in their daily operations. Automated inventory tracking, process management, and case routing are more likely to generate positive outcomes and aid human intervention when necessary.
5. Increased Profitability and Productivity
Although repetitive and daunting, some tasks need qualified employees to handle them. Automation and self-service solutions lower the overall operational costs of these types of processes, allowing businesses to invest in the areas that need improving, innovation, for instance. This is especially beneficial in high-turnover industries, where qualified employees are difficult to come by.
Besides, these technologies will also enable organizations to boost productivity. By automating tasks and reducing the need for manual intervention, businesses can increase productivity and output without hiring additional staff members. Companies can remain competitive and meet growing demand despite staffing shortages in this new dynamic.
Technology offers a series of benefits and, recently, with wider adoption of automation and self-service, it can ease the burden of staffing shortages across many industries.
Curious how you can use such technologies to your advantage? Request a demo and see for yourself!
