Understanding Customer Service Workflows & Automation

Differentiating Premium Products and Services can be achieved with five key strategies, and in this article, we explore Differentiation enabled by outstanding after-sales Customer Experience enabled by digital solutions which are powered by Automation and Workflows.

Workflow automation has emerged to manage complexity in Customer Service Operations and differentiate quality from volume device manufacturers.

Table of Contents

The Essence of Customer Service Automation and Workflows

Key Benefits of Automating Customer Service Processes

Implementing Automation: Best Practices and Strategies

Future Trends in Customer Service Automation

Top Workflow Automation Tools

FAQs

The Essence of Customer Service Automation and Workflows

Workflows are structured business rules designed to initiate and direct tasks and information flow to various individuals and systems, often called roles.

These workflows comprise three fundamental components: Rules, Roles, and Routings.

Rules define the conditions under which specific actions are triggered, Roles identify the individuals or teams responsible for executing these actions, and Routings determine the channels through which information and tasks are communicated.

For instance, consider a scenario in which a customer utilises their Self-Service Portal to schedule an on-site calibration. In this case, the Rule that the service has been booked activates the workflow. The Role assigned is the Field Services team, and the Routing could involve any communication channel the business employs, such as voice mail, email, in-app notifications, or messaging services like Text/WhatsApp.

Workflows can be designed for a singular, straightforward purpose, as illustrated in our example, or they can be more intricate, encompassing multiple tasks triggered by a variety of Business Rules and directed to numerous Roles.

These workflows can be configured in various ways, such as;

• cascaded, where tasks are dependent on the completion of previous ones;
• nested, where tasks are embedded within other tasks;
• sequential, where tasks follow a specific order;
• parallel, where tasks occur simultaneously; or
• state-based, where tasks depend on the status of certain conditions.

This flexibility allows workflows to effectively manage and simplify operations across diverse departments, geographical locations, and organisational entities.

In the past five years, workflow automation has significantly transformed in terms of creation, testing, maintenance, and deployment. The advent of user-friendly, no-code digital solutions has shifted the responsibility of developing these workflows from specialised Software/IT teams to operational and analytical teams. This transition has resulted in increased agility, fostering innovation and accelerating the speed of deployment.

Customer Service automation and workflows are systematic digital processes that harness technology to perform repetitive tasks and streamline customer interactions efficiently. Indisputably essential for successful
Customer Service Management.

These workflows are designed to automatically route tasks across various departments, ensuring that customer promises and commitments are fulfilled promptly, with accurate information, and through the most appropriate communication channel, adhering to the principles of Rules, Roles, and Routings.

Key Benefits of Automating Customer Service Processes

Simon Kutcher elaborates that providing an outstanding customer experience is a crucial strategy among the five key methods to differentiate premium products and services in today's competitive market. This exceptional customer experience is the primary outcome achieved through the automation of Customer Services Operations and Processes.

By automating these operations, businesses can ensure the demonstrable delivery of customer promises, which means consistently meeting and exceeding customer expectations.

This is achieved by maintaining high standards in Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and Service Level Agreements (SLAs), which are consistently met, ensuring reliability and trustworthiness in service delivery.

Furthermore, automation leads to an increased speed to revenue, as streamlined processes allow for quicker response times and faster service delivery, ultimately enhancing customer satisfaction and loyalty.

As companies grow, managing complexity becomes a significant challenge, but automation helps in effectively handling this complexity by simplifying operations.

This is done by integrating Customer and Field Service and Support, which ensures that all aspects of customer service are aligned and working in harmony.

Additionally, automation facilitates the unification of sales and after-sales processes on a single platform, creating a seamless experience for both the company and its customers. This integration improves efficiency and provides a holistic view of customer interactions, enabling businesses to tailor their services more effectively to meet individual customer needs.

Overall, the automation of customer service operations is a transformative approach that empowers companies to deliver exceptional customer experiences, setting them apart in the marketplace.

Implementing Automation: Best Practices and Strategies

When implementing automation in customer service operations, it is crucial to start with a comprehensive set of objectives related to enhancing and improving the overall customer experience. This involves a detailed understanding of the customer journey and the various touchpoints where automation can significantly impact.

Begin by thoroughly identifying the Customer Experience (CX) processes that customers initiate, such as Ordering Products, Service Bookings, Price and Availability requests, Change requests, Repairs, Maintenance and break-fix requests, Delivery Delay Processes, and Rescheduling Services.

Each of these processes represents a critical interaction point where the efficiency and effectiveness of the service provided can significantly influence customer satisfaction.

The next step is to meticulously 'walk' through the CX processes and map out how tasks move through the various teams and their respective roles and responsibilities. This involves a detailed workflow analysis, ensuring that every step is clearly defined and that there is a seamless transition from one task to the next.

While focused on each role, it is essential to establish what needs to happen to complete the task, including the necessary inputs, data, and resources and the resource-based and elapsed times required for each task.

It is also important to determine how tasks are flagged as completed and ready for the next set of actions, ensuring that there is no ambiguity or delay in the process.

With the core process visually mapped, you can now overlay the information and data required to complete each task and the systems and resources that have that data. This step involves integrating various data sources and ensuring that the necessary information is readily available to the right people at the right time.

The various integrations must ensure timely delivery of their respective inputs to allow the workflow to complete sub-tasks and tasks efficiently and effectively.

These CX processes are then loaded into the workflow automation platform and rigorously tested for accuracy and timing. Given the sophistication of most premium Customer Experiences, the processes should be managed using a comprehensive Project Management Plan that includes at least the following elements:

• CX process definition and workflow scope: Clearly define the boundaries and objectives of the workflow to ensure alignment with customer experience goals.
• Enrolment triggers and exception handling: Identify the triggers that initiate the workflow and establish protocols for handling exceptions or deviations from the standard process.
• Stakeholder identification and communication plan: Identify all relevant stakeholders and develop a communication plan to keep them informed and engaged throughout the implementation process.
• Implementation methodology and approach: Outline the methodology and approach for implementing the automation, including timelines, resources, and key milestones.

• Logging and managing risks, Assumptions, and Dependencies: Identify potential risks, assumptions, and dependencies and develop strategies for managing them effectively.
• Change Request process, including approvals: Establish a formal process for managing change requests, including the necessary approvals and documentation.
• Systems integration plan and test scripts: Develop a detailed plan for integrating the automation with existing systems and create test scripts to ensure functionality and performance.
• Training and adoption plan: Develop a training and adoption plan to ensure that all users are adequately trained and comfortable with the new automated processes.
• Gantt chart and task lists: Create a Gantt chart and detailed task lists to track progress and ensure that all tasks are completed on time and within scope.

Future Trends in Customer Service Automation

The future of customer service automation looks bright, with significant progress in artificial intelligence and machine learning paving the way.

AI-powered chatbots are becoming more advanced, able to tackle more intricate inquiries and deliver tailored customer experiences. Additionally, the integration of automation with omnichannel support is anticipated to increase. This development ensures that customers receive consistent and seamless assistance across various platforms, such as social media, email, and live chat.

Predictive analytics will also be crucial, enabling companies to foresee customer needs and proactively resolve potential issues.

Top Workflow Automation Tools

The most appropriate Customer Services Operations workflow automation tools depend on various metrics, such as revenue, operating model, and target markets.

Tools like Salesforce Service Cloud and ServiceNow are particularly beneficial for centralised monolithic corporations, especially when process commonality is high and sufficient technical and IT resources are available to build and maintain the systems.

For decentralised global firms committed to keeping customer innovation close to their markets, tools like HubSpot's Service Hub Enterprise stand out for their ease of use and integration with field service systems. These tools offer comprehensive solutions for managing customer service workflows. 

HubSpot is particularly good at automating an outstanding Customer Experience to help differentiate premium solutions.

See for yourself how user friendly our solutions are ...

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Discover how Hunter Apparel Solutions elevated their Customer Experience

- 4x Faster Customer Response

- Easy Identification of  Communication Blockages

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