Why AI Hasn't Replaced Call Center Jobs
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Episode Description
Chatbots are getting better at customer service, but that does not automatically mean fewer human workers.
Peter Cappelli, Wharton Professor of Management, examines research suggesting chatbots can seem more empathetic than people and why call center hiring has continued to grow.
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Brief Summary
Chatbots in healthcare are perceived as more empathetic than humans, raising questions about job impacts.
Key points
- Chatbots vs. Humans in Empathy. Surprisingly, people find chatbots more empathetic than human call center workers.
- Job Market Surprises. Despite automation, call center jobs are still on the rise in certain countries.
Transcript
These tools are getting pretty good at automating chatbot functions. Some of the results in healthcare indicating that people think the chatbots are more empathetic than the humans are. And that sounds unbelievable, but you know, the humans who are doing call center work are stressed. They're low-wage jobs. They're often in foreign countries. But even there, apparently the evidence is that the hiring of people to do call center work in the Philippines and other countries where it's going has actually gone up. So, go figure. You know, it's not an obvious thing that this is going to wipe out all these jobs.
