In 2023, the projected gross volume of the gig economy is expected to top $455 billion.

The gig economy, as most probably know, is a labor market defined by short-term or part-time independent contract and freelance work. Most people think of Uber drivers when they think of the gig economy, but the variety of gig work has dramatically increased post-pandemic and will continue to do so now with the greater acceptance of remote work and technology that enables office work on a global versus local scale.

How contact centers can leverage the gig economy

This ties in directly with two of contact center leaders’ major pain points. In a recent survey commissioned by 8x8, more than 200 customer experience (CX) and contact center leaders listed today’s top challenges as recruiting and retaining talent (53%) and reducing operating costs (34%).

Now these aren’t new challenges by any means. But previously, it was almost impossible for contact center leaders to look to gig workers to solve them. Contact center technology was not only predominantly on-premises, but it was also too complicated for a contract worker to quickly pick up.

The move to cloud contact center technology, increased automation, and design-led, workflow-focused agent experiences, however, is changing all that. That’s why, in the report Contact Center Predictions for 2023 and Beyond, we predict that by 2025, 25% of contact center agents will be gig economy workers.

Making contact center technology work for gig-economy workers

8x8 Product Management Director Patrick Russell notes, “As workforce shortages continue, the improved flexibility provided by remote and fractional employment, coupled with modern schedule and location flexibility, will see delays in retirement or even retirees boomerang back into the workforce to help solve some of the shortage. Gig-economy workers will also become commonplace in the contact center.

“Increasingly, front-line digital workers will work in conjunction with advanced technology,” says Russell. “Whereas the technology will handle much of the effort through self-service interaction channels, bots will also provide oversight of information management between customers and workers. Additionally, machines will provide workers with emotion detection and response guidance to heighten workers' emotional intelligence in real-time.

“The technology interfaces for this workforce will continue to be refined and simplified and will require little to no training time. Virtual assistance will also provide real-time guidance, ensuring that all parts of customer requests and information inputs are accurate, and acting as an ‘auto-correct’ for all actions taken and responses given.”

Taking advantage of future of work trends

According to Edelman Intelligence, by 2027, the “alternative workforce” of freelancers, gig workers, and crowd workers is expected to become the majority of the US workforce. Want to read or hear more about this trend? Get the complementary Contact Center Predictions for 2023 and Beyond report or watch The Evolving Contact Center: Customer Service Insights and Predictions.