Is AI taking CX jobs?

Customer service representatives and consultants are dedicated to providing high levels of service. When staffing levels decline, however, these professionals say it undercuts their efforts to provide excellent experiences. Yet, in these times of economic uncertainty and geopolitical turmoil, employers are cutting hiring to the lowest possible levels.

According to findings from a Gallup Q3 2025 survey, Megan Mulherin reports that only 23 percent of employees said their company fulfills the service promises it makes to its customers. Insufficient staffing accounted for 37 percent of the inability to meet and sustain consistent delivery of service, followed by inadequate training at 16 percent. 

Shrinking headcount is adding pressure not just to frontline employees, but to executives and senior leaders as well. When asked in the Gallup survey about their experiences, 46 percent have observed stress and frustration among employees, 32 percent site a lack of communication from leadership about new priorities, and 18 percent report that the number 

Don't miss any news, updates or insider tips from CX Network by getting them delivered to your inbox. Sign up to our newsletter and join our community of experts. 

Learn More

Is shrinking headcount the direct result of AI? 

Studies conducted about AI-related job displacement are inconclusive and often contradictory. 

Some studies are narrowing the scope by looking at work tasks that could be automated by AI rather than whole job displacement. For example, Goldman Sachs predicts AI could automate roughly 25 percent of work tasks in advanced economies with a modest long-term impact on employment as AI likely creates new roles and boosts productivity.

Research conducted by Sam Manning and Tomás Aguirre with GovAI shows estimates of how many job-related tasks a worker can plausibly do more efficiently with AI. Those estimates found that customer service jobs have high overlap with AI capabilities.     

According to a study by the Peterson Institute for International Economics, early findings on the effects of AI on the labor market are weak signals because research tools and approaches are immature and lack common definitions and standards for measuring economic impact. 

The study warns that enthusiasm for the investment in, and the advances in AI, create pressure for employers to show how they plan to use AI to save money, boost productivity or become more efficient. 

CEOs can be tempted to blame AI for a hiring freeze or a layoff. 

How vulnerable is CX to AI job displacement? 

It is hard to predict if the threats of job change or loss are imminent. According to research by Gartner, 85 percent of customer service leaders are exploring, piloting or deploying chatbots, but only 20 percent of the projects are fully meeting expectations. While leaders may cite resources and money as reasons for moving to AI customer service, it isn't a given that AI will be cheaper. It's expensive technology that involves huge amounts of documentation and training. 

Other outlooks for the customer experience are more positive. Fiona Coleman runs QStory, a firm based in London which provides a workforce management platform that offers human call center workers more flexibility in their shift patterns.

Coleman sees the value in using AI to improve working conditions but doubts the technology could ever replace humans entirely.

Additionally, legislation is on the horizon that offers some level of indirect protection to customer service workers. Later in 2026, the EU AI Act comes into force, mandating 'the right to talk to a human' as part of its consumer protection rules. In the United States, proposed legislation to move offshore call centers back to America requires disclosure of the use of AI and the ability to transfer a caller to a human if asked.

The digital employees option

Does the future hold the possibility for AI and customer services professionals to partner to enhance and redefine the service experience? Will such partnering explain how AI jobs may be transformed?

People are getting familiar with generative AI platforms while agentic AI, on the other hand, can trigger new workflows, interact with other tools such as databases, and resolve common problems, such as customer issues. 

As part of CX Network's annual research into the state of CX, network members were asked to select which changes they believe agentic and generative AI will bring to their organizations. With nine responses to choose from, the most selected were the requirement for teams to upskill (36 percent), a future where humans and "digital employees" work side-by-side (32 percent), and the ability to automate complaint resolution (27 percent). 

Using AI as a problem-solving agent – allowing it to handle certain functions such as billing or scheduling – reduces repetitive and mundane tasks freeing up customer service representatives to focus on more nuanced problems.

This is just one trend that is evolving to provide better, faster, and more personalized customer experiences while preserving the human touch. 

CX leaders understand the importance of the human connection. As AI continues to advance and shift from reactive problem-solving to proactive problem prevention, customer service managers are analyzing customer sentiment and experiences. They are using the insights they gain to provide timely tips to customers or resolve issues autonomously, build trust, boost satisfaction and free agents to focus on more complex interactions thereby adding value.

From threats to opportunity

The digital transformation that comes with AI is bringing change to many industries. Consider AI transforming workflows and processes with a goal beyond increased productivity – namely a goal of growth for both the organization and the individual. 

Nickle LaMoreaux, IBM's chief HR officer, challenges different thinking about AI's potential. Consider an organization that drives efficiencies that lead to productivity and cost savings that reinvests in human talent to focus on new products and features or gaining new clients. 

Such reinvestment can lead to AI-driven growth. Reinvesting in the workforce requires developing employees, teaching them new skills, and reengineering jobs rather than eliminating them.

Consider early-in-career customer service workers who were trained in call centers where they learned to tackle inquiries. If AI chatbots are answering those questions, those same entry-level workers could be following up with customers to garner feedback, allowing them to gain problem-solving skills. 

If jobs can be transformed to be more robust and give employees the opportunity to be challenged, employees will be excited about the work they do and the contributions they make. Leaders, however, must change the mindset from AI's influence on employee productivity to its potential to enhance the employee experience. And a positive employee experience leads to a positive customer experience, which leads to growth. 

It's a win-win for all.

Quick links

• Your contact center AI is succeeding, but are your customers still suffering?
• 5 brands transforming CX and service with conversational AI
• Customer experience is the symptom. Stakeholder experience is the system

49523.003 All Access: AI + Data in CX 2026

All Access: AI + Data in CX will hear case studies and how you can implement strategic actions effectively with a personalized, seamless customer journey that nurtures loyalty and satisfaction.

Register Now