AI reshapes Jamaica’s BPO industry with ‘itelligence’
KINGSTON, JAMAICA — The business process outsourcing (BPO) landscape in Jamaica is transforming with the introduction of “itelligence,” an AI-powered platform launched by itel in September 2024.
This innovative system is set to revolutionize how customer service representatives interact with technology and serve clients.
The rise of the super agent
The traditional call center role is evolving into what itel now calls “super agents” – employees who harness AI tools to enhance customer interactions and data analysis.
“What we want to see in the industry is that we can upskill the workforce to the point where they are the ones that interact with the AI,” Egbert Von Frankenberg, CEO of Knightfox Apps Design Ltd, told the Jamaica Observer.
“The AI becomes the tool, and the mindset of people entering the BPO industry from a career standpoint shifts to ‘How do I become a master of utilising AI? How can I analyse data and retrain’?”
These super agents will benefit from AI-driven features such as automatic summarization and reduced handling times, allowing them to focus on providing optimal customer service rather than dealing with routine tasks. The platform even incorporates emotional AI to help agents better understand customer sentiments during calls.
Importance of training and upskilling
The adoption of AI calls for a significant enhancement in skills, particularly in areas like programming, data analytics, and roles requiring human empathy. Frankenberg highlighted the importance of comprehensive training programs and apprenticeships to navigate this AI-driven change effectively.
“Through the Global Skills Council, we have started to integrate apprenticeships, and we want to foster that more. It’s a dual training approach — you have the on-the-job experience and traditional training, which is going to be supported through programmes like HEART Trust, so that you’re learning on the job but at the same time getting the certification,” he added.
AI: Creating opportunities, not threats
Despite concerns about AI’s impact on employment, industry leaders maintain that the technology is creating opportunities rather than eliminating jobs. Jamaica’s BPO sector has grown remarkably, expanding from 12,000 to over 60,000 employees in the past decade.
Yoni Epstein, itel’s CEO, emphasizes that recent business fluctuations stem from economic factors rather than AI adoption: “What we have seen in the last 24 months with the evolution of AI is not a situation where business or jobs have been lost because of AI.”
Instead, the company’s investment in AI capabilities through itelligence is positioning Jamaica as a competitive force in the nearshore market, offering both technological advancement and geographical advantages to clients.
