Preparing For The Contact Centre Of The Future With A Remote Workforce
*Updated 27 March 2025*
For years, we’ve said that the contact centre agent’s role is evolving. The COVID-19 crisis back in 2020 didn’t just push this evolution forward – it catapulted it. What began as an emergency shift to remote work has, in many cases, become a permanent or hybrid solution. Contact centres are no longer tied to a physical office, and the results speak for themselves.
It's time to embrace the full potential of free-range agents.
New Era, New Possibilities
We're well beyond the point of asking if contact centre agents can work remotely. The question now is: how well can we support and empower them to thrive remotely – or in hybrid models?
Cloud technology, AI-powered workforce management platforms, and advanced analytics tools have matured rapidly since 2020. Today, remote and hybrid contact centres aren’t just viable – they’re often more efficient, scalable, and cost-effective than their traditional counterparts.
Take Markerstudy as an early example: back in 2020, they transitioned 3,000 staff to homeworking – 1,400 of them customer-facing – in just two days. Fast forward to today, and businesses like theirs have transformed short-term adaptation into long-term strategy, with seamless continuity and no compromise to customer service.
“There was no impact on customer service during the transition. We continued tracking performance metrics like log-on/off times and call duration – all while supporting agents wherever they were.”
– Adam Miller, Group Head of IT, Markerstudy
Why Remote (and Hybrid) Contact Centres Still Make Sense in 2025
1. Happy Agents = Productive Agents
A recent 2024 study from Calabrio revealed 76% of contact centre agents feel more productive and engaged when given flexibility to work remotely or on hybrid schedules.
Flexible work schedules empower agents to work during their most productive hours, reducing burnout and increasing output. Whether it’s skipping the morning commute to spend time with family or hitting the gym before starting the day – work-life balance boosts performance.
2. Cost Efficiency
Physical office spaces come at a premium. As commercial rents continue to rise and businesses look to stay lean, reducing reliance on bricks-and-mortar contact centres is a strategic win. Many organisations have already downsized or exited office leases entirely in favour of remote-first models.
3. A Global Talent Pool
Remote models remove geographical hiring limitations, allowing you to recruit the best talent – not just the closest. Whether you need multilingual agents, specialists for particular industries, or part-time roles across time zones, remote work opens doors.
And with robust onboarding and e-learning tools available, ramping up new hires remotely has never been easier.
4. The New Workforce Wants Flexibility
Millennials and Gen Z now dominate the contact centre workforce – and their expectations are clear. They value flexibility, autonomy, and meaningful work. Offering remote or hybrid options isn’t just a perk anymore; it’s table stakes for attracting (and keeping) the next generation of agents.
5. Agility Like Never Before
Need to spin up a campaign or scale during peak periods? Remote working enables agile hiring – from freelancers to seasonal agents – without the overhead of onboarding them into a physical office. Follow-the-sun models mean your customer support can be “always-on,” with agents in different time zones covering the clock.
Overcoming the Remote Management Challenge
Remote work doesn’t come without concerns. Contact centre leaders still grapple with questions like:
- How do I track agent performance in real time?
- How do I keep my team connected and engaged?
- Where can I get actionable insights to improve operations?
The answer lies in smart technology:
- Cloud dashboards give you real-time visibility into KPIs across distributed teams.
- Gamification and virtual incentives keep agents motivated and aligned to team goals.
- Collaborative tools like Microsoft Teams, Zoom, and Slack help maintain that vital team culture, no matter where people work.
- AI-based performance analytics and quality monitoring streamline coaching, feedback, and forecasting.
If Not Now, When?
The world has changed – and so has the contact centre. With continued economic pressure, fierce competition for talent, and rising customer expectations, sticking to the old model just isn’t sustainable.
Remote and hybrid agents aren’t the future anymore. They’re the now.
It’s time to shift the mindset: not just surviving with remote work, but thriving with it.
