Smartz Solutions, which positions itself as a leader in cloud-based omnichannel contact centre technology, has entered into a strategic partnership with Merchants, one of South Africa’s most established award-winning business process outsourcing (BPO) providers. This collaboration marks a significant milestone in delivering fully integrated customer experience solutions that combine operational excellence with intelligent, digital-first technology.
Driving the next phase of contact centre evolution
With over 45 years in the industry, Merchants has built its reputation on delivering outsourced CX solutions at scale – managing thousands of agents across key sectors and geographies. As customer demands have evolved, so has Merchants’ strategic focus: to transition from traditional voice-first outsourcing to a more agile, tech-enabled operating model.
“Modern contact centres need more than just great people – they need platforms that scale, evolve and deliver data-driven, omnichannel customer engagement,” said Shalendra Kundalram, Vice-President: Technology at Merchants. “Our partnership with Smartz Solutions strengthens our ability to deliver exactly that – a full-service CX proposition that merges operational execution with cutting-edge technology.”
Smartz Solutions offers a future-forward, cloud-agnostic contact centre platform that integrates digital and voice channels, AI-driven features and advanced analytics. Designed to be modular, scalable and tailored to local business needs, the Smartz Solutions platform is already being deployed within Merchants’ ecosystem.
Meeting the needs of South African businesses with technology that delivers
South Africa’s contact centre market is competitive, cost-sensitive and increasingly digitally oriented. This partnership meets those needs head-on, offering:
- Omnichannel capabilities – integrated support across voice, WhatsApp, chat, e-mail and social media through a single platform.
- Cloud-agnostic flexibility – choice of public cloud, private cloud or hybrid deployments to meet security and scalability needs.
- Rapid deployment – proven ability to transition major clients off legacy systems with minimal disruption and in record time.
- ZAR-based pricing – locally priced technology solutions that remove the risks of currency volatility and reduce cost barriers.
- Intelligent CX features – real-time analytics, sentiment analysis and Smartz Solutions’ proprietary Automatic Interaction Distribution (AID) for smarter customer-agent matching.
“This partnership allows Merchants to move beyond traditional outsourcing to deliver a true end-to-end CX solution,” said James Guthrie , MD at Smartz Solutions. “It’s a perfect match: their strength in people and operations meets our strength in platform innovation.”
A shared vision for growth and innovation
The Smartz-Merchants partnership is underpinned by a shared belief: that contact centres should be powered by technology that’s easy to use, quick to deploy and built for real-world business needs. As Merchants continues to expand its tech-enabled service offering, Smartz Solutions will remain a critical enabler in delivering operational and digital excellence to its clients.
“This isn’t just about technology,” added Vanda Dickson, Business Development at Smartz Solutions. “It’s about creating a future where South African businesses have more choice, more flexibility and more control over their customer experience strategies.”
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Smartz Solutions
Smartz Solutions is a cloud-based omnichannel communications platform. Our competitive advantage lies in how we bring together back office, communications, and employee engagement under one fully integrated stack. With decades of experience and a deep understanding of the relationship between employee and customer experience, Smartz empowers businesses to manage and optimise total experiences.
Merchants
Merchants is a leading customer management outsourcing solution provider specialising in the provision and delivery of customer experience and customer contact strategies. With a footprint in South Africa and across the globe, Merchants supports businesses in achieving operational efficiency and exceptional CX outcomes through people, processes, and now – cutting-edge technology.