Voice automation technology is something that has been bubbling under the surface in SA for some time, but it is almost ready to take off in a huge way.
This is the view of Steve Duke, business development manager - Optus, at Dimension Data Australia, who was in SA last week to discuss the relevance of the organisation`s Speech technology to the local market.
Speech technology uses a natural, human-like interface that recognises the user`s spoken word, and offers an organisation the ability to provide automated solutions for basic enquiries.
"One of the key reasons behind the massive churn experienced among call centre agents is the fact that a lot of their tasks are repetitive and mundane," says Duke.
"Speech technology puts these mundane tasks in the hands of a machine and allows the agents to focus on more complex and thus more rewarding and satisfying tasks."
He says the other major advantage is for the user, as the use of Speech means there are no menus, no pushing of buttons and the users cannot find themselves getting 'lost in the system`.
"We`ve all been speaking since we were small, so it is something that comes naturally to everyone and it provides far more of a 'comfort zone` to the user than the standard robotic voice that is usually used in this type of service," says Jane Curtain, a user interface and linguistic consultant from CIS Managed Services in Australia.
"The technology is designed to mimic human conversation and achieve a casual language standard, so it is informal and uses slang words and colloquialisms, making it a much friendlier service."
She says that in order for the technology to work effectively, it needs to be pitched at the target audience.
In other words, if the majority of users are young adults, it needs to use hip, up-to-date terms and nuances, in order to put them at ease.
"While this technology still can`t be all things to all people, as long as the socio-linguistics and behaviour of the target group are studied carefully, Speech technology can be set up to provide a good service to the majority of users," says Curtain.
According to Duke, DiData has held discussions with the SA financial sector and several banks are keen on the technology, while mobile phone operator Vodacom has also shown an interest in adopting it.
"So far, DiData has completed a version that encompasses South African English, and it has also developed a prototype version for Afrikaans," says Duke.
"We`ve gone from a situation where people were asking: 'does this technology work?`, to a point where the majority are now asking: 'how can I make it work for me?`, which indicates the changing mindset in regard to Speech."
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