Talkdesk has unveiled Talkdesk Education Smart Service, a specialized package designed to streamline and enhance customer service in higher education institutions. Recognizing the unique challenges faced by colleges and universities, Talkdesk developed this industry-specific solution to bring cohesion to diverse teams and ensure a consistent, personalized, and inclusive customer service experience for students, staff, donors, and other stakeholders. Another player in the CCaaS space also unveiled their own contact center solution for higher education institutions to improve the student experience.
“Higher education institutions are operating in a complex environment of declining enrollment numbers and other factors. As universities and colleges adapt, a modern cloud contact center solution that maximizes AI for scale and meets colleges and universities’ unique customer service requirements will be critical to their success. With Talkdesk Education Smart Service, seamless CX can quickly become a reality as well as a real contributor to increasing donations, student satisfaction and establishment reputation, plus tightening operational spend,” said Tiago Paiva, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Talkdesk.
Facing challenges such as declining enrollments, high inflation, and labor shortages in the education sector, Talkdesk's Education Smart Service addresses the distinct customer experience (CX) needs of higher education.
Departments within educational institutions often operate in silos, leading to disconnected processes and systems, resulting in an inconsistent experience for stakeholders. Talkdesk Education Smart Service addresses this by providing AI and GenAI tools to various departments such as admission, student services, fundraising, healthcare, and help desks. This integration with CRMs, academic schedulers, and other systems ensures fast and excellent service delivery, offering a seamless experience for engagements ranging from high-stakes donor interactions to simple student inquiries.
Optimizing seasonal operations
Utilizing Talkdesk Workforce Management, the system forecasts contact center volumes and efficiently schedules staff during peak admission and enrollment periods. The rapid onboarding of seasonal agents is facilitated through personalized AI guidance from Talkdesk Agent Assist.
Streamlining admissions assistance
Enhancing efficiency and personalization, students receive dedicated support when connecting with human agents to address inquiries about applications and financial aid. Talkdesk Agent Assist surfaces essential information and generates real-time responses, drawing from trusted data across the institution's knowledge base and business systems.
Enhancing Student and Parent Satisfaction
Talkdesk Virtual Agent offers students a convenient self-service option for obtaining information on campus amenities and other frequently discussed topics. In addition, it autonomously handles transactional tasks like healthcare appointments and IT requests. Talkdesk Automated Notifications proactively updates families on academic programs and campus life, ensuring transparency.
Boosting donations effectively
Leveraging outbound contact center capabilities, including predictive dialing and integrations with advanced CRMs, institutions can increase call volume and effectiveness. This strengthens connections with alumni and contributes to higher donations for development initiatives.
Supporting faculty and staff
Streamlining access to human resources information and facilitating self-service for IT requests, the solution integrates with service desk systems and facility/department directories, providing comprehensive support to faculty and staff members.
Responsible AI adoption
Organizations can adhere to the principles outlined in the U.S. Federal Executive Order on AI Safety, focusing on preventing fraud, deception, and discrimination. Talkdesk AI Trainer offers a suite of tools that enables contact center administrators and staff to monitor AI behavior and establish protective guardrails, all through a user-friendly no-code interface.
In addition to Talkdesk Education Smart Service, Talkdesk offers a portfolio of industry-specific cloud contact center products, including Financial Services Experience Cloud, Healthcare Experience Cloud, and Retail Experience Cloud. These products are pre-integrated with core industry systems, designed with custom workflows and automation, and pre-trained with AI for industry expertise.
Not too long ago, Talkdesk also unveiled product enhancements to intensify the integration of generative AI (GenAI) into its primary Talkdesk CX Cloud platform and Industry Experience Clouds.
