Frank Fawzi, CEO of IntelePeer. Focused on the mission to become a dominant communications automation provider for enterprises.

We’ve officially moved beyond the initial shock of the July 2024 global IT outage. The lessons learned are simple yet powerful: What happened was devastating, customers were left in the dark, and a disruption of this magnitude cannot happen again. Businesses that continue down the same tired path with their critical communication systems risk a repeat disaster.

There’s a popular adage: “If it’s not broken, don’t fix it.” However, the reality is this model is broken—especially when it comes to customer communications. The consequences of failure in this area are too great, and the risk of another outage is too high. We shouldn’t wait for the next disaster to strike and ask, “What if?” The time to fix what’s broken is now.

A Single Path To Failure

We need a new approach to customer communication systems. Even if the next major disaster isn’t identical to the CrowdStrike outage, downtime is downtime—whether it be a cyberattack, a botched software update or even inclement weather. During these critical moments, customer communications must remain functional to keep everyone in the loop and maintain business operations.

The current state of many organizations’ communications infrastructure hinges on a single point of failure—a setup that’s no longer viable in today’s world. Relying on one centralized portal to manage all customer interactions is a dangerous strategy. When that portal goes down (as it did in July 2024), organizations lose their primary link to customers and, by extension, the outside world.

Customers in crisis—unable to interact with your business through the usual digital channels—are forced to flood contact centers with calls. These contact centers are ill-equipped to handle the sudden volume, leading to long wait times, frustration and a severely damaged customer experience. In a time when customers expect instant answers and service, a failure of this scale is unacceptable.

This one-lane highway of communication is destined for collapse under stress. Web portals are based on technologies that emerged in the 1990s, and mobile apps started around 2007. Newer technology doesn’t have to replace these but can augment them and offer an alternative. Businesses must adopt systems that are resilient, agile and capable of withstanding interruptions without breaking the customer connection.

The Development Of The Voice Portal

Automation and agility are the keys to overcoming the limitations of outdated customer interaction systems. Organizations that embrace modern communications automation technology can keep their customers informed in real time, even when disruptions occur. Interactive voice response (IVR) technology has actually been around since the 1930s, and in CX, we’ve seen it develop from the initial “leave a voicemail” to “press ‘one’ for FAQs” to “how may I help you?”

Now, though, we’re seeing more and more what’s known as a “voice portal”—an alternate path for consumers to interact with a business. Alexa is the name synonymous with this technology, and it provides an everyday example of how consumers can place orders, check the status of everything from shipments to the weather, and more using their voice.

That “and more” is what drives automation and modernization as well as resilient alternate paths to web portals and mobile applications. Voice portals are based on the most recent technology innovations in speech-to-text, generative AI, personalization and decision making.

While some organizations might associate this type of automated messaging with the dreaded monotony of voicemail or robotic voice paths that end with the consumer asking for a representative anyway, the reality is far more advanced.

Think of it as static versus dynamic; the voice trends of the past were set pathways designed only to get a customer from point A to point B with no deviation. “Dynamic” and “deviation” are the new trends, helped along by GenAI. With Alexa, for instance, customer service is as simple as saying, “Alexa, reorder my vitamins,” and the AI takes care of the rest. Ideally, the end result is an AI agent that’s just as helpful as a representative—though, of course, there will always be consumers who prefer speaking to a human,

However, during an emergency, those preferences go out the window, as contact is contact. Voice portals provide the resiliency to maintain operations while also giving customers a second path to interact with a business if they can’t get through to a representative.

Businesses should always have a backup plan for their backup plan. Countless scenarios exist where representatives may not be readily available—not just during an IT outage. Whether it’s an unforeseen weather event or an internal issue that limits the availability of support staff, a dynamic, automated system should be fully operational at all times—ready to be deployed and ensuring customers are never left in the dark.

Moving Beyond What Doesn’t Work

The global IT outage showed businesses exactly what doesn’t work anymore. The systems that many organizations rely on for critical customer interactions are outdated, vulnerable and, ultimately, inadequate for today’s digital landscape. This revelation is only useful if companies take the initiative to improve from here. Sticking with the old system can leave organizations vulnerable to future disruptions, leading to frustrated customers and potentially devastating financial and reputational impacts.

Now is the time to address these shortcomings head-on. The future of customer interactions demands a proactive approach built on flexibility, automation and resilience. This means businesses need to reassess their customer communications strategies, adopting automation and agility as core principles of their infrastructure.

It’s time to stop waiting for the next inevitable failure and start fixing what’s already broken. In doing so, businesses will be better prepared for whatever comes next and, more importantly, ready to maintain the trust and satisfaction of their customers through any disruption. Companies that adapt now will find themselves better equipped to weather the storms ahead, ensuring they never lose touch with their most valuable asset—their customers.

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