It’s easy to assume that what motivates a contact centre employee in 2030 may look very different from what motivated them a decade ago.

The rise of AI has many employees concerned about the certainty of their future in the workplace. A King’s College London Institute for Artificial Intelligence and Policy study found that around seven in 10 people are worried about the economic impact of AI, while six in 10 believe it will eliminate more jobs than it creates.

Yet it’s crude to assert that AI is a resoundingly negative force on motivation.  A comprehensive study of workforces in Germany across two decades of data found evidence that some AI-exposed workers experienced improvements in physical health and employment satisfaction.

Gallup’s latest employee engagement data has established that employees whose organisations provide a clear plan for integrating AI have engagement levels that are 15 percentage points higher than employees whose organisations do not provide a clear plan.

Career development, purpose, recognition, wellbeing and a sense of belonging will continue to influence how people feel about work. And ultimately, what motivates your teams in the future will be determined not just by external factors, individual needs or the influence of technology, but by the type of leadership your teams are experiencing.

Motivation Through Leadership

Most contact centre leaders are often striving for broadly similar outcomes when it comes to their people – teams that are engaged, motivated and equipped to consistently deliver positive customer experiences.

But too often, engagement is treated as an initiative, an event or a collection of perks designed to boost morale. A free lunch, a wellbeing day or a team celebration can create a positive moment, without doubt. But sustainable engagement is often built through everyday leadership behaviours. It is shaped by how people feel about their work, their leaders and their future.

The evidence linking employee experience, leadership and organisational performance is strong. Further research from Gallup, based on data from more than 183,000 teams worldwide, found that managers account for approximately 70% of the variation in team engagement.

The same research consistently demonstrates a strong relationship between engagement, productivity, customer outcomes and retention. Employees who feel recognised, supported and connected to a wider purpose are significantly more likely to perform at their best and remain with their organisation.

Specific and Timely Recognition

For contact centre leaders, this means focusing on a number of cultural drivers that can be directly influenced. Clarity helps people understand what is expected of them and why their role matters. Trust is created when leaders are visible, fair and consistent. Frontline colleagues need confidence that their ideas and feedback are genuinely listened to and acted upon.

Recognition becomes far more relevant when it is specific, personal and timely. Equally, people need to feel they are developing their skills and progressing in their careers, not simply achieving daily targets.

These same principles should influence how performance is measured. Traditional operational metrics such as service level, average handling time and occupancy can still have their place, but may only tell part of a story.

Many forward-thinking organisations are increasingly supplementing efficiency measures with indicators such as employee engagement, wellbeing, coaching effectiveness, learning progression and quality outcomes.

This is particularly important as automation and self-service continue to absorb more routine enquiries, leaving frontline colleagues to manage increasingly complex, emotional and high-value interactions. Success in these moments depends on confidence, empathy, judgement and resilience. These are not often attributes that cannot be measured solely through traditional productivity metrics.

Deloitte’s workforce experience research reinforces the connection between employee and customer outcomes, finding that employees with a strong workplace experience are three times more likely to view their organisation as customer-focused.

Ultimately, motivating the contact centre teams of the future is about creating an environment where people feel valued, trusted, heard and supported to succeed. Leaders may not own every engagement score, but they do shape many of the conditions that determine how work is perceived and experienced by the people they lead.

Join CCMA at UCX London on 14 and 15 October where our Services Director Kate will be presenting How to motivate and measure the contact centre teams of the future on the Future of Employee and Customer Experience Stage (13:55-14:20 on 15 October).