Exhibit 22 — In re Bank of America California Unemployment Benefits Litigation (Dkt. 564-17, S.D. Cal. No. 3:21-md-02992)

Record facts

U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California · No. 3:21-md-02992-GPC-MSB · Doc. 564-17 · 2025-10-17 · Docket on CourtListener

Full text

HX 22
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US Contact Center Verticals: 
Finance
Sponsored By
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2 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
US Contact Center Vertical Markets: Finance 
© ContactBabel 2024 
Please note that all information is believed correct at the time of publication, but ContactBabel does not 
accept responsibility for any action arising from errors or omissions within the report, links to external 
websites or other third-party content. 
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Human understanding
is the heart of CallMiner.
We believe that
transformational change
happens when contact centers dig 
beyond interactions to true intelligence
Learn how
to connect the dots
between customer
conversations, deep
intelligence and insights,
and world class customer 
experience at callminer.com
Our AI-powered conversation intelligence platform analyzes 100% of omnichannel customer 
conversations to provide insights that organizations can use to enhance overall 
experience, in the contact center and beyond.
 
Collecting and analyzing every conversation – phone as well as other 
channels, like emails, surveys and social media – our platform can 
immediately reveal insights to drive positive customer experiences 
and retention, as well as opportunities for agent coaching 
and continuous quality improvement. Real-time guidance 
capabilities help teams resolve difficult cases in-the-
moment with fewer escalations.
CallMiner’s advanced AI and machine learning 
capabilities not only enhance efficiency 
with automation, but they also help 
organizations better scale human 
capabilities and understanding, 
leading to improved outcomes 
and bottom line results.
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4 
CONTENTS 
Contents ..................................................................................................................................................... 4 
List of Tables ............................................................................................................................................... 6 
US Finance Contact Centers: Executive Summary & Outlook ..................................................................... 7 
Supplier Directory ....................................................................................................................................... 9 
Introduction .............................................................................................................................................. 12 
Market Sizing ............................................................................................................................................ 13 
Structure ............................................................................................................................................... 13 
Growth .................................................................................................................................................. 18 
The Use and Effect of Omnichannel ...................................................................................................... 19 
Inbound & Outbound Activity ............................................................................................................... 21 
Technology ............................................................................................................................................... 23 
Human Resources ..................................................................................................................................... 26 
Salaries .................................................................................................................................................. 26 
Agent Attrition ...................................................................................................................................... 27 
Agent Absence ...................................................................................................................................... 28 
Operational Benchmarking ....................................................................................................................... 29 
Talk Time ............................................................................................................................................... 29 
Call Duration ......................................................................................................................................... 30 
Speed to Answer ................................................................................................................................... 31 
Customer Experience ................................................................................................................................ 32 
About ContactBabel .................................................................................................................................. 36 
 
 
 
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LEARN MORE
Deliver a seamless 
client experience.
Talkdesk helps banks elevate CX through connected, intelligent,
and secure interactions on their clients’ channel of choice.
FINANCIAL SERVICES & INSURANCE | BANKING
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6 
LIST OF TABLES 
Figure 1: Finance contact centers and agent positions, 2016-2023 .......................................................... 13 
Figure 2: Average Finance contact center size, 2016-2023 ....................................................................... 14 
Figure 3: Finance contact centers by size, 2017-23 ................................................................................... 15 
Figure 4: Finance agent positions by size, 2017-23 ................................................................................... 16 
Figure 5: Finance contact center jobs by size, 2017-23 ............................................................................. 17 
Figure 6: Finance – agent positions and contact center forecasts, 2023-27 ............................................. 18 
Figure 7: Contact center inbound interactions by channel, 2016-2023 - Finance ..................................... 19 
Figure 8: Finance - number and proportion of outbound agent positions, 2017-23 ................................. 21 
Figure 9: Outbound call types: Finance ..................................................................................................... 22 
Figure 10: Finance contact centers: use of technology, 2023 vs industry average ................................... 23 
Figure 11: Finance contact centers: use of technology, 2023 & 2027 ....................................................... 24 
Figure 12: Average Finance agent salaries, 2012-23 ................................................................................. 26 
Figure 13: Average Finance annual agent attrition rates, 2012-23 ........................................................... 27 
Figure 14: Average Finance agent absence rates, 2012-23 ....................................................................... 28 
Figure 15: Finance contact centers: talk time, 2012-23 ............................................................................ 29 
Figure 16: Finance contact centers: call duration, 2012-23 ...................................................................... 30 
Figure 17: Finance contact centers: average speed to answer, 2012-23 .................................................. 31 
Figure 18: How would you rate the general level of customer service that you receive from these types 
of company? ............................................................................................................................................. 32 
Figure 19: In the past year, have you left any of these types of company, or decided not to use them 
because of poor customer experience? (by age range) ............................................................................ 34 
 
 
 
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7 
US FINANCE CONTACT CENTERS: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY & OUTLOOK 
The decline in financial services contact center jobs after the economic downturn of the late 00s turned 
itself around, with increasing levels of investment in these sectors. However, more generally, 
consolidation and cost-cutting across the industry has seen the number of contact center operations 
decline, and agent position numbers have declined very gradually since 2016 as more customers choose 
digital banking services over telephony.  
Since 2011, there have been significant new entrants to the financial services market: often smaller, 
more specialized operations, rather than major brand names, which have opened smaller contact 
centers. The impact on the contact center sector has been more than matched by the consolidation of 
multiple operations into fewer, larger contact centers. With the steady uptake of digital banking 
services, the number of overall contact center jobs in the sector looks to have peaked some years ago.  
Due to the nature of many financial services interactions requiring privacy, compliance and 
confidentiality, this sector has been slower than average to move large volumes of interactions to digital 
channels such as email and web chat. Telephony self-service levels continue to be a very significant part 
of the customer contact mix. Recent years have seen a little movement away from telephony to digital 
channels (particularly web chat), as technology solutions have become more sophisticated and 
customers more comfortable with their use, but the finance sector is still heavily voice-oriented.  
Outbound telephony had been an important part of the financial services industry, accounting for 
around 20% of all interactions in 2016, but this dropped to only 6% with the majority of outbound 
interactions being sales calls to existing customers and call-backs.  
While financial services has been relatively slow to embrace digital communication over voice, this has 
started to change and there are opportunities for solutions such as web chat to be implemented in the 
near future, although voice self-service is still much higher, suggesting that voicebots could be very 
popular. There is considerable expectation amongst financial services contact centers that speech 
analytics and AI will be implemented in the near future, and there is also considerable interest in using 
speech recognition as part of a voice identification solution. 
In recent years, financial services agents have been likely to earn a little less than the industry average, 
with most recent figures showing that finance agents earn around $2,000 per year less than a typical US 
contact center agent, and the gap in 2023 being considerably wider.  
In line with the contact center industry as a whole, finance has seen average call duration increase since 
2012, however the recent rise in call duration seen elsewhere has not been matched in the finance 
sector. Average speed to answer has been considerably higher than the industry average for the past 
nine years. 
 
 
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8 
Looking to the future, while the demand for financial services products is increasing, businesses will look 
to implement consolidation and cost-cutting exercises in order to maintain profitability in a hyper-
competitive industry and increasing levels of self-service, automation and digital communication will 
mean a decline in headcount and operations.  
Recent rises in self-service, mobile banking, online financial product quotes, comparison sites and online 
banking mean that the typical call dealt with by the finance sector will become more complicated and 
require greater skills from the agent, who will also be encouraged to cross-sell and upsell within the call, 
supported by AI-enabled agent desktops. Recent announcements by banks show some interest in video 
agents too, especially for high net-worth customers. 
It is also likely that voice biometrics and other customer identity verification techniques will make their 
way into the mainstream, which will have an impact upon reducing call lengths and therefore require 
fewer agents to handle the same number of calls. For the financial services industry, average call 
duration is consistently below the industry average, suggesting that there are a high proportion of calls 
which are of short duration and which could in theory be handled by self-service rather than with a live 
agent, which places longer-term pressure on agent numbers.  
However, there is little danger as things stand that the financial services contact center industry will 
experience a significant decline in overall agent numbers in the short-to-mid term as contact centers are 
still a far more cost-effective way of provide services than the local branch network model.  
The sensitive and confidential nature of many financial services interactions will mean that customers 
will still have a strong demand for the voice channel, and it is likely that the salaries of contact center 
agents within the financial services industry will increase both absolutely and relatively as the 
complexity and expertise required to handle the average finance voice interaction will continue to rise. 
Generally, there are increasing levels of technological investment being seen in this sector, and the 
complex nature of some of the work may be less suited to online self-service, with a large proportion of 
financial services customers wanting to speak with banks for reassurance and compliance, and who are 
used to voice self-service. There is a need for personalized communication within this sector, which can 
include cross-selling and upselling on inbound service calls (a subset of call which will witness longer call 
lengths as a result), with finance organizations that implement this model seeing significant revenue 
accruing from this.   
 
 
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9 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
SUPPLIER DIRECTORY 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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CallMiner, the leading provider of conversation intelligence to drive business improvement… 
CallMiner is the global leader in conversation intelligence to drive business performance improvement.  
CallMiner delivers the industry’s most comprehensive platform to analyze omnichannel customer 
interactions at scale, combining deep domain expertise with cutting edge AI technology and machine 
learning.  
By connecting the dots between insights and action, CallMiner enables companies to identify areas of 
opportunity to drive business improvement, growth and transformational change more effectively than 
ever before.  
CallMiner is trusted by the world’s leading organizations across all major verticals including technology, 
media and telecom (TMT), retail, manufacturing, financial services, healthcare, and travel and 
hospitality.  
To learn more, visit CallMiner.com, read the CallMiner blog, or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter and 
Facebook. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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Talkdesk® is a global AI-powered cloud contact center leader for enterprises of all sizes.  
Talkdesk CX Cloud and Industry Experience Clouds help enterprises deliver modern customer service 
their way. Our trusted, flexible, and innovative contact center platform leverages AI and automation to 
drive exceptional outcomes for their customers and improve the bottom line.  
Serving enterprise customers in over 100 countries, we partner with our customers to deliver 
continuous innovation and breakthrough results. Our unwavering commitment to doing what we say we 
will do and our investment in the highest levels of security and reliability for our products make us 
second to none in the industry.  
Along with our flagship CX Cloud, we offer Talkdesk Industry Experience CloudsTM which are purpose-
built to meet the needs of vertical sectors to improve CX and generate industry-specific business 
outcomes. We offer a business phone system natively built on a leading cloud contact center platform, 
which reduces costs and provides a better way for hybrid workforces to deliver great customer 
experiences. 
We serve enterprise customers in over 100 countries including: LifeSearch, Freeway Insurance, IBM, 
WaFD Bank, Wealthify, Capitalise, Flagstone, Equals Money, Root Insurance, Zego, Apple Federal Credit 
Union, BankUnited, Patagonia, Quadient, Motorola Solutions and Canon.  
Learn more and request a demo at www.talkdesk.com. 
 
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12 
INTRODUCTION 
“US Contact Center Verticals: Finance” looks at the structure, growth, technology, HR and commercial 
issues found in contact centers within the US financial services sector, which includes banks, credit card 
companies, loan companies, stockbrokers, financial services advisors and debt collection agencies.  
Please note that it does not include any data or analysis from offshore contact center operations.  
It contains data from multiple large-scale surveys of hundreds of US contact centers, and is the definitive 
study of this vertical market’s customer contact operations.  
The “US Contact Center Verticals” series of reports are free of charge to readers. Research and analysis 
costs are borne by sponsors – contact center and customer experience solution providers – whose 
advertisements, case studies and thought leadership pieces are included within these reports.  
Sponsors have not had influence over editorial content or analyst opinion, and readers can be assured of 
objectivity throughout. Any vendor views are clearly marked as such within the report. 
To comply with the usual protocol of market analysis, years are reported as year-end (i.e. the 2023 
figures refer to the end of 2023) unless stated otherwise. 
 
 
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13 
MARKET SIZING 
STRUCTURE 
Alongside the uptake of digital banking services, consolidation and cost-cutting across the industry has 
seen the number of contact center operations decline, although primary research with those that 
remain has reported increases in headcount, resulting overall in a gentle decrease in agent positions 
between 2016 and 2021, with a steadying in recent years. 
Figure 1: Finance contact centers and agent positions, 2016-2023 
 
 
 
 
3,900 
3,850 
3,800 
3,750 
3,675 
3,550 
3,450 
3,400 
515,000 
520,000 
515,000 
522,500 
495,000 
487,500 
492,500 
497,500 
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
600,000
0
500
1,000
1,500
2,000
2,500
3,000
3,500
4,000
4,500
5,000
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
Agent positions
Contact centers
Finance contact centers and agent positions, 2016-2023
 Contact centers
 Agent positions
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14 
Financial services contact centers tend to be almost 50% larger than the US average, and have remained 
fairly steady at around 130-150 agent positions.  
Figure 2: Average Finance contact center size, 2016-2023 
 
 
 
132 
142 
140 
146 
136 
144 
150 
146 
85 
88 
90 
92 
95 
97 
100 
101 
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
Agent positions
Average Finance contact center size, 2016-2023
Finance
Average
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15 
The finance sector has always been a major player in the US contact center industry, both as a result of 
the number of operations within the sector as well as the relatively large average size of typical finance 
contact centers.  
Contact centers of over 250 seats are relatively rare in the industry as whole, so it can be seen that the 
finance sector still accounts for a significant proportion of these operations.  
As time has passed, the number of finance contact centers has declined in all size bands. 
Since 2011, there have been significant new entrants to the financial services market: often smaller, 
more specialized operations, rather than major brand names, which have opened smaller contact 
centers, but this is more than matched by the consolidation of multiple operations into fewer, larger 
contact centers.   
Figure 3: Finance contact centers by size, 2017-23 
 
 
 
2,075 
2,025 
2,020 
2,000 
1,950 
1,900 
1,875 
550 
550 
535 
518 
500 
485 
478 
625 
630 
620 
580 
550 
525 
525 
600 
595 
575 
577 
550 
560 
522 
0
500
1,000
1,500
2,000
2,500
3,000
3,500
4,000
4,500
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
Finance contact centers, by size (2017-23)
250+ APs
101-250 APs
50-100 APs
<50 APs
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16 
The importance of the financial services sector to the US contact center industry can be seen in the 
chart below, which shows the number of agent positions in each size band.  
The finance sector accounts for around 20% of all agent positions in the 250+ seat category, and are 
often amongst the largest contact centers in the country.  
Major banks may have multiple 500+ or 1,000+ seat individual contact centers, and credit card 
companies also have a very significant headcount.  
Figure 4: Finance agent positions by size, 2017-23 
 
 
 
 
 
 
45,000 
44,000 
47,000 
33,750 
32,750 
33,500 
34,500 
35,000 
33,000 
34,000 
38,750 
41,250 
41,250 
40,000 
100,000 
98,000 
99,000 
92,500 
87,500 
87,500 
88,500 
340,000 
340,000 
342,500 
330,000 
326,000 
330,250 
334,500 
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
600,000
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
Finance agent positions by size, 2017-23
250+ APs
101-250 APs
50-100 APs
<50 APs
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17 
There was major growth in jobs associated with financial services contact centers in the early-to-mid 
2010s, after a drop in 2008 and 2009.  
With the steady uptake of digital banking, the number of overall contact center jobs in the sector seems 
to have peaked and is around 85,000 lower than in 2017.   
Figure 5: Finance contact center jobs by size, 2017-23 
 
 
 
 
806,000 
793,100 
794,200 
742,500 
706,875 
714,125 
721,375 
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
600,000
700,000
800,000
900,000
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
Finance contact center jobs, 2017-23
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18 
GROWTH 
Further consolidation and the closure of central operations to support a remote working model is likely 
to reduce the number of contact centers.  
Agent positions are also forecast to decline slightly, driven by the move to digital service and the 
continuing popularity of voice self-service in this sector. However, it is noticeable that the live voice 
channel is holding up at 60%, so businesses will have to accept that many customers will continue to 
want this human interaction going forward.  
Figure 6: Finance – agent positions and contact center forecasts, 2023-27 
  
2023 
2027 
Finance CAGR 
Average CAGR 
Agent positions 
497,500 
480,000 
-0.9% 
-0.2% 
Contact centers 
3,400 
3,250 
-1.1% 
-0.6% 
 
 
 
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19 
THE USE AND EFFECT OF OMNICHANNEL 
The finance industry is weighted towards telephony contact. Going against the prevailing industry norm, 
there seems to be a movement towards live telephony and it is worth noting that voice self-service 
figures for this sector are far above the norm. Digital channels are currently underserved. (NB – a data 
point of 0% does not indicate that there are no interactions at all in this channel, only that survey 
responses come to less than 0.5% for that channel).  
Figure 7: Contact center inbound interactions by channel, 2016-2023 - Finance 
 
Channel 
2016 
2017 
2018 
2019 
2020 
2021 
2022 
2023 
Telephone (live) 
54% 
54% 
60% 
57% 
63% 
60% 
60% 
62% 
Telephone (self-service) 
31% 
33% 
24% 
26% 
24% 
23% 
29% 
25% 
Email 
9% 
7% 
11% 
12% 
7% 
7% 
3% 
4% 
Web chat 
3% 
2% 
3% 
3% 
4% 
7% 
5% 
6% 
SMS / messaging 
0% 
0% 
0% 
0% 
0% 
0% 
1% 
1% 
Letter 
1% 
1% 
1% 
1% 
0% 
1% 
1% 
2% 
Fax 
1% 
0% 
0% 
1% 
1% 
1% 
0% 
0% 
Social media 
1% 
2% 
1% 
1% 
0% 
1% 
1% 
0% 
 
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
Inbound channels, 2016-23, Finance sector
Social media
Fax
Letter
SMS / messaging
Web chat
Email
Telephone (self-service)
Telephone (live)
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Five Secrets of Top-Performing 
Financial Services Contact Centers
Motivating and improving the performance of contact center agents is top-of-mind for every financial 
services organization’s customer service department. As self-service channels increasingly take care of 
customers’ basic requests, contact center agents are fielding more complex customer inquiries. Winning 
contact centers rely on technology like AI-powered conversation intelligence to strategically enhance the 
capabilities of their existing workforce. But that’s not all…
Secret 1: They start with quality assurance (QA)
Many organizations implement sophisticated technology, 
without considering the immediate benefits of at least 
partially automating their QA. Today, QA is predominantly 
done via manual call listening or transcript reviews for a 
random sample of interactions. Typical QA analysts often 
only can listen to 3 to 5 random calls per agent, per 
month — less than 1% of overall interactions. Manual listening 
takes time that could be spent coaching agents or 
deploying them in more strategic areas.
Secret 2: They value CX and EX
Nearly 70% of HR leaders still struggle with their EX efforts. At 
the same time, retaining talent is a major priority, especially in an 
uncertain economy. Replacing an employee costs between 
50%-60% of their annual salary, with overall costs ranging anywhere 
from 90%-200%. Here’s the secret: emphasising EX can go hand 
in hand with CX improvements. Conversation intelligence can 
uncover insights from conversations that happen between 
employees and customers, giving managers and supervisors the 
unbiased data, they need to provide coaching opportunities for 
customer-facing agents.
Secret 3: They know how to work with vulnerable 
customers
A Forrester Consulting survey of call center leaders, 
commissioned by CallMiner, found 70% reported that their 
agents were dealing with more emotionally charged calls 
than ever before. With self-service options taking care of 
many baseline requests, it’s no surprise that more complex 
issues comprise most of the cases agents handle. While 
self-service is good for cost-reduction, agents are under 
tremendous stress, and may require specialized training to 
handle vulnerable customer interactions with the empathy 
and respect they require.
Secret 4: They use real-time guidance strategically
Real-time coaching guidance delivered to agents via conversation 
intelligence can help achieve several goals related to driving in-the-
moment CX guidance. For example, real-time guidance can identify 
at-risk customers and equip agents with proactive steps to retain 
them. In instances where a competitor is mentioned, real-time 
alerts powered by integrations to knowledge base systems can also 
deliver detailed information, such as competitive battlecards, to 
agents to help handle potential customer objections.
Secret 5: They value agent feedback
When an organization adopts any new technology, gaining 
agent buy-in for a conversation intelligence program is 
essential to a program’s adoption and success. When agents 
are asked to adopt and embrace technology solutions like 
conversation intelligence, it’s important to make sure they 
understand it’s not about making their lives more difficult. It’s 
about helping them do their jobs more effectively and 
efficiently, while receiving the feedback they need to advance 
their careers.
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21 
INBOUND & OUTBOUND ACTIVITY 
Financial services outbound activity has dropped considerably since 2017, being equivalent today to 
around 30,000 agent positions.  
In line with much of the US contact center industry, there seems to be a significant decline in the 
amount of outbound activity being carried out.  
Figure 8: Finance - number and proportion of outbound agent positions, 2017-23 
 
 
 
 
 
 
19%
13%
10%
6%
9%
8%
6%
96,252 
66,950 
52,250 
29,700 
43,875 
39,400 
29,850 
0
20,000
40,000
60,000
80,000
100,000
120,000
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
Finance - number and proportion of outbound agent positions, 2017-23
% outbound agents
Outbound agent positions
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22 
Since 2010, there has been a definite movement away from sales-focused calls, towards call-backs about 
an existing issue rather than from a telephony or website callback request. 
Any sales calls are directly mainly at existing customers for renewals or cross-selling opportunities.  
Figure 9: Outbound call types: Finance 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Call-backs (about an 
ongoing issue)
37%
Call-backs (requested 
by customers in 
telephony queue, or 
from website)
3%
Proactive customer 
service (e.g. 
notification of delivery, 
delays, problems, etc)
13%
Sales calls to existing 
customers (renewals, 
cross-sell, etc.)
47%
Outbound call types: Finance
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23 
TECHNOLOGY 
As expected in a heavily regulated industry, interaction recording is used by the majority of the financial 
services survey respondents, with workforce management, DTMF IVR and mobile customer service apps 
also more popular than across the contact center industry as a whole. Web chat is used by many 
businesses although volumes are relatively low in many cases. 
The sector lags behind for solutions such as gamification, speech recognition and outbound dialing.   
Figure 10: Finance contact centers: use of technology, 2023 vs industry average 
 
89%
52%
61%
69%
63%
56%
68%
21%
37%
38%
23%
16%
94%
92%
92%
90%
83%
66%
65%
41%
31%
29%
19%
15%
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Interaction Recording
Mobile app
WFM
DTMF IVR
Web Chat
Email Management Systems
Management Information Systems
AI
Outbound Dialer
Interaction Analytics
Automated Speech Recognition
Gamification
Finance contact centers: use of technology, 2023 vs industry average
Current use
Industry average 2023
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24 
The greatest expectation of technology growth – and expectation should not be confused with what the 
reality is likely to be – comes from AI, interaction analytics and speech recognition (for both self-service 
and customer authentication), suggesting an increase in digital support over the next few years.   
Figure 11: Finance contact centers: use of technology, 2023 & 2027 
 
 
 
98%
95%
94%
93%
90%
80%
79%
64%
37%
65%
42%
24%
94%
92%
92%
90%
83%
66%
65%
41%
31%
29%
19%
15%
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Interaction Recording
Mobile app
WFM
DTMF IVR
Web Chat
Email Management Systems
Management Information Systems
AI
Outbound Dialer
Interaction Analytics
Automated Speech Recognition
Gamification
Finance contact centers: use of technology, 2023 & 2027
Current use
Planned 2027
Case 3:21-md-02992-GPC-MSB     Document 564-17     Filed 10/17/25     PageID.33066 
Page 25 of 37

of data to gain valuable insights into customer preferences, identify 
trends, and develop tailored solutions that meet their customers’ needs. 
High-quality data enables banks to mitigate risk and ensure clients 
are getting accurate information to make proactive financial decisions. 
Poor data can drive bad customer experiences, such as promoting 
wealth management products that don’t match customer needs 
or risk tolerances. Accurate data is also vital to meet regulatory 
scrutiny and avoid any potential fees or penalties. 
4. Finding and retaining technical and IT staff.
The banking sector is undergoing an unprecedented digital 
transformation, demanding skilled IT professionals in short supply. 
A versatile IT department is essential for a successful digital strategy, 
ensuring competitiveness, security, and readiness for the technological 
revolution. 
Recruiting and retaining technical staff is a challenge for 33.5% 
of respondents. Banks require professionals adept at navigating 
the complex tech landscape, offering growth opportunities and 
involvement in cutting-edge projects shaping the future of banking. 
No code and low code platforms have transformed IT, allowing 
more with fewer resources. These tools act as force multipliers, 
streamlining processes, reducing time on routine tasks, and enabling 
tech professionals to focus on high-level initiatives, accelerating 
innovation and business growth. No code and low code platforms also 
empower less experienced professionals to address complex problems 
traditionally requiring extensive expertise. 
5. Finding the right technology solutions.
Banks must adopt technology for streamlined processes, enhanced 
customer experiences, and innovation. However, 30.5% of respondents 
face challenges. Ideal tech solutions for digital transformation should 
prioritize scalability, security, and integration capabilities. 
Scalability ensures handling growing transactions and users. 
Security safeguards sensitive data, while integration enables 
seamless connectivity with existing systems. 
Financial institutions should opt for user-friendly, flexible solutions, 
like a single-pane workspace for quick employee adaptation. 
Flexibility allows customization based on specific needs. 
Choosing vendors with a proven banking track record and purpose-
built solutions ensures immediate value and alignment with industry 
requirements.
More than one-third (34.5%) of customer experience (CX) 
professionals at banks and credit unions say their organization is 
struggling with key digital  transformation initiatives such as migrating 
CX technology systems to the cloud. This is one of the key findings 
of the Talkdesk 2024 CX in Banking Survey: An Industry Benchmark, 
which asked 200 CX professionals from banks and credit unions about 
the progress of their organizations toward delivering more personalized 
experiences with the help of AI. 
1. Consolidating and using customer data.
One of the primary goals of digital transformation in banking is 
leveraging customer data and advanced analytics for valuable insights 
and personalized experiences. However, 62.5% of respondents identify 
challenges in consolidating and using customer data as a major barrier 
to digital transformation. 
Integrated customer data provides banks with a comprehensive source 
of customer financial behavior, preferences, and needs, facilitating 
the analysis and enhancement of customer experiences. This allows 
for personalized offerings and tailored solutions, fostering stronger 
relationships. For instance, analyzing transaction patterns enables 
banks to offer personalized budgeting or investment recommendations. 
A comprehensive view of customer data also improves risk management 
processes. Analyzing historical transactional data helps identify patterns 
or anomalies, allowing prompt detection of potential fraud or suspicious 
activities. This proactive strategy protects both customers and 
institutions from security threats and privacy breaches.
2. Integrating new technology with existing 
capabilities.
The second major hurdle to digital transformation in banking, identified 
by 51.5% of survey respondents, is integrating new technology with 
existing capabilities. Banks often struggle to adapt and incorporate 
rapid technological advancements, like AI, into their systems. 
Challenges in implementing AI solutions are consistent across large 
and small organizations, with about two-thirds citing resistance 
to change (69% and 63%, respectively) and a lack of available talent 
for maintenance (64% and 61%, respectively) as the top obstacles. 
Overcoming these challenges is crucial for competitiveness. 
For example, services like mobile banking apps, online account 
opening, and personalized financial advice through self-service 
AI-powered chatbots offer convenient access to banking resources. 
Moreover, integrating new technology enables banks to automate 
manual processes, enhancing operational efficiency, cutting costs, 
and driving revenue growth. 
3. Collecting quality data.
Access to accurate and reliable information is crucial to any business, 
even more so to the banking industry, with 50% of respondents finding 
it a challenge. To stay competitive, banks need to leverage technology 
and analytics tools that can collect, analyze, and interpret vast amounts 
LEARN MORE
5 key barriers to digital transformation in banking.
Case 3:21-md-02992-GPC-MSB     Document 564-17     Filed 10/17/25     PageID.33067 
Page 26 of 37

 
 
 
 
 
 
26 
HUMAN RESOURCES 
SALARIES 
The salary figures below are calculated by adding together the average salary paid to new agents and to 
experienced agents, and dividing by two.   
In the past 10 years, finance agents have been paid more than the industry average only twice, with the 
current gap between the average finance salary and the average annual industry salary around $4,000. 
Due to the easier customer requests being handled by self-service, calls generally are getting longer and 
more complex, meaning that agents require greater skills and knowledge (supported by technology), 
which will place upward pressure on salaries in the future.  
Figure 12: Average Finance agent salaries, 2012-23 
 
$28,440
$26,728
$31,608
$31,768
$31,651
$32,346
$31,289
$33,872
$32,306
$34,696
$38,072
$38,139
$29,179
$31,234
$31,160
$33,725
$31,986
$30,874
$32,688
$34,439
$34,644
$36,800
$43,151
$42,216
$0
$5,000
$10,000
$15,000
$20,000
$25,000
$30,000
$35,000
$40,000
$45,000
$50,000
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
Average Finance agent salaries, 2012-23
Average
Finance
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Page 27 of 37

 
 
 
 
 
 
27 
AGENT ATTRITION 
Financial services agent attrition rates show a recent pattern of increased attrition rates in recent years, 
being higher than the industry average since 2021, perhaps as the sector’s salaries fall further behind.   
Figure 13: Average Finance annual agent attrition rates, 2012-23 
 
 
 
19%
30%
24%
32%
21%
25%
34%
29%
28%
33%
37%
37%
27%
27%
27%
29%
29%
30%
31%
33%
30%
32%
33%
31%
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
Average Finance annual agent attrition rates, 2012-23
Finance
Average
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Page 28 of 37

 
 
 
 
 
 
28 
AGENT ABSENCE 
For most of the past six years, financial services agent absence rates have been very close to the 
industry average, i.e. around 8-9%.  
In line with the rise what has been seen in other businesses during the pandemic, the finance sector 
reported absence rates in excess of 10% in 2020 and 2021. Although this fell to only 4% in 2022, it has 
increased again in 2023.  
Figure 14: Average Finance agent absence rates, 2012-23 
 
 
 
 
 
 
5.6%
13.0%
10.2%
10.8%
9.0%
9.2%
8.5%
7.7%
10.9%
10.3%
4.0%
11.4%
6.4%
7.9%
10.4%
8.9%
9.0%
9.1%
8.5%
8.5%
9.6%
10.6%
7.0%
9.4%
0.0%
2.0%
4.0%
6.0%
8.0%
10.0%
12.0%
14.0%
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
Average Finance agent absence rates, 2012-23
Finance
Average
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Page 29 of 37

 
 
 
 
 
 
29 
OPERATIONAL BENCHMARKING 
TALK TIME 
The proportion of agent time spent talking to customers has remained fairly steady at an industry-wide 
level between 2014 and 2020, staying close to 60%, although it has dropped recently.  
As a voice-centric channel, finance contact centers’ talk times are generally higher than the industry 
average, although they are tracking downward in line with the industry average as more digital 
interactions take place.   
Figure 15: Finance contact centers: talk time, 2012-23 
 
63%
54%
62%
62%
64%
66%
65%
64%
65%
61%
57%
58%
59%
56%
59%
60%
58%
60%
59%
59%
59%
57%
54%
53%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
% talk time per hour
Finance contact centers: talk time, 2012-23
Finance
Average
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Page 30 of 37

 
 
 
 
 
 
30 
CALL DURATION 
The length of financial services calls across the industry has been fairly steady since 2015, although the 
overall trend is perhaps slightly upward and there has been a jump this year.  
The greater use of self-service to handle simple queries or interactions – leaving live voice calls for more 
complex issues – will tend to increase call lengths, but the finance sector has not yet seen the dramatic 
rise in call durations experienced in some other sectors.  
For the financial services industry, average call duration is consistently below the industry average, 
suggesting that there are a high proportion of calls which are of short duration and which could in 
theory be handled by self-service (whether voice or digital) rather than with a live agent. It may also be 
the case that a significant proportion of customers calling about financial issues prefer the certainty and 
security of actually speaking with an agent about a topic which may be very important to them.  
Figure 16: Finance contact centers: call duration, 2012-23 
 
 
278 
333 
217 
287 
315 
347 
318 
308 
319 
341 
340 
416 
314 
369 
386 
387 
396 
422 
368 
384 
420 
460 
438 
449 
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
450
500
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
Seconds
Finance contact centers: call duration, 2012-23
Finance
Average
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Page 31 of 37

 
 
 
 
 
 
31 
SPEED TO ANSWER 
The average speed to answer in finance operations rose from 22 seconds in 2013 to 227 seconds in 
2022, a rate of increase that is much higher than the industry average. It remains high in 2023.  
Financial services contact centers can generally be seen to have a considerably higher average speed to 
answer than the US contact center industry as a whole, being higher than the overall average for all of 
the past nine years, and seeing major increases in the years of the pandemic. 
Speed to answer is still one of the most important factors to customers calling a contact center, so this is 
negative for the customer experience as a whole.  
Figure 17: Finance contact centers: average speed to answer, 2012-23 
 
 
 
 
35 
22 
42 
74 
65 
77 
75 
94 
145 
218 
227 
184
31 
34 
43 
46 
54 
50 
67 
61 
75 
101 
70 
79
0
50
100
150
200
250
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
seconds
Finance contact centers: average speed to answer (2012-23)
Finance
Average
Case 3:21-md-02992-GPC-MSB     Document 564-17     Filed 10/17/25     PageID.33073 
Page 32 of 37

 
 
 
 
 
 
32 
CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE 
This section of the report looks at what customers actually do when they have negative customer 
experiences. Organizations need to be aware that the impact of long queue times, poor audio quality, a 
failure to solve an issue first time or have alternate channels available is more than just customers 
feeling disappointed: the following research shows that many actively seek out new companies with 
which to do business.  
The question was asked of customers how they generally rated the customer service they received from 
seven types of organization. Banks /  credit card providers received positive responses from 64% of 
customers, the highest of any sector.  
Figure 18: How would you rate the general level of customer service that you receive from these types of company? 
 
 
54% of under-35s were positive about banks (i.e. rated service as excellent or good), compared to 68% 
of those over 65. Those with annual household incomes of over $100k rated banks positively 64% of the 
time, compared to only 56% of <$50k households. 
 
21%
20%
18%
15%
14%
13%
11%
11%
43%
38%
36%
37%
39%
32%
32%
36%
28%
32%
32%
35%
34%
35%
38%
41%
5%
6%
10%
8%
9%
12%
14%
9%
3%
3%
4%
5%
3%
8%
5%
3%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Bank / credit
card
Healthcare
Insurance
Telephone
(fixed line /
mobile)
Utilities
Internet / TV
Airline
Retailer
How would you rate the general level of customer service that you 
receive from these types of company?
Poor
Below average
Average
Good
Excellent
Case 3:21-md-02992-GPC-MSB     Document 564-17     Filed 10/17/25     PageID.33074 
Page 33 of 37

 
 
 
 
 
 
33 
Having looked at what customers think about the customer service they receive in general, do they 
actually then do anything about it?  
Customers were asked if, in the past 12 months, they had left any of the seven types of company listed 
or had used a competitor instead because of poor customer experience.  
A significant proportion of respondents stated that they had in fact done so, with 20% of customers 
either leaving a specific bank / credit card providers, or not choosing them in the first place because of 
poor CX. 
While these figures are alarmingly high, it should be noted that a “poor customer experience” can be 
construed in many different ways. While the examples given in the survey question included long phone 
queues; not being able to answer a question; being passed around numerous employees; and 
experiencing rudeness from staff, it deliberately did not state that those were the only examples of a 
poor customer experience. For many customers, especially younger ones, their customer experience is 
in large part driven by their interactions with the website, app or digital support channels.  
Additionally, customer experience does not begin and end with an interaction: if a company fails to 
deliver an item on-time or to the required quality, invoices a customer incorrectly or miscommunicates 
with them, these are all considered by the customer as part of their overall experience.  
Readers should also consider that many decisions are made before individuals become actual 
customers: a slow-loading website; not being able to get through to the contact center to ask a pre-sales 
question; a lack of information about a time-sensitive buying factor – all these and more will feed into 
the customer (or prospect) experience, and are also included in these figures.  
There is always going to be some subjectivity in what constitutes poor customer experience – it is after 
all, an entirely personal concept – but the survey gives some idea of the impact that falling below 
customers’ expectations can have on businesses.  
 
 
Case 3:21-md-02992-GPC-MSB     Document 564-17     Filed 10/17/25     PageID.33075 
Page 34 of 37

 
 
 
 
 
 
34 
Looking at this data at an age range level provides insight into which cohorts are switching providers, or 
deciding which companies to use (or not) in the first place.  
Figure 19: In the past year, have you left any of these types of company, or decided not to use them because of poor customer experience? 
(by age range) 
 
29%
23%
20%
20%
18%
17%
16%
13%
18%
12%
12%
10%
7%
11%
11%
4%
26%
17%
13%
14%
13%
14%
15%
10%
34%
20%
16%
20%
20%
18%
13%
10%
40%
31%
24%
31%
27%
26%
17%
20%
30%
30%
29%
25%
23%
18%
20%
17%
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
45%
Retailer
Internet / TV
Telephone (fixed line / mobile)
Bank / credit card
Healthcare
Insurance
Airline
Utilities
In the past year, have you left any of these types of company, or decided 
not to use them because of poor customer experience? (by age range)
18-34
35-44
45-54
55-64
65+
Average
Case 3:21-md-02992-GPC-MSB     Document 564-17     Filed 10/17/25     PageID.33076 
Page 35 of 37

 
 
 
 
 
 
35 
The pattern is very obvious – even when taking into account the increased margin of error that working 
with smaller datasets at an age-group level creates – younger age groups are much more likely to have 
report recently changing supplier or using a competitor because of poor customer experience. 
30% of the 18-44 year-old bank customers report moving providers – or more likely, not choosing them 
in the first place – compared to only 10% of over-65 year-olds.  
Again, without asking each individual survey respondent about their personal experience, there is no 
way of finding out exactly why there is such a difference between age groups, but some suggestions can 
be made:  
• 
The propensity to switch supplier gets less as customers become older. Switching becomes 
much more unlikely in the most senior reaches of oldest age group (80+ years-old), and for 
vulnerable people (many of whom are in the 65+ age group), which has been found elsewhere in 
the utilities sector. Of course, switching is not always down to poor customer experience, with 
cost being a more important factor in the energy sector, but the willingness to look for other 
suppliers could be age-related to some extent 
• 
Those customers who have changed suppliers in the past are more likely to change suppliers in 
the future1: brand loyalty amongst Generation Z is much lower than for other age groups2 and 
the effect on this cohort of digital customer experience is higher3, meaning that businesses need 
to see their website as being the primary source of customer experience for younger customers 
• 
However, the focus and preference of younger customers for digital channels (including self-
service) means that there is less opportunity for an exceptional personalized customer 
experience to take place –for example, in the telephony channel or in a shop – which could 
develop long-term customer loyalty  
• 
Older people who have been customers in the times before the Internet when switching 
companies was not simple or cheap may be influenced by the familiarity effect of brands that 
they have been with for a long time, and be less influenced to switch suppliers by poor customer 
experiences: they see themselves as a “Brand-X” customer regardless, and this can even 
become part of their self-identity. This could go some way to explaining why older customers 
are more likely to rate their customer service experiences lower than younger cohorts, yet are 
far less likely to have done anything about it. 
 
 
 
 
1 https://www.eprg.group.cam.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/1515-PDF.pdf  
2 https://cxm.co.uk/disloyal-brands-failing-to-attract-younger-customers-to-loyalty-schemes/  
3 https://martech.org/51-of-consumers-would-leave-a-brand-if-digital-experience-isnt-as-good-as-in-
person/#:~:text=Younger%20consumers%20are%20less%20loyal,according%20to%20the%20PwC%20findings.  
Case 3:21-md-02992-GPC-MSB     Document 564-17     Filed 10/17/25     PageID.33077 
Page 36 of 37

 
 
 
 
 
 
36 
ABOUT CONTACTBABEL 
ContactBabel is the contact center industry expert. If you have a question about how the industry works, 
or where it’s heading, the chances are we have the answer.  
We help US and UK contact centers compare themselves to their closest competitors so they can 
understand what they are doing well, what needs to improve and how they can do this.  
The coverage provided by our massive and ongoing primary research projects is matched by our 
experience analyzing the contact center industry. We understand how technology, people and process 
best fit together, and how they will work collectively in the future.  
Email: info@contactbabel.com | Website: www.contactbabel.com | Telephone: +44 (0)1434 682244  
Free research reports available from www.contactbabel.com (US and UK versions) include: 
• 
The Inner Circle Guide to Agent Engagement & Empowerment 
• 
The Inner Circle Guide to AI-Enabled Agent Assistance 
• 
The Inner Circle Guide to Chatbots & Conversational AI 
• 
The Inner Circle Guide to Cloud-based Contact Center Solutions 
• 
The Inner Circle Guide to Customer Engagement & Personalization 
• 
The Inner Circle Guide to Customer Interaction Analytics 
• 
The Inner Circle Guide to First-Contact Resolution 
• 
The Inner Circle Guide to Fraud Reduction & PCI Compliance 
• 
The Inner Circle Guide to Next-Generation Customer Contact 
• 
The Inner Circle Guide to Omnichannel 
• 
The Inner Circle Guide to Omnichannel Workforce Optimization 
• 
The Inner Circle Guide to Outbound & Call Blending  
• 
The Inner Circle Guide to Remote & Hybrid Working Contact Center Solutions  
• 
The Inner Circle Guide to Self-Service  
• 
The Inner Circle Guide to the Voice of the Customer  
 
• 
The Australia & New Zealand Contact Centre Decision-Makers’ Guide  
• 
The UK Contact Centre Decision-Makers’ Guide 
• 
The US Contact Center Decision-Makers’ Guide 
• 
The UK Customer Experience Decision-Makers’ Guide 
• 
The US Customer Experience Decision-Makers’ Guide 
• 
Exceeding UK Customer Expectations 
• 
Exceeding US Customer Expectations 
 
• 
UK Contact Centre Verticals: Communications; Finance; Insurance; Outsourcing; Retail & 
Distribution; Utilities 
• 
US Contact Center Verticals: Communications; Finance; Healthcare; Insurance; Outsourcing; 
Retail & Distribution. 
Case 3:21-md-02992-GPC-MSB     Document 564-17     Filed 10/17/25     PageID.33078 
Page 37 of 37

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