4 min read
In today’s fast-paced, always-on world, customers expect businesses to be accessible around the clock. This demand is particularly high in regulated industries such as finance, healthcare, and government services, where clients often need assistance with high-value processes even outside of traditional office hours. Yet, businesses in these sectors face significant challenges in meeting this need while ensuring compliance, security, and operational efficiency. This blog will explore the high-value processes or requests customers struggle to obtain after hours, examine the difficulties these businesses face, and discuss potential solutions to overcome them.
The Rise of 24/7 Expectations
The rise of digital services has created a shift in customer expectations. In industries where data security and compliance are paramount, such as finance, healthcare, and insurance, the demand for out-of-hours services is even more pronounced. Customers are increasingly accustomed to 24/7 access to their accounts, services, or support. Yet, many businesses still operate on a traditional 9-5 schedule or run expensive customer centres across multiple geographies to be available for longer hours. This mismatch between customer demand and operational reality leads to frustration, particularly for high-value processes that require immediate attention.
Regulated businesses, by their very nature, often deal with sensitive information and have strict protocols in place for data handling, verification, and approval. While automating some processes is possible, others still require a human touch to ensure compliance. This makes providing consistent, out-of-hours access particularly difficult. As a result, many customers in regulated industries are left waiting until the next business day for resolution, which can be detrimental to their trust and loyalty.
For example, in the banking sector, clients might need to execute a time-sensitive transfer or manage urgent account issues, but are often faced with limited options after business hours. Similarly, in the healthcare industry, patients may need to access important medical records or seek critical guidance outside of office hours. When these high-value services are unavailable, it raises concerns about customer satisfaction and retention.
The Compliance and Security Dilemma
One of the primary obstacles to providing out-of-hours services for high-value processes in regulated industries is compliance and security. These industries are governed by a labyrinth of regulations that dictate how data should be handled, stored, and shared. Opening up critical services beyond office hours can create significant risks if not carefully managed.
For instance, in financial services, customers might need to make large transactions or request sensitive information after hours. These types of requests usually require multi-factor authentication, secure verification processes, and approvals, all of which must adhere to strict regulatory guidelines. Extending access to these services out of hours, especially in a fully automated manner, poses a challenge: how do you ensure that only authorised users are accessing the system without compromising security or violating regulations?
In healthcare, patient confidentiality is paramount, governed by laws such as the Data Protection Act 2018 and GDPR in the UK. This creates barriers to offering 24/7 access to high-value processes such as obtaining prescription information, accessing medical records, or receiving emergency decisions. Security systems need to ensure that patients’ private data is protected, and any automated access must comply with strict access control rules.
Regulated industries often rely on manual intervention during business hours to carry out these critical tasks. However, this doesn’t align with modern customer expectations, which demand immediate access to these high-value processes. Striking a balance between availability and security is no small feat, especially when failing to comply with regulations can result in severe penalties, including fines or reputational damage.
The Role of Automation and AI
While compliance and security are significant concerns, advancements in automation, artificial intelligence (AI), and machine learning (ML) are making it increasingly feasible to offer out-of-hours access to high-value processes without compromising these critical factors. In fact, automation can be a key enabler for regulated businesses to address the growing demand for 24/7 service, especially for routine or standardised tasks.
In the banking industry, for example, expert chatbots can help customers initiate processes like transferring funds, checking account balances, or reporting lost cards after hours. These tools can securely authenticate users via biometrics or other forms of secure identification, ensuring that transactions are only conducted by authorised parties. While these tasks may have previously required human intervention, AI systems can now handle them effectively while ensuring compliance with financial regulations.
In the healthcare sector, AI can also play a role in offering certain services outside of office hours. AI-driven platforms can provide patients with the ability to book appointments, request repeat prescriptions, or access non-sensitive medical information without human involvement. These services can be fully integrated with electronic health records (EHR) systems, ensuring that data privacy and security regulations are maintained. For example, an expert AI system could verify a patient’s identity through secure methods like facial recognition, which would trigger the release of approved health information according to predetermined compliance rules.
Although not all processes can be fully automated, many aspects of the customer experience can be improved by implementing AI and automation, reducing the pressure on human staff to be available 24/7. By combining automation with appropriate safeguards and compliance checks, regulated businesses can increase their out-of-hours offerings without opening themselves up to compliance risks.
Navigating the Future of Out-of-Hours Requests
The growing demand for 24/7 access to high-value services presents both a challenge and an opportunity for regulated businesses. On one hand, the security and compliance requirements of industries like finance and healthcare make it challenging to extend out-of-hours availability for sensitive processes. On the other hand, the rise of automation and AI offers a viable pathway to balance customer expectations with the need for robust compliance and security measures.
As businesses continue to adopt new technologies, they will need to navigate the fine line between offering timely access to services and maintaining the highest standards of data protection. For now, hybrid solutions seem to provide the best of both worlds—leveraging automation for routine requests while ensuring that human intervention remains available for more complex or sensitive tasks. The key to success will be finding ways to keep customer trust intact while ensuring that regulatory obligations are met at every step.
In conclusion, regulated businesses must recognise that out-of-hours service requests, especially for high-value processes, are becoming increasingly vital to maintaining customer loyalty. By embracing automation and AI, and aligning these technologies with compliance standards, businesses can deliver on the expectations of modern customers without sacrificing the integrity of their operations. The future of customer service in regulated industries lies in smart, secure, and scalable solutions that allow businesses to provide critical services, regardless of the hour.
