KINGSTON, Jamaica — As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to reshape the global customer service landscape, major players in Jamaica’s business process outsourcing (BPO) sector are calling for a fundamental rethink of how services are designed, delivered and sold.

They have warned that surface-level automation will no longer be enough to remain internationally competitive.

According to Yoni Epstein, chief executive officer (CEO) of major player in the global service sector ITEL, many customer service delivery models (CX) across the region continue to treat AI as a bolt on feature rather than as a core driver of operational and strategic transformation.

“AI can no longer sit at the edges of CX operations. The industry is moving away from selling headcount and towards delivering intelligence, insight and measurable outcomes. Providers that fail to make this shift will struggle to differentiate themselves in a rapidly evolving global market,” Epstein said.

He argued that United States and other international clients are increasingly seeking outsourcing partners with demonstrable maturity in AI-driven quality assurance, analytics and performance management capabilities that require redesigned processes, unified technology platforms and new success metrics, not just automation tools layered onto existing structures.

Epstein cautioned that aggressive use of AI purely as a cost-cutting, or call-deflection mechanism, may undermine service quality and customer loyalty in the long term.

“The future of CX lies in a balanced, hybrid approach. AI should enhance human capability not replace it. Empathy, judgement and complex problem-solving remain human strengths, and technology works best when it amplifies those skills,” added Epstein.

Other technology experts have repeatedly argued that AI will augment human capabilities rather than replace them, and that will require potential and current employees to upskill in order to remain in long-term career opportunities.

“What we want to see in the industry is that we can upskill the workforce to the point where they are the ones that interact with the AI,” Egbert Von Frankenberg, CEO of Knightfox Apps Design Ltd, told the Jamaica Observer just over one year ago.

“The AI becomes the tool, and the mindset of people entering the BPO industry from a career standpoint shifts to ‘How do I become a master of utilising AI? How can I analyse data and retrain?” added Von Frankenburg.

Now local BPO players are adamant that the AI shift has broad implications for Jamaica’s BPO ecosystem, including workforce development, technology investment and the country’s positioning as a high-value CX destination.

President of the Global Services Association of Jamaica (GSAJ), Wayne Sinclair, added: “To remain globally competitive, the sector must evolve from labour-based delivery models toward intelligence-driven services that create deeper value for clients while sustaining quality jobs for Jamaicans.