Regulatory Shifts and AI Costs to Reshape Call Center Operations by 2028

Recent analysis from Gartner forecasts significant regulatory changes impacting customer service operations by 2028. According to their report, upcoming regulations mandating easy access to human agents will increase assisted service volume by 30% as customers bypass AI systems to request human representatives. This regulatory shift requires organizations to maintain or rehire human agents at potentially higher staffing levels and salaries than current models. Organizations failing to meet these staffing requirements risk degraded customer experiences through prolonged wait times.

These regulatory projections coincide with Gartner's cost analysis indicating that by 2030, the cost per resolution for generative AI in customer service will exceed $3.00—surpassing the cost of many offshore human agents. This cost increase stems from rising data center expenses, AI vendors shifting from subsidized growth to profitability models, and increasingly complex use cases requiring more computational resources. These findings directly challenge assumptions about AI-driven cost reduction in customer service operations.

UJET CEO Vasili Triant emphasizes that effective compliance strategy involves rethinking AI implementation: "The ROI becomes 'I'm not spending money on a legacy application that doesn’t need to be there anymore' rather than removing humans." This perspective aligns with observed industry patterns where enterprises that automated 80% of call center tasks pre-AI are now focusing on application consolidation. Current operational inefficiencies stem from agents navigating multiple slow systems, not human capability limitations.

Compliance timelines require immediate strategic adjustments:

1. 2024-2026: Audit current agent toolsets to identify consolidation opportunities using AI-powered unified platforms
2. 2027: Implement systems that reduce application-switching while maintaining full regulatory audit trails
3. 2028: Achieve staffing levels compliant with anticipated human-access mandates
4. 2030: Establish cost-tracking mechanisms for AI resolutions versus human interventions

Financial institutions and retail brands using platforms like UJET demonstrate that successful compliance involves transforming agents into what Triant calls "superheroes"—equipping them with AI tools that accelerate issue resolution without legacy system dependencies. This approach addresses Gartner's warning that full automation will remain prohibitively expensive for most organizations through 2030.

Organizations must document these operational changes to demonstrate regulatory compliance as mandates evolve. Proactive preparation avoids the scenario Gartner describes where customers default to human agent requests, creating unsustainable staffing cost spikes. The coming SaaS consolidation wave ('SaaS-pocalypse') further necessitates investing in adaptable platforms rather than point solutions that increase operational complexity.