Cheryl Paarwater - Enerlytics & Call Lab BPO - How Does AI Affect Marginalized Communities?
CX Files4 Sep 2025

Cheryl Paarwater - Enerlytics & Call Lab BPO - How Does AI Affect Marginalized Communities?

Cheryl Paarwater is the Managing Director at Enerlytics & Call Lab BPO. She is based in Cape Town, South Africa.

Cheryl has championed CX in South Africa for many years and is a board member of BPESA - the trade promotion agency for business process service companies in South Africa.

In this conversation with Peter Ryan, Cheryl explores how BPO and CX has created many opportunities for employment in South Africa - and beyond - and this has created a very positive socio-economic ripple effect. People leaving informal jobs and entering contact centers pay tax, support their family, and help to support other businesses selling services to those working directly in BPOs.

As AI is gradually introduced in many CX processes, there is a fear in the industry that entry-level positions may no longer be staffed by humans. The most immediate effect is a reduction in the number of jobs created, but what are the wider effects of thinking that we can just replace people with bots?

https://www.linkedin.com/in/cheryl-paarwater/

https://call-lab.com/

SUMMARY:

Mark Hillary and Peter Ryan discuss the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on customer experience (CX) jobs, particularly in South Africa. Cheryl Paarwater, CEO of Call Lab, highlights concerns about AI replacing human roles, which could exacerbate unemployment and social issues. Despite AI's potential to automate 10-15% of roles, Peter notes that many AI projects fail, citing a 42% failure rate in 2020. Cheryl emphasizes the need for AI to enhance human roles rather than replace them, suggesting AI could improve education and support high-value interactions. They stress the importance of a balanced approach to AI implementation in CX.

Avsnitt(420)

Nathan Muniz - 247Secretary.com - Raw, unpolished BPO content outperforms glossy marketing

Nathan Muniz - 247Secretary.com - Raw, unpolished BPO content outperforms glossy marketing

Nathan Muniz is the founder and owner of 247Secretary.com. The business is based in Florida, USA, but has contact center operations in the Philippines. Nathan talked to Mark Hillary from the floor of ...

30 Apr 22min

Gary Slade - TP - Why Stability Is the New Battleground in BPO

Gary Slade - TP - Why Stability Is the New Battleground in BPO

Gary Slade is the Chief Commerical Officer at TP EMEA. He has many years of BPO and CX experience and he previously led the UK/Ireland operation at TP as CEO. In this conversation with Mark Hillary, G...

23 Apr 25min

Sarah Leff - Interact CC - Why the Eastern Cape Could Be South Africa's Next CX Powerhouse

Sarah Leff - Interact CC - Why the Eastern Cape Could Be South Africa's Next CX Powerhouse

*]:pointer-events-auto scroll-mt-[calc(var(--header-height)+min(200px,max(70px,20svh)))]" dir="auto" data-turn-id= "request-WEB:2f2f632a-46c8-4445-8b38-333795a0ae69-2" data-testid= "conversation-turn-...

16 Apr 23min

Chris Chance - CCI Global - Africa Rising For CX

Chris Chance - CCI Global - Africa Rising For CX

Chris Chance is the Senior Vice President for East Africa at CCI Global. He is based between Kenya, Rwanda, and Ethiopia. CCI Global is headquartered in the UAR, but has extensive operations across Af...

9 Apr 24min

Steve Sullivan - Channel Doctors - How Do We Manage Customer Rage?

Steve Sullivan - Channel Doctors - How Do We Manage Customer Rage?

Steve Sullivan is the founder of Channel Doctors. He is based in Bournemouth in the UK. Channel Doctors is a specialist advisory company focused on CX, contact centers, and especially issues such as d...

2 Apr 31min

Melanie Disse - Melanie Disse Consulting - Acting on Customer Feedback

Melanie Disse - Melanie Disse Consulting - Acting on Customer Feedback

Melanie Disse is the Principal Consultant and Tech Adviser to Melanie Disse Consulting. Melanie Disse Consulting is a CX & VoC consulting firm helping businesses leverage CX as a key competitive diffe...

26 Mars 29min

Gareth Bray - Premier CX - Why Customers Prefer WhatsApp

Gareth Bray - Premier CX - Why Customers Prefer WhatsApp

Gareth Bray is Business Development Director and WhatsApp Guru at Premier CX. He is based in Odiham, Hampshire, UK. Over 100 billion WhatsApp messages are sent daily by users - that's more than a mill...

19 Mars 28min

CCW Berlin 2026 - Feedback Direct From The Floor

CCW Berlin 2026 - Feedback Direct From The Floor

CCW 2026 took place at the end of February 2026 in Berlin. Peter Ryan was there on the conference floor. He took a microphone and tried to capture several comments and ideas from the delegates - what ...

12 Mars 21min

Populärt inom Business & ekonomi

framgangspodden
varvet
rss-jossan-nina
rss-svart-marknad
rss-borsens-finest
badfluence
avanzapodden
uppgang-och-fall
svd-tech-brief
bathina-en-podcast
fill-or-kill
lastbilspodden
rss-dagen-med-di
rss-kort-lang-analyspodden-fran-di
tabberaset
rss-inga-dumma-fragor-om-pengar
24fragor
kapitalet-en-podd-om-ekonomi
rikatillsammans-om-privatekonomi-rikedom-i-livet
borsmorgon