Self-service won't replace tellers, employees

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began in 2020, bankers, retailers and restaurateurs have had to adapt their operations to keep serving and engaging customers. One of those adaptations was moving away from person-to-person interactions at the teller to self service. Early concerns over touching shared surfaces diminished as consumers used hand sanitizer, and their preference emerged for the social distancing that self-service kiosks offered.

However, businesses also found that self service filled crucial needs. The labor shortage that began with COVID-19 shutdowns left many banking, retail and other positions unfilled long-term and causing industries like banking to rethink the way they hire.

Self-service technology allowed operators to allocate employees to mission-critical tasks while ATMs and cash recyclers handled traditional transactions. Still, the specter of replacing human workers with machines hung over the self-service trend.

Time for a new view

While some retailers and restaurateurs optimistically continue the search for new employees, a stark truth has emerged. The labor pool is unlikely to grow, at least for the foreseeable future.

According to United Nations data, the number of worldwide births is plateauing and will decline later this century as the population ages. This paints a stark picture of a shrinking workforce serving a large population past retirement. The trend began before 2020; however, the pandemic accelerated it as many employees close to retirement age chose not to return to the workforce after furloughs or layoffs.

A persistent labor shortage is forcing merchants to find new ways to operate. Self-service technology is a viable solution — and the message should be that self service isn't replacing people. It's doing work to cover tasks associated with vacant positions that may never be filled.

What it can and can't do

Many people equate "self service" with "self checkout" or ATMs. However, retailers and restaurateurs are finding that self-service technology can accomplish much more. For example, QSRs are rapidly adopting solutions that allow customers to place their own orders, and the system shares those orders with a touchscreen kitchen display system rather than relying on an employee to communicate with food prep stations. Banks are also using self-service solutions for video banking, mobile deposits and more.

Self-service systems could also manage the hostess station in a restaurant, enable customers to claim their buy online, pickup in store orders from smart lockers, accept returns for store credit and make information on products or promotions easily accessible. Furthermore, leveraging smart technologies like artificial intelligence and machine learning systems can personalize interactions, much like online shopping experiences, and monitor interactions and stop loss and shrinkage.

Another mission critical thing that self-service does is enhance customer experiences. A study by IBM in conjunction with the National Retail Federation found that 71% of consumers want to use self checkout, and more than one fourth say they want a wider range of self-service options for the speed and convenience they crave.

While businesses explore how to re-engineer attended processes for self service, it's important to remember what this technology can't do. In-person service will always be necessary to help customers who encounter issues with a self-service kiosk or are only prepared to use cash or another payment method that the kiosk may not accept. Fewer employees may be necessary, but they are essential to building loyalty and deepening customer relationships. Businesses must strike the right balance between people and technology to create a competitive operation.

How it benefits employees

Although the benefits of self-service technology for consumers and businesses are apparent, merchants' employees can also benefit when their company deploys self service. When machines and computers automate basic, repetitive tasks, it allows employees to focus on more advanced jobs, grow their skill sets and achieve more in their careers.

Retail and restaurant industries must change the script from "either employees or self-service technology" to "employees with self-service technology." People, aided by these solutions, will be able to accomplish more and provide the same (or better) quality of service as when their employer had more people on staff.

The opportunity to meet the demand

The trend toward self service is also an opportunity for innovators and solutions providers to grow their businesses by helping merchants implement automated systems. It can reinvigorate businesses that had previously sold only point-of-sale systems that workers used on a counter or even mobile POS to assist customers in the aisles or the dining room.

Businesses also need solutions providers to help them select the right self-service software, choose the operating system that will benefit them most, whether Android, Windows or Linux, and implement systems that last, provide the best CX and deliver quick ROI. Merchants also need solution providers' expertise to integrate self-service technology with their existing IT environments, connect the back- and front-of-house and enable centralized management throughout a store or enterprise.

Many merchants that made changes in the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic assumed that consumer preferences would shift back at some point and that the labor market would rebound. They see now that they need a long-term strategy to adapt. How well businesses implement self service is likely to determine winners and losers. The first step is recognizing that self service is essential, beneficial and should be deployed without apology.