The company Naturgy is promoting a significant improvement in its customer service model by incorporating artificial intelligence agents developed together with HappyRobot.
The new solution allows more than 50% of calls to be managed without human intervention and autonomously in the call center, which is planned to achieve 90% autonomous management by the end of the year. Thus, Naturgy’s technical service – a free telephone service for customers and non-customers – has achieved a customer satisfaction level of 9.4 out of 10 during the first weeks of operation.
The collaboration between both companies aims to improve the customer experience and optimize the management of technical service operations through AI agents capable of managing complete processes autonomously. After an evaluation process of nearly 30 suppliers and several proofs of concept, Naturgy selected HappyRobot for the ability of its technology to maintain natural conversations, through multi-agent systems that work in tandem and that offer transparency to visualize the logic, code and nodes within the platform.
The incorporation of artificial intelligence agents is part of a broader transformation process initiated by Naturgy in 2022. For three years, the company carried out a profound renovation of its technological and operational infrastructure, simplifying processes, consolidating products and migrating its customer base to a new platform with the aim of improving the customer experience and preparing the organization for the adoption of new digital capabilities.
An AI agent integrated into Naturgy operations
The collaboration began with a proof of concept in which the agent demonstrated its capabilities in some of the most common and repetitive customer service processes, such as explaining invoices, managing meter readings, resolving frequently asked questions and providing technical assistance. Once this phase has been validated, Naturgy has deployed the first of several planned use cases in its main line of technical assistance, and has channeled 100% of maintenance service calls to AI agents, meticulously checking the quality at each level.
One of the most significant characteristics of the HappyRobot agent is that it is integrated into Naturgy’s native systems, unlike other traditional automation systems, and is also capable of executing complete processes in each of its interactions.
“Our approach has always been to work as an extension of the client’s teams. The real challenge of enterprise AI is not just the technology, but bringing it to real operations: complex, high-volume processes full of exceptions, where several agents have to coordinate with each other to solve the job from start to finish. That is why at HappyRobot we combine a platform designed for large companies with teams capable of deploying and evolving those solutions in a very short time,” says Pablo Palafox, CEO of HappyRobot.
The objective of the service is to advise the client and non-client, free of charge, to resolve breakdowns in boilers and white goods. If it is not repairable over the phone, if you need the assistance of a technician at home, the service commitment is to arrive in less than three hours to any point in Spain.
This service is included in Naturgy maintenance services. For non-customers, the service is provided with a fixed price that is previously communicated. To do this, the AI agent verifies the customer’s identity using single-use codes, consults contracts and coverage in real time, performs guided diagnoses to resolve technical incidents, and automatically records all interaction information in the company’s systems. Likewise, in line with its commitment to transparency, Naturgy informs customers that they are being served by an artificial intelligence agent, with the possibility of switching to a human agent at any time.
At the same time, the solution also incorporates real-time monitoring and auditing capabilities that make it possible to identify anomalous call patterns and detect possible operational incidents before they have an impact on the service.
Supporting teams with HappyRobot
One of the most notable aspects of the project has been the perception of quality by clients and employees. As Naturgy explains, internal evaluations carried out during the deployment showed that the AI agent manages incidents with a high degree of precision and consistency, even in the most complex cases.
As a result, the company is moving towards a model in which AI agents and human teams complement each other: AI takes over the most repetitive procedures, even in complex environments, allowing customer service professionals to focus on cases that require human judgment and on the relationship with the customer. As Terrell Sheridan, Head of GenAI Transformation at Naturgy, explains: “Our AI agent resolves the most common procedures with precision and consistency, and that frees our teams to focus on situations that require judgment, empathy and closer treatment.”
The objective of the service is to advise the client free of charge, as well as to resolve breakdowns in boilers and white goods.
An idea that coincides with HappyRobot’s perspective: “The most relevant thing about this project is that AI and people work in a complementary way within a real operation. By automating the most repetitive procedures, teams can dedicate their time to interactions that truly require human intervention. That is the vision that we share with Naturgy about the future of customer service,” says Pablo Palafox, CEO of HappyRobot.
For Naturgy, the objective of this initiative goes beyond the automation of processes. “We want to be the best customer service company in Europe. That’s why we don’t measure this technology by what it saves us, but by how much it improves the service we offer to each customer,” concludes Terrell Sheridan, Head of GenAI Transformation at Naturgy.
The company continues to explore new use cases to expand the reach of artificial intelligence within its operations and move towards a model where human agents and AI agents work together to deliver a better customer experience.
