Case Study: Empyrean Increases FCR by 20% With Level AI

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Every year, millions of employees face a dizzying maze of healthcare and financial options. For Empyrean Benefits Solutions, the mission is clear: to help people make informed choices for themselves and their families during pivotal life moments – from a child’s birth to a new job to sudden medical needs.

But behind the scenes, supporting every one of these moments is Empyrean’s contact centre: a lifeline connecting anxious employees with the answers – and empathy – they need.

Challenges

Three years ago, Empyrean was in a tough spot. With hundreds of thousands of calls pouring in every month, their team felt overwhelmed and reactive, lacking insight into why people called and what happened after they hung up the phone.

“Honestly, we were just trying to keep our heads above water,” Freddie Berberena, VP, Member Experience & Service Innovation, recalls. Agents had to rely on incomplete data, patching together manual spreadsheets just to get a sense of what was happening on a mere 3% of calls.

Sometimes people would call back again and again, frustrated because the information they received wasn’t quite right, or they fell through the cracks on compliance checks.

“You take in information, but you don’t always know why people are calling… or what’s really happening on those calls,” – Freddie Berberena, VP, Member Experience & Service Innovation

Empyrean wanted something different. Instead of worrying about average handle time or chasing quotas, they envisioned putting the customer front and centre. They wanted every caller to feel heard and helped in that exact moment, even if it meant spending a bit longer on the phone.

Solution

When Empyrean started searching for a solution, they didn’t want just another “point fix”. They looked at half a dozen to eight different providers, but most were offering only a slice of what Empyrean needed, focusing on a single function or feature.

The team met Level AI and quickly realized that Level AI was thinking bigger: “How do you actually change the experience for both member and agent?”

“While implementing Level AI, we went in knowing about 50% of what we needed to do, and we figured out the remaining 50% along the way with Level AI, who ensured that all of Empyrean’s compliance standards were protected and that the implementation happened with ease,” Freddie notes.

Quality Assurance for Every Call

No more guesswork. Empyrean now listens to 100% of calls, checking empathy, accuracy, and compliance for every customer served.

This moved them from a “glorified Excel spreadsheet” system to a tool that could score calls directly and identify dead air, saving significant time.

Agent Assist

Rolled out to every agent and client in January after a successful beta during annual enrolment, it pulls up answers instantly and creates case notes, allowing agents to focus on listening, rather than frantically searching.

Empyrean anticipates this will be “invaluable to a brand new hire as they get out onto the floor,” significantly improving their quality scores early on.

Screen Recording for Accountability

Agents’ tool usage is visible. Now, adoption is tied not only to quality scores, but also to bonuses and performance plans.

Not utilizing Agent Assist can result in a negative impact on the agent’s quality score. This “carrot and stick” approach has been crucial for driving adoption.

AI Workers and Conversation Intelligence

Empowers managers to spot trends, coach agents, and respond proactively to emerging problems – no more waiting weeks for clues.

Freddie describes AI Workers as “the coolest thing that you’ve launched yet,” enabling them to pull out trends and data in just 30 seconds for client meetings.

Implementation wasn’t cookie-cutter – it was a true partnership, adapting on the fly and making sure Empyrean’s compliance standards were protected every step of the way. This included working through challenges around data passing and ensuring system compatibility.

Results

Empyrean’s transformation started quietly – but the impact was powerful.

First Call Resolution Improved

Initially, call handling times increased, which was unexpected. However, internal review revealed that agents were spending more time with callers – asking the extra question, catching hidden issues, and solving problems fully the first time, leading to a significant increase in First Call Resolution.

Repeat Callers Declined

Thanks to real-time AI prompts and deeper listening, callers rarely needed to ring back, saving time and frustration for everyone. This was a key metric that justified the value of the tool.

Time Saved on Every Call

Case notes are generated automatically, freeing up almost a minute per call – and saving thousands of hours each year.

Empyrean is now working towards integrating this auto-documentation directly into their CRM system, further enhancing efficiency and saving a lot of time.

Adoption Soared

With screen recording and incentive programmes, nearly all agents embraced the tools, raising their own quality scores along the way.

Compliance and Security Strengthened

Calls are properly authenticated, sensitive information is protected, and legal risk for clients is minimized. The QA tool enables in-depth monitoring of compliance aspects, including proper greetings, authentication, tone, and call closure.

Scalability With Confidence

Empyrean scaled up to 400 agents during busy periods, ensuring every member received the same level of support and compliance, even with 250 temporary CSRs during annual enrolment.

“We’re not just a service centre any more. With Level AI, we’re proactive, we’re efficient, and above all – we’re compassionate,” Freddie, VP, Member Experience & Service Innovation, concludes.

This blog post has been re-published by kind permission of Level AI – View the Original Article

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