Indeed, the Call Centre will either require very highly trained staff who are skilled in the use of all operational applications, or it will require an intelligent system which can navigate agents through the correct processes and supply the correct data. Let the Computer Do the Thinking Work To put together a system that does the thinking, the focus has to be on the needs of the process itself rather than the operational applications which underpin the process. To highlight the difference, it is best to use a simple analogy. Consider the earliest microwave ovens, because they represent application-oriented systems. They were accompanied by an instruction manual which recommended the appropriate power and time settings for defrosting or cooking, for red meat or vegetables.
Current microwaves are more process-oriented.
There is much less need for instructions or to memorise operational steps. Rather than having to know how to navigate through the system to produce a certain chart, for example, you could use the chart wizard and have it prompt you for the desired chart type. While the need to access multiple systems is limited, the data they work with in their single-application environment might be required by other parts of the enterprise. Typically they will need to source data from multiple systems. Their application may also need some additional intelligence which is not available in any of the back end systems.