"There Is No Internet": Is Zambia's Digital Transformation Improving Customer Experience?

"There is no internet, so we cannot process your request."

That was the response I received when I recently visited an organisation for assistance. There was no alternative, no estimated waiting time and no suggestion that someone would contact me when the connection was restored. The conversation appeared to be over simply because the internet was unavailable.

I escalated the matter to a head of department. Approximately 20 minutes later, the same request that could not be processed was completed. Perhaps the internet had returned, or perhaps an alternative had been available all along. Either way, I was left wondering: was the real problem the internet, or was it the organisation's ability and willingness to find another solution?

This experience is not unique.

Across Zambia, customers regularly hear phrases such as, "The system is down," "There is no network," or "You will have to come back." These words affect everyone, from the young customer trying to complete a transaction on a mobile application to the older customer who has travelled to a branch hoping to speak to someone face to face.

Technology has changed how we access services, but has it changed how organisations respond when customers need help?

Zambia is becoming more digital

Zambia has made meaningful progress in mobile money, digital banking, electronic payments, online applications and technology enabled public services.

The Bank of Zambia's National Payment System Vision and Strategy 2023-2027 aims to support a 24-hour digital economy through innovation, interoperability and seamless payments. It also recognises customer experience, complaints handling, cybersecurity and universal access as important parts of an effective national payment system.

The World Bank identifies digital infrastructure, digital skills, digital platforms, digital entrepreneurship and digital financial services as foundations of Zambia's digital transformation.

These developments matter. Customers can now send money, pay bills, make appointments and submit applications without always visiting a physical office.

However, digital access and good customer experience are not the same thing.

A service may be available online but still be difficult to use. A transaction may take seconds when everything works, but several days to resolve when something goes wrong. An organisation may launch a modern application while leaving customers without a reliable way to reach a human being.

When the system goes down, what happens to the customer?

No technology is perfect. Internet connections fail, applications freeze, systems experience interruptions and electricity disruptions affect operations.

Zambia's digital progress continues to depend on the availability, affordability and reliability of ICT infrastructure.

The real test of customer experience is not whether technology will ever fail. It is whether the organisation is prepared for that failure.

When a system is unavailable, is the customer given a clear explanation? Is an alternative process available? Can the request be recorded for later action? Is the customer given a realistic timeframe? Will someone provide an update?

A system failure should not automatically become a service failure.

The internet may be beyond an employee's control, but communication, empathy, ownership and follow ups are not.

Are we digitising convenience or frustration?

Digital transformation is often presented as proof that an organisation is modern and customer centred. However, introducing an application, chatbot or online portal does not automatically improve customer experience.

A mobile money platform that deducts funds without completing a transaction creates anxiety, especially when the customer cannot quickly reach someone who can help.

A banking application that repeatedly fails during an urgent payment is not convenient.

An online form that still requires a customer to visit an office with printed copies has not removed bureaucracy. It has simply added another stage.

A WhatsApp number that receives messages but does not provide timely responses is not an effective customer service channel. It is another place where customers are made to wait.

Technology should reduce customer effort, uncertainty and waiting time. If it merely transfers an organisation's internal difficulties to the customer, the process may be digital, but the experience has not necessarily improved.

Customers still need human support

Automation works well when a request is simple and predictable. Customers can check balances, confirm appointments and make payments without joining a physical queue.

But life does not always follow an automated menu.

What happens when money disappears between two accounts? What if an application rejects a valid document? What if a customer does not understand the instructions?

At that moment, the customer does not need another automated response. The customer needs a person who can listen, understand the situation and take responsibility.

Unfortunately, this is often when a human being becomes hardest to reach.

Customers move through automated menus, repeat the same story to different employees or are referred from one department to another. Some eventually visit a physical branch because the digital channel cannot resolve anything outside its standard options.

The purpose of digitalisation should not be to remove people from customer service. Technology should handle routine transactions, while trained employees remain available when judgement, reassurance and service recovery are required.

Digital transformation must work across generations

Customers have different levels of digital confidence.

Younger customers may be comfortable using applications, scanning QR codes and communicating through social media. However, they still expect speed, transparency and assistance when technology fails.

Older customers may prefer speaking to someone in person or may need support to navigate passwords, USSD menus and online forms. Other customers may not own smartphones, may have limited access to affordable data or may be more comfortable communicating in a local language.

These are not customers resisting progress. They are customers with different needs.

The benefits of digital transformation depend not only on infrastructure, but also on digital skills and the ability of citizens to use digital services meaningfully. Affordability, digital skills and the gap between network coverage and actual usage remain barriers to digital inclusion in Zambia.

A customer centred organisation should therefore ask whether its digital services are accessible to people of different ages and abilities. It should provide support for customers who cannot use a platform and allow people to move easily from a digital channel to human assistance.

A digital service is not truly convenient if it works only for the most digitally confident customer.

Why does escalation suddenly produce a solution?

My experience raises an important question: why do some problems become solvable only after a senior person becomes involved?

If a request can be completed shortly after escalation, the organisation may have more than an internet problem. It may have a problem with employee empowerment, decision making or service recovery procedures.

Frontline employees may know what should be done but lack the authority, tools or confidence to act. They may fear being disciplined for departing from the usual process, even when that process is unavailable.

This creates a culture in which employees explain why something cannot be done instead of exploring what can be done.

Leaders should ask whether frontline employees are trained to manage service disruptions, whether alternative procedures are available and whether escalation channels are clear. Employees should have the authority to make reasonable decisions and take ownership of common customer problems.

Customer experience should not depend on whether someone knows a manager, holds a senior position or complains loudly enough. A good service process should work consistently for every customer.

Connecting digital transformation with operational readiness

Zambian organisations need to connect digital transformation with operational readiness.

This requires investment not only in applications and platforms, but also in reliable connectivity, cybersecurity, employee training, customer education, alternative procedures and accessible human support.

Every digital service should have a recovery process. Employees should know what to do during system interruptions, customers should be kept informed and managers should investigate why customers are repeatedly forced to escalate their concerns.

Organisations must also measure more than application downloads or the number of transactions processed. They should consider successful completion rates, customer effort, resolution time, failed interactions, repeat complaints and access to support.

Digital transformation should make services faster, simpler and more inclusive. It should not make organisations more distant or customers more powerless.

Zambia is becoming more digital. The important question is whether organisations are using technology to improve the customer's experience or simply placing a digital layer over existing service problems.