Teneo.ai
Persona BriefingFor the COO / VP Operations
You are about to be asked to deliver an operating model change that has no historical precedent. Here is what to plan for.
Book a 15-minute ops briefing
THE STAKES
Why this lands on your desk
The Operations Reality
Charter committed to onshore Cox call centers within 18 months. Industry analysts and the labor union both agree publicly: full US relocation at scale is impossible in that timeframe. The path forward is hybrid — and the hybrid path is an operations problem, not a CX problem.
DECISIONS
The five operational decisionsyou have to make
Site strategy.
Where does new US capacity go? Greenfield, existing facilities, or third-party BPO partners onshore? Each has different lead times, real estate exposure and labor pool dynamics.
Workforce planning.
US contact center labor pools are tight in tier-1 metros and have specific wage floors. Tier-2/3 cities offer cost relief but have shallower talent pools. What is your geographic distribution plan?
Technology stack.
Your existing offshore CCaaS configuration was built for a different operating model. Hybrid means routing decisions made in real-time at the IVR layer (this call resolves in AI; that call goes to a US human; that one is sensitive and must go to a US human). That is an architecture problem.
Vendor governance.
Your offshore BPO contracts were structured around volume. Reduced volume on the offshore side without reducing your contractual commitments leaves you paying for capacity you cannot use.
Reporting and audit.
The proposed rules require ongoing reporting to the FCC: percentage offshore, transfer requests, transfer wait times, English proficiency testing results. Your operations data infrastructure has to support this.
FRAMEWORK
How peer operations leadersare routing the calls
The recurring framework looks like this:
Sensitive transactions (passwords, MFA, payments, SSN)
Mandatory US human
Onshore staffing requirement, no flexibility
Routine inquiries (billing, plan changes, basic troubleshooting)
AI-led resolution
Volume reduction = headcount reduction across geographies
Complex / multi-issue / escalations
US human OR offshore human (within cap)
Tier 2 staffing — onshore preferred for the disclosure label
Spanish / non-English language calls
Specialized routing
Open question — FCC has not addressed this clearly yet
Want this walked through with one of our solution architects?
How peer operations leaders are sequencing the response.
BOOK A 15-MINUTE BRIEFING
PLANNING
What to be planningright now
A baseline of your current call mix by category — sensitive vs routine vs complex vs language-other-than-English
A workforce plan that reduces offshore demand by automating the routine and complex-but-resolvable categories — not just cutting headcount
A real estate and BPO partner conversation: how do you scale US capacity for the calls that genuinely need a human?
A vendor contract review: which offshore commitments are flexible enough to reduce volume on, and which lock you in?
A data and reporting layer that can produce the FCC-mandated metrics on demand
PRECEDENT
The Charter precedent — andwhy it matters for you
Charter's public commitment to onshore Cox within 18 months sets a benchmark for the entire industry. Two operational implications:
Talent pool competition.
BPO partner pressure.
TENEO
Where Teneo fitsin the operations conversation
Teneo handles the volume-reduction half of the equation.
We resolve customer interactions in AI — accurately, in the customer's language, integrated with your existing CCaaS — so onshore staffing can stay focused on the calls that genuinely need a human and the sensitive transactions you have no choice on.
Teneo handles the volume-reduction half of the equation.
Onshore staffing can stay focused.
Published outcomes from our deployments include automation.
That is not a deflection story. It is a resolution story.
Your offshore volume reduces.
Your US capacity covers what is left. The disclosure label tells a clean narrative.
Deployment timeline is typically 60 days, which matters when you are working against an 18-month operating model change.
Level 1 support automated
Level 2 support automated
First contact resolution
Operational cost reduction
Typical deployment timeline
Book a 15-Minute Ops Briefing
FCC NPRM 26-16 was adopted on March 26, 2026. Public comments are due May 26, 2026; reply comments are due June 22, 2026. Final rules are expected 12-18 months out and may differ materially from the proposal. This page reflects our reading of the rule as of publication.