End of legacy dependence: Why African contact centres must take back control

Henry Mc Cracken, CEO, Smartz Solutions.

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The recent announcement to impose a minimum commitment of seats by legacy providers was a wake-up call for the entire African contact centre industry. Businesses that have spent years building customer engagement strategies around legacy platforms are now being forced to rethink their technology foundations. But this shift was inevitable.

For too long, African businesses have been locked into a cycle of dependency on legacy technology providers. The narrative was always the same – stick with established platforms for “stability” and “reliability”. The reality, however, is that legacy dependence has become a strategic liability. It’s slowing down innovation, limiting flexibility and driving up costs.

This moment isn’t just about one provider’s decision. It’s about the need for African businesses to reclaim control of their technology strategy. This is the opportunity to break free from legacy constraints and adopt future-ready solutions that are designed for Africa’s unique business environment. Here’s how you can do it.

Legacy platforms have been a financial and operational burden for African businesses for years. The idea was that committing to these platforms would provide stability and technological innovation. But that’s not what happened.

One of the most immediate challenges for African businesses relying on global providers is cost, particularly the impact of currency fluctuations.

Most legacy platforms operate on USD-based contracts. This means that African businesses are at the mercy of fluctuating exchange rates. A single swing in the exchange rate can drive up operational costs overnight, making financial planning nearly impossible.

Smartz Solutions eliminates this problem with regional-based pricing. No more unpredictable costs, no more sudden price hikes – just consistent, transparent pricing aligned to the realities of the local market.

Modern customer expectations demand flexibility – omnichannel support, fast response times and personalised engagement across multiple platforms. Legacy platforms weren’t built for this level of complexity.

Most legacy systems are still designed around voice-first models, with digital channels like WhatsApp and live chat added as afterthoughts. This results in disconnected customer journeys, slow resolution times and frustrated customers.

Smartz Solutions was built with omnichannel communication at its core. Voice, e-mail, social media and messaging platforms like WhatsApp are integrated into a single platform, giving businesses the ability to provide a seamless, personalised customer experience.

Legacy platforms are notoriously slow to evolve. Rolling out a new feature or adding a new channel often requires months of development work and expensive professional services. Worse, some providers restrict innovation entirely by offering a limited set of APIs and making customisation nearly impossible.

This is where Smartz Solutions stands apart. Its platform was built with modularity and flexibility at its core. Adding a new channel or adapting to a new customer engagement trend doesn’t require a six-month roadmap and a hefty consulting fee. It’s part of how the platform works.

Legacy providers thrive on rigid, long-term contracts that limit a business’s ability to adapt to market changes.

Contact centres often find themselves locked into expensive agreements that make it difficult to scale down capacity or change providers without incurring heavy penalties.

Smartz Solutions doesn’t believe in holding businesses hostage. Its contracts are designed to be flexible, allowing businesses to adjust capacity, add new features or even shift from cloud to on-premises without financial penalties or technical hurdles.

When Smartz Solutions was built, it set out to fix the very problems it had seen for years in the industry. The company's leadership team has decades of experience working with legacy platforms. Smartz Solutions has seen how they operate, where they fail and how they limit business growth. Smartz Solutions was designed specifically to address these issues head-on:

• No minimum seat requirement – Whether you have 20 agents or 2 000, Smartz Solutions is built to scale with your business, not dictate your growth strategy.
• Regional-based pricing – Say goodbye to the volatility of legacy pricing. The company's solutions are priced region-based, providing cost stability and predictability.
• Flexible cloud and on-premises options – Cloud migration should be a choice, not a requirement. Smartz Solutions supports cloud, on-premises and hybrid models, allowing businesses to scale and transition at their own pace.
• Omnichannel excellence – Unlike legacy platforms, Smartz was built for omnichannel from the ground up. Voice, e-mail, WhatsApp and social media channels are all integrated into a single platform, providing a seamless customer experience.
• Proven success – In just the past 18 months, Smartz Solutions has successfully replaced Avaya and other legacy contact centres in major South African contact centres, delivering better performance, reduced costs and greater flexibility.

This moment is bigger than a single provider’s announcement. It’s a signal that the industry is shifting and African businesses need to adapt.

Smartz Solutions provides a reliable, flexible and future-ready alternative – one that puts your business first. No restrictive contracts. No unpredictable costs. No complicated integrations. Just a platform that works, on your terms.

If legacy providers are willing to walk away from African businesses, why should African businesses stay loyal to them?

It’s time to take back control.