How Do We Elevate Customer Experience (CX)?

Elite customer experience (CX) is all about understanding and meeting customer needs with seamless, personalized interactions across all touchpoints. Technology, especially AI, can play a pivotal role in elevating CX, by enabling real-time data analysis to anticipate customer preferences and deliver tailored recommendations. Machine learning algorithms have the potential to optimize the customer journey, identifying areas of focus and improving user engagement.

We asked three specialists from NTT DATA, Inc. to give us their thoughts on how they deliver the best CX.

Lisa Woodley, VP of Design for Launch by NTT DATA

In the rapidly evolving landscape of technology, it's common to rush into solutions and then find problems to fit them, often resulting in costly investments that miss the mark. However, by shifting our focus to prioritize CX, we can avoid this trap.

Elevating CX entails recognizing that every problem to be solved ultimately boils down to enhancing the customer experience. Whether the aim is to cut costs or boost profits, the underlying goal remains the same: how can we minimize the cost of service and increase customer spending? While there may be numerous technical solutions available, the key lies in starting from the right perspective—the customer's perspective.

By comprehending the customer journey and evaluating the impact of each decision on that journey, we can pinpoint the most suitable technology solution. Making CX the cornerstone of all business and technology decisions not only ensures that we select the right set of solutions, but also enables us to demonstrate the true business return on investment (ROI) of any endeavors.

Maarten Copini, Customer Experience GTM Director Europe, NTT DATA, Inc.

Elevating customer experience involves prioritizing employee experience as well as investing in AI-led capabilities. For our Global Customer Experience Report, we interviewed decision makers in nearly 1,400 organizations in 25 countries, and asked them about their top priorities and about the state of their CX.

With the shift to hybrid working, the emphasis on employee experience (EX) has increased significantly. EX has emerged as a top C-suite priority, with the spotlight on technologies that enable and empower employees and raise efficiency. EX goals have been redefined beyond employee wellbeing: the primary objective now is to engage and enable all employees with the right tools, no matter their location, in order to optimize productivity and drive CX.

Additionally, AI is surging and automation is set to revolutionize the entire spectrum of CX. Organizations continue to invest in building AI capabilities to enhance their CX and differentiate themselves in the market. Top performers are already seeing increased customer satisfaction and loyalty as a result of their AI-investments. Organizations that are late to the game are at risk of being left behind: “AI or Goodbye!”

Philippe Urbain, Vice President GTM Digital Workplace and CX, Europe, NTT DATA, Inc.

One of the main factors that influence CX is the generational shift. Millennials and Gen Z, who are the buying potential for the coming 30 to 40 years, have different values, needs, and expectations to the older generations. They grew up with the internet, smartphones, and social media, and are accustomed to having access to information, entertainment, and communication anytime and anywhere. They want CX to be convenient, fast, easy, personalized, relevant, engaging, consistent, reliable, and trustworthy.

To meet their expectations, brands need to adopt a multichannel and AI-driven approach to CX. Using AI, brands can automate repetitive and mundane tasks, such as routing, identification, verification, and information retrieval, and reduce wait times and errors. They can leverage the data they collect to generate insights and predictions, and offer customized and proactive solutions and recommendations. They can also use AI to create natural and human-like interactions, such as using natural language generation, sentiment analysis, and emotion detection. Artificial intelligence allows brands to provide consistency, reliability, and trustworthiness for customers—AI makes it possible to monitor and improve the quality and performance of the CX processes and outcomes, and detect and resolve issues and anomalies. It can also enhance the security and privacy of customer data and transactions, and comply with relevant regulations and standards.