September 26, 2019

Eighty-two percent are in the midst of digital transformation, but pressure to quickly execute change results in CX errors for many brands

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., September 26, 2019 – With #CXDay approaching, Cyara and the Customer Experience Professionals Association (CXPA) have published a report—IT and CX Collaboration in Delivering a Great Customer Experience—that surveyed hundreds of customer experience (CX) and IT/digital professionals to understand how the CX team, which defines the business requirements, and the IT/digital team, which determines how technology can deliver those requirements, can better collaborate to deliver a great customer experience.

“Successful businesses win by delivering exceptional customer experiences across all channels. This requires deployment of advanced customer-facing technologies and then continually innovating these systems to stay ahead. So it’s vital that business and IT teams collaborate effectively,” said Linda Chen, CMO at Cyara. “This report provides useful guidance for enterprises looking to meld the vision of their CX team with the technical expertise of their technical team.”

“Our CXPA members are passionate about delivering great CX, and it’s encouraging to see from the survey that those with more experience are gaining traction and delivering stronger results,” said Diane Magers, CCXP and CXPA board member. “It’s especially noteworthy that an overwhelming majority of CX professionals are more likely to report that their teams have a common view of customer journeys—including digital—and are realizing the benefits of forging strong collaborative bounds with IT professionals.”

Key findings of the report include:

1. Digital transformation is mainstream and is data-driven
   
   Many organizations are undertaking digital transformation initiatives to overcome disruption caused by new competitors, as well as the change in expectations from customers. The survey found that 82 percent of respondents are in the midst of some form of digital transformation initiative. Respondents noted the focal point for these digital transformation initiatives is the customer experiences. Encouragingly, 60 percent of the more than 350 respondents report that they are grounding their digital transformation initiatives in customer input to a high degree. However, almost one-fifth of them said that their digital transformation initiatives were not driven by customer data, but rather were based on executive direction or best practices.
2. Experience and maturity contribute to digital success
   
   Not surprisingly, those organizations that have more maturity and capabilities in CX are able to deliver a better experience for their customers. Interestingly, as organizations evolve in their CX maturity, the challenges they face change also evolve. CX veterans say their top challenge is pressure to execute quickly on their digital transformation goals, whereas CX newbies are focused on more basics such as getting their initiatives funded. CX veterans are 87 percent more likely to strongly agree that “Our IT and business teams have a common view of customer journeys, and effectively manage the experiences within those customer journeys.”
3. Speed causes mistakes or poorly designed CX
   Fifty-eight percent of respondents reported that “Pressure to execute quickly has resulted in errors or poorly designed CX in my organization.” The need for speed is generally driven by rapidly changing customer expectations as well as competitive pressure. Two of the respondents’ best-practice advice included: (1) collaborate early and often to reduce development cycles; and (2) employ DevOps tools for greater speed and quality.
4. Collaboration is key for CX success
   When asked to describe the quality of inter-department collaboration, most respondents report having a solid working relationship with their peers in IT. However, 92 percent reported that the relationships have been affected by poor collaboration associated with various challenges and disappointments, including creating inferior experience, missed deadlines, and failing to match to original project specifications. Worse, one in five organizations reported that executives had left the organization as a result of poor collaboration.

Businesses across industries and across the globe are all facing the need to digitally transform. This need is driven by the twin pressures of new and potentially digital-first competition and heightened customer expectations. To succeed in this environment requires both business acumen and deep knowledge of the technological possibilities. Now, more than ever, it is imperative that CX and business teams collaborate effectively with IT and digital teams to design and deliver the outstanding, differentiated customer experiences that will delight customers and keep competitors—new and old—at bay.

For more information:

• Download the report and its recommendations
• Join the community discussions on the #CXDay home page

About Cyara
As the world’s leading CX Assurance platform provider, Cyara accelerates the delivery of flawless customer journeys across digital and voice channels while reducing the risk of customer-facing defects. Every day, the most recognizable brands in the world trust the Cyara Platform to deliver customer smiles at scale. For more information, please visit cyara.com.