Editor's note: As we wind down to the end of 2015, Constellation Research Insights is taking a look back at the year's highlights with perspective from each member of the analyst team. In this installment, we check in with Constellation Research VP and principal analyst Dr. Natalie Petouhoff on 2015's highlights for the customer experience market.
What was the most important trend in customer experience during this year?
Petouhoff: The idea that we are moving closer to getting real about what it takes to deliver customer experience excellence. You see it when you see vendors creating strategic alliances, because they know they can’t build a solution that could do all it needs to in time to be competitive.
What was the most significant piece of research you developed in 2015?
Petouhoff: My report, "Should the Chief Marketing Officer Drive the Whole Customer Experience?" CX is talked about all the time, like it’s as easy to do it as it is to say it. It actually takes a ton of coordination and internal, interdepartmental collaboration and integration, spanning from the web, e-commerce, retail, marketing, sales, service, et cetera.
It's a big job and no one person can do it alone, so the piece calls out this pink elephant in the room and points out the flaws in making assumptions that CX is easy to get right. When a company does, you can see, feel and taste it, and it’s what creates lifetime customer value.
Ed: Petouhoff also wrote a number of blog posts related to this report, which you can read here, here and here.
