The Rise of Guest-Focused IT

Hope Dorman 3 min

We’re hurtling toward the end of the year and the developments keep coming. Salesforce brought Agentforce to GA, Sierra’s latest funding round earned the company a $4.5 billion valuation, and Microsoft is migrating enterprise customers to its Customer Service Workspace to better integrate with Copilot.

For
CX leaders, it’s clear that you’ll need to form good relationships with your IT team as you implement these tools. It’s even better if you can get them on board to shift to a “guest-focused” IT team.

Tune In

Upcoming Webinar:
“Intro to AI Agents: How they work with your
CX team”

Thursday, November 14
11 AM Pacific/2 PM Eastern

Kustomer’s 2024 AI and Customer Support Index, based on insights from 1,200 U.S. consumers, found that 79% believe the human touch is essential in customer service—which we champion through our human-in-the-loop model.

Tune in to our live webinar where we will explore how Kustomer’s unique approach empowers your support team to collaborate with AI Agents while still delivering that human connection with your customers.

See Kustomer’s AI Agents in action across voice, chat, email, and SMS, and gain practical insights to optimize your support operations.

RSVP Now!

CX Insights

CX is not a vacuum - every part of the company is responsible for the customer experience in some way. With more and more AI-powered CX tools coming onto the scene, IT is playing an increasingly bigger role in your workflow.

CX Dive profiles how Richard del Valle, CIO of Bojangles, handles seemingly conflicting goals - balancing the high-touch Southern hospitality service experience with the efficiency of a fast-food joint. Del Valle took this on by shifting his team’s focus “from an infrastructure-focused IT team to a guest-focused IT team.”

He talks about how
CX technology is “integral to service delivery” but acknowledges that it can risk losing the soul of the brand. Here’s how del Valle has struck the balance of tech and CX:

Gives new tech the name ‘Bo’ to keep brand identity
Makes sure that its drive-through AI voice doesn’t try to sound human
Uses technology where it shines that also aligns with the brand - like minimizing order errors
Uses kiosks to support customer preferences
Reduces the workload on frontline employees so they can deliver a better experience

CX leaders: as you embellish or rework your tech stack, it’s important that you have a clearly defined vision and experience for your brand, and put that lens over all decision-making. AI is inherently artificial, but leaning into that intentionally can help guide your CX tech rollouts.

Research Insights

Keeping on with the partnership of CX and IT, the Foundry State of CIO report has some notable stats for CX leaders: 51% of IT leaders expect to increase their involvement in customer experience in the next 12 months, and 80% of CIOs say that they will be more involved in AI/machine learning over the next year.

Here are 3 ways that CX leaders and IT leaders can work together effectively on these shared initiatives:

Align on Business Outcomes: Start by defining clear, shared goals that link CX initiatives to tangible business outcomes, such as increased customer satisfaction, improved response times, or enhanced personalization. Then, pair those with IT initiatives.

Foster Open Communication Channels: Establish a common language and shared understanding, so technical requirements and CX expectations are well-integrated, making it easier to prioritize tasks and resolve issues swiftly.

Invest in Scalable, AI-Driven Solutions: Both teams should evaluate AI and machine learning tools that can adapt to customer needs while streamlining backend processes. Don’t just throw Generative AI at it - it might not be the best tool. By selecting versatile platforms that cater to both immediate and future requirements, CX and IT leaders can create a sustainable tech stack that evolves with customer expectations and operational demands.

Interview Insights

How does the largest driving school in the U.S. balance growing their territory while building essential trust with parents and teen drivers?

Charles Sustaita, the Director of Customer Support at Coastline Academy, says, “We don't want to feel like the largest driving school in the country… we want this sort of like ‘bakery feel’, right?”

We spoke with
Sustaita about how he has balanced high-quality customer service amidst Coastline’s business growth. It boils down to:

Specialize agents - lean on specialists, not generalists
Choose the right channels
- be where your customers are, not where you think you should be
Be proactive with customer-self service - answer common questions front and center
Invest in CX tech - know where your weak spots are and get tools to address them

Get the whole story of their growth-minded CX tactics here.