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On February 26th 2025, a CCMA Connect event, supported by Odigo, took place at the stunning Goldman Sachs' offices in London. For the occasion, contact centre leaders from across the UK gathered to discuss what makes great CX in today's world.
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In an era of economic challenges, with rising customer expectations and diminishing patience, contact centre experts from various industries came together to exchange ideas on the future of customer experience (CX). The event provided ample opportunities for leaders from diverse brands to share their front-line experiences in open discussions, uncovering common challenges currently shaping the industry.
So, what are the biggest CX challenges today, and what does it take to deliver exceptional CX in this environment?
The current economic climate is undeniably impacting customer service. While inflation has decreased from its peak of 11% in 2022, it remains well above the Bank of England’s target of 2%, with projections suggesting another increase in 2025. There’s a palpable strain between consumers, businesses, employers, and employees, with high interest rates persisting alongside changes to the minimum and living wage and national insurance.
In this environment, everyone—whether consumers, brands, or employers—is striving to get more value for their money. Customers are scrutinising their spending, while businesses face the challenge of balancing cost-efficiency with high-quality service. Adapting CX strategies has thus become not just a competitive advantage but a necessity. These considerations hold particular significance as businesses seek ways to refine their approach in response to evolving customer expectations.
Customers are increasingly evaluating the true value they receive from brands. Gone are the days when efficiency alone sufficed—today, meaningful engagement is just as crucial as speed. Customers now expect interactions that are quick yet personal, convenient yet thoughtful.
Several leaders emphasised the importance of moving beyond one-off, transactional interactions towards more relationship-driven engagement. This shift requires a deeper understanding of customer journeys and the ability to respond with both empathy and relevance. In some industries, customer service representatives are taking on roles more akin to account managers, focusing on solving customer pain points from start to finish, which helps reduce the number of internal hand-offs.
Processes and technology are key to enabling this shift. Contact centres can leverage AI-powered tools, such as natural language understanding, sentiment analysis, and real-time feedback, to gain deeper insights into customer needs. By equipping agents with these insights, businesses can deliver more personalised, value-driven interactions—strengthening customer relationships while maintaining efficiency.
The economic pressures of today have heightened the emotional complexity of customer interactions. As living costs rise, many customers are struggling to meet basic needs, such as paying utility bills, making them more sensitive and emotionally charged during service interactions—especially in certain industries.
Great CX in this environment demands a human touch. Training teams to recognise and respond to customer emotions is essential—not just for improving service but for strengthening relationships and using agent time effectively.
With limited budgets and resources, businesses must work smarter, not harder. Intelligent routing, sentiment-based prioritisation, and AI-driven escalation can help brands direct vulnerable or high-priority customers to the right support more quickly. By blending human empathy with smart automation, businesses can enhance customer service while controlling costs.
A key takeaway from the event was the growing recognition among experts that CX teams are not just an operational cost—they are a significant driver of business value.
CX directly influences customer retention, advocacy, and long-term revenue generation. Skilled, empathetic agents, equipped with the right tools and insights, can increase customer lifetime value and reduce churn. Demonstrating the financial impact of your CX department by clearly measuring its economic value is crucial for securing investment and reinforcing its strategic importance.
For deeper insights into how AI-driven tools and data strategies can enhance CX performance and deliver measurable business outcomes, explore reports like Understanding the ROI of AI in Customer Service.
Odigo Quality Monitoring provides contact centres with a powerful tool to deliver high-quality customer experiences while supporting team development. Through the latest technological innovations such as AI, Odigo transforms quality monitoring into a strategic lever, meeting consumer expectations and ensuring lasting employee engagement.
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