The CX discipline is changing, not fading. These were the takeaways from my recent conversations with CX leaders.

We’re four months into 2025, and there has been no shortage of volatility to challenge even the most seasoned CX executives. To stay on course, we recommend keeping a ruthless focus on customers while also balancing disciplined spending, change leadership, and risk management.

An unwritten truth in large organizations is that the only constant is change. But as the US’s largest employer faces widespread transformation, even the most seasoned leaders may find that their usual leadership playbooks no longer apply. As a small resource for those leading teams during this time of big uncertainty, I’ve rounded up Forrester’s […]

This peer discussion focused on takeaways from Forrester's Budget Planning Guide 2025: Customer Experience, and where CX leaders are focusing their efforts and investments for the rest of 2024 and beyond.Key takeaways:Mixed budget expectations - while Forrester's data indicates 40% of CX leaders plan to increase investments above inflation in the next 12 months, attendees had mixed expectations about their budgets.Technology consolidation - several attendees are executing technology consolidation efforts to gain better insights into data, reduce risk, and control costs.Investing in new experiences - some attendees are exploring more advanced CX technology, like journey orchestration platforms, and looking to invest resources in creating new experiences. Focus on core CX technology, like customer feedback management platforms, remains high.

This peer discussion focused on takeaways from Forrester's Budget Planning Guide 2025: Customer Experience, and where CX leaders are focusing their efforts and investments for the rest of 2024 and beyond.Key takeaways:Mixed budget expectations - while Forrester's data indicates 40% of CX leaders plan to increase investments above inflation in the next 12 months, attendees had mixed expectations about their budgets.Technology consolidation - several attendees are executing technology consolidation efforts to gain better insights into data, reduce risk, and control costs.Investing in new experiences - some attendees are exploring more advanced CX technology, like journey orchestration platforms, and looking to invest resources in creating new experiences. Focus on core CX technology, like customer feedback management platforms, remains high.

Getting customer experience back on track will require doubling down on what matters most to customers. Explore a few of our recommendations for 2025.

Customer experience (CX) leaders are cautiously optimistic about their resources as they try to reverse declines in CX quality: 40% plan to increase their overall CX investments above inflation in the next 12 months. To succeed, CX leaders must invest to overhaul core CX competencies — determining what customers need, designing and testing solutions, and delivering products and services — that help their organizations bring their expressions of customer obsession to life in the customer experience. This report provides CX leaders with data-driven guidance on where to increase, decrease, or experiment with their budgets for 2025.

At the heart of most CX roles is change leadership — urging the organization to evolve its thinking and behaviors to achieve their desired level of customer obsession. Read this post to get a preview of how Delta Dental of Virginia's CX leaders drove change and what their three major CX initiatives are today.

Delta Dental of Virginia wanted to establish a customer experience (CX) discipline to maintain and grow its market share. This case study outlines how, in the early days of its CX practice, the company overcame lean budgets and a complex ecosystem by aligning the organization, partnering to unlock quick wins, and investing in essential CX capabilities that were rightsized to its CX budget and objectives.

I’m approaching two years in my role here at Forrester, where I serve as a strategic advisor and thought partner to senior customer experience (CX) leaders. As a long-time CX practitioner and enthusiast, it’s been inspiring to be part of the “extended team” across such a diverse set of brands and industries. While no two […]