The old craftsman’s saying goes “Measure twice, cut once” and if you’ve ever attempted a DIY or home improvement project on the weekend, you’ll know that to be true.
If you are not exactly a handyman, this little saying is one powerful reminder: be sure to check your measurement twice before taking action. When turning on the saw, if you don’t check its alignment, you risk wasting materials, time and money.
The same reasoning holds true for your organization’s Customer Experience (CX) strategy. You can’t execute effectively if you can’t measure accurately.
Why CX Optimization is No Longer Optional
Providing the best possible customer experience is a priority for companies around the globe. Leaders understand that, without a clear, sophisticated Customer Experience Management (CXM) approach, it is difficult to maintain the business goals.
If a seamless, high quality experience isn’t delivered, it has a domino effect that ends up costing you a lot:
- Higher Churn: Poor experiences lead to customer churn, significantly increasing pressure and cost of acquiring new customers.
- Lower Advocacy: When customers aren’t happy, word of mouth marketing comes to a halt, which means that organisations need to invest more resources, and money, into traditional and costly marketing strategies..
Creating a better, omnichannel customer experience, however, is no easy feat. But in the past, data silos and the absence of customer analytics have been obstacles. But the most common challenge that prevents most companies from achieving the same is not technology but the lack of collaboration between departments. Good CX is a cross functional, aligned team effort. However, before your team can get to work, you first need a baseline. You must know where you are at.
Gauging Progress: The Gartner CX Management Maturity Model
Improving your organization’s customer experience is not a fixed point but a continuous journey. The key to mapping out the next step on your roadmap is to have an objective assessment of your current capabilities. To do this, many visionary companies use the Gartner CX Management Maturity Model. This framework enables organisations to:
- Benchmark Objectively: Accurately assess the truth of what you are currently doing in CXM without bias.
- Map the Roadmap: Make sure you have a vision and tactics for your CX transition.
- Align Stakeholders: Help with a productive, data-informed discussion with executives about the business value of leveling up.
The 5 Stages of CX Maturity
The Gartner model takes into account five different levels of maturity for an organisation’s CX health, ranging from fragmented, local initiatives to a fully funded, culturally integrated corporate strategy.
Looking at the statistics, most enterprise companies are in Stage 1 or 2. Where is your organisation?
- Level 1 – Initial (Fragmented): CX activities are reactive, ad hoc and siloed. No single corporate vision or formalized strategy. There is a need for change but lack of executive buy-in.
- Level 2 – Developing (Recognized): An appointed CX leader or VP and operational gaps are identified. There is a lack of alignment within different departments, as well as limited buy-in and funding for a cohesive strategy from the C-suite.
- Level 3 – Defined (Structured): Executive leadership formally outlines a CX vision. The current “as-is” situation is compared with the desired “to-be” situation and individual departments proactively realign their objectives to the overall strategy.
- Level 4 – Managed (Systematized): Customer experience is a key business metric, alongside profitability, and is actively addressed by the executive team. Everyone in the organisation is fully engaged and CX improvement is a repeatable and data-driven system.
- Level 5 – Culture Change (Optimized): CX is ingrained in the company’s DNA. When employees have a customer-first attitude, it comes from within; it is their attitude without the need for special rewards or corporate pressure. Management encourages frontline staff to be innovative and take initiative in developing a self-reliant system of service excellence.
The Bottom Line
Precision is paramount, whether you’re a weekend DIY enthusiast or a CX leader with a company. When you strategically measure, you will maximise your returns from investments, keep your teams on the same page and keep your customers loyal. Today you audit your maturity level and you take the blueprint for success for your program tomorrow. Contact us today for more information.