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Additionally , four in five ( 81 %) respondents believe that their focus on redefining the customer experience will grow over the next five years .
CIOs should innovate to build agile and adaptable infrastructures which unearth hidden insights in the digital customer journey to empower closer customer connections . As IT leaders , they have the technical expertise to interpret customer engagement data and unearth hidden insights to improve the customer experience , optimise operations and achieve their business objectives .
To deliver the digital experience , businesses should overhaul their infrastructure and leverage evolving technologies to interrogate the end-to-end digital customer journey .
We caught up with Toby Alcock , CTO of Logicalis , to glean some further insight on the changing role of the CIO and how the demands of the modern consumer impact the C-suite .
How is the role of the CIO evolving to prioritise innovation across an organisation ?
The pandemic has driven customer engagements increasingly online , with PwC ’ s June 2021 Global Digital Pulse survey , finding that more than half of global consumers have become more digital in the last 12 months . As customers become increasingly digitised , CIOs are moving away from the day-to-day management of IT and towards customer-centricity . According to Logicalis ’ Global CIO Survey 2021 , 73 % of CIOs state the importance of the customer experience has increased and this isn ’ t expected to slow down anytime soon .
Customer experience is intricately linked to Digital Transformation and innovation , with three-quarters ( 79 %) of CIOs now spending more time on innovation . CIOs understand that they need to take their place in the driver ’ s seat and steer the technology strategy towards an adaptable future .
Why do you think there ’ s been a notable shift in the CIO role in the last 12 months , in particular ?
Lockdown created a new generation of digital consumers driven by both caution over public health concerns and , increasingly , more introverted attitudes . Customers now make more purchases online and even prefer to avoid direct calls with sales representatives . A recent Gartner report predicts that 80 % of all B2B sales interactions between suppliers and buyers will be online by 2025 .
Toby Alcock , CTO of Logicalis
Toby Alcock , CTO of Logicalis , said : “ Digital experience has become one of , if not the most , important way to reach , connect and communicate with customers in the new digital age . The ability to provide an optimal digital experience will determine the future of an organisation . To deliver the digital experience , businesses should overhaul their infrastructure and leverage evolving technologies to interrogate the end-to-end digital customer journey . By being in closer proximity to customers , CIOs can ensure they can keep up with the needs and demands of the modern customer .”
These shifts in buying behaviours have left companies facing new challenges when engaging with consumers . As agents of change , CIOs have had to collaborate with the broader executive team to support the upgrade of all customer interactions . CIOs have had to showcase the importance of agility and encourage the business to embrace digital in the fight to capture and keep consumers ’ attention .
What are some of the needs and demands of the modern customer and how is the C-suite meeting them ?
Customers now expect their digital interactions with businesses to be as sophisticated as their in-person interactions . Over the lockdown period , many
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