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CX Files

CX Files

Di: Mark Hillary and Peter Ryan
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CX Files features your hosts, CX industry analysts Mark Hillary and Peter Ryan, speaking each week to leading analysts, thinkers, and practitioners focused on managing the Customer Experience (CX). In each episode Mark and Peter talk to their guests about the future of CX, the important trends, and what customers really expect from brands today.(C) IT Decisions and Carnaby Content 2018-2026 Economia Gestione e leadership Management
Episodi
  • John Callachan - GoFusion - Why Customer Resolution Matters More Than Cost Reduction

    John Callachan - GoFusion - Why Customer Resolution Matters More Than Cost Reduction
    Oct 29 2026
    CX Files Episode 437: John Callachan – Why Customer Resolution Matters More Than Cost Reduction Guest: John Callachan, Director, GoFusion, UK Hosts: Mark Hillary and Peter Ryan Published: 29 October 2026 Episode Summary Is the customer experience industry becoming too focused on reducing costs and avoiding customer interactions rather than actually solving problems? In episode 437 of the CX Files, Peter Ryan talks to John Callachan, Director of GoFusion, a UK-based business transformation advisory company. Drawing on decades of experience in Business Process Management, outsourcing, and business leadership, John challenges several assumptions about how customer experience should be delivered. John argues that businesses have become obsessed with offering more contact channels, introducing automation, and reducing the cost of customer interactions. But these investments can be counterproductive when they fail to address what customers actually want: recognition, empathy, and a resolution to their problem. The conversation also explores how automation is transforming the role of contact centre agents, why companies need to rethink training and compensation, and why the relentless pursuit of cheaper outsourcing may ultimately damage customer relationships. Key Topics Discussed 1. More contact channels don't necessarily create better CX John challenges the assumption that customers need access to every possible communication channel. Offering telephone, email, chat, and social media support is meaningless if the channels operate independently. Companies should design connected customer journeys around how people want to interact, rather than simply adding more channels. 2. Customer resolution versus contact deflection Too many organisations use technology primarily to deflect interactions and reduce costs. John argues that unresolved problems inevitably return, creating additional contacts, increasing costs, and damaging customer loyalty. The objective should be resolving the customer's problem, not simply removing an interaction from the contact centre. 3. Customer experience is a long-term investment Companies that build their entire business around customer needs can create sustainable competitive advantages. John highlights examples from the UK energy and travel markets to illustrate why customer-centric businesses can outperform competitors over time. 4. Automation is making human customer service more demanding As AI and self-service technology handle routine enquiries, human agents are increasingly left dealing with complex complaints, disputes, vulnerable customers, and situations requiring genuine empathy. The industry is removing the simpler tasks without fully recognising how demanding the remaining work has become. 5. Contact centre agents need better pay, training, and career opportunities John argues that the traditional model of treating customer service as a low-skilled, entry-level occupation is increasingly outdated. Agents now require advanced problem-solving abilities, emotional intelligence, and knowledge across several disciplines. Longer training periods, better compensation, career development, and support for mental health are essential. 6. The dangers of outsourcing based primarily on price Despite years of industry discussion about moving beyond labour arbitrage, John observes that outsourcing providers continue to compete by undercutting one another. Clients often treat outsourcing as a commodity purchase, without examining whether the price allows sufficient investment in people, training, and service quality. 7. Outcome-based pricing alone won't fix outsourcing Although outcome-based commercial models are attracting increasing attention, John argues that changing the pricing mechanism cannot resolve the industry's deeper problems. Clients and BPO providers need to develop genuine partnerships that balance commercial performance with long-term investment in people and customer outcomes. The Bigger Question John's central message is that customer experience should not be treated simply as an operational cost that needs to be minimised. Businesses need to reconsider what they measure, how they invest in their employees, and whether outsourcing relationships are genuinely designed to support their customers over the long term. The real measure of successful customer experience isn't how cheaply a company handles an interaction. It's whether the customer gets their problem solved and wants to come back. Connect with John Callachan John is Director of GoFusion, an advisory business helping companies translate strategy and operational transformation into measurable business outcomes. Find John on LinkedIn or visit go-fusion.co.uk to learn more. https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-callachan-7376981/ The CX Files is hosted by Mark Hillary and Peter Ryan, exploring the people, businesses, and ideas shaping the future of customer experience and business process outsourcing.
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    35 min
  • Randy Arellano - AI Is Changing BPO Sales. Relationships Are More Important Than Ever - Ascent Growth Advisors

    Randy Arellano - AI Is Changing BPO Sales. Relationships Are More Important Than Ever - Ascent Growth Advisors
    Oct 22 2026

    CX Files Episode 436 – Randy Arellano, Founder, Ascent Growth Advisors, Dallas, Texas

    AI is changing how companies research and select BPO partners. Buyers can now compare suppliers, investigate locations, and explore solutions long before they speak to a salesperson. So what does this mean for the future of BPO sales?

    In this episode of CX Files, Mark Hillary and Peter Ryan introduce a conversation with Randy Arellano, founder of Ascent Growth Advisors and an experienced BPO sales leader.

    Randy argues that AI is raising the bar for sales professionals. Relationships and personal networks still matter, but they are no longer enough. Buyers need experienced advisers who can challenge assumptions, diagnose problems, understand technology, and recommend solutions that deliver genuine business outcomes.

    The discussion explores several important changes shaping the BPO sales team of the future:

    • AI-informed buyers: Why salespeople need to offer more than information buyers can already discover through ChatGPT or Claude.

    • Consultative selling: Why understanding the customer's real business problem is more valuable than simply offering contact centre capacity.

    • Trust and relationships: How experienced salespeople can challenge assumptions and offer advice that may not always lead to an immediate sale.

    • Better prospect qualification: Why ideal customer profiles and business trigger events matter more than building a large but poorly qualified pipeline.

    • Cross-functional sales teams: Why solutions, operations, pricing, legal, and implementation teams must share responsibility for winning and delivering complex BPO deals.

    • Sales and marketing alignment: How marketing teams can use insights from sales conversations to create evidence-based content that answers the questions buyers are actually asking.

    • The shift to outcomes: Why salespeople must understand AI, automation, and outcome-based commercial models rather than focusing on headcount and traditional pricing.

    Randy also explains why AI could make some previously uneconomic customer service decisions viable, including bringing high-value customer support back onshore.

    The central message is clear: AI may transform the early stages of BPO procurement, but the ability to diagnose problems, build trust, and bring together the right expertise will define the most successful sales teams.

    The sales team of the future will need to be more consultative, more technically fluent, and more closely integrated with the wider business than ever before.

    https://www.linkedin.com/in/randyarellano/
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    32 min
  • Victor Manzanera - Scale Edge Group - Beyond FTEs – The Road to Outcome-Based BPO Pricing

    Victor Manzanera - Scale Edge Group - Beyond FTEs – The Road to Outcome-Based BPO Pricing
    Oct 15 2026
    CX Files Episode 435: Beyond FTEs – The Road to Outcome-Based BPO Pricing Guest: Victor Manzanera, Founder and Principal Analyst, Scale Edge Group – Oslo, Norway Everyone in the BPO industry is talking about outcome-based pricing, but how do we actually move away from charging for headcount and hours? And is the industry ready for such a fundamental change? In this episode of CX Files, Mark Hillary and Peter Ryan explore the challenges of traditional BPO contracts before Mark interviews Victor Manzanera, founder of Scale Edge Group. Victor has just published The Outcome-Based BPO Model, a 33-page report examining how BPO buyers and suppliers can gradually transition from traditional FTE pricing towards contracts that reward genuine business outcomes. Key discussion points include: Evolution, not revolution: Why outcome-based pricing requires a gradual transition rather than an overnight replacement of FTE contracts. Rethinking KPIs: Why traditional performance metrics often have little connection to the business outcomes clients actually want. Sharing the rewards: How gain-sharing agreements and meaningful bonuses can encourage BPOs to improve efficiency, customer retention, and revenue. The AI incentive problem: Why headcount-based contracts can discourage automation and how new commercial models could accelerate AI adoption. Beyond pricing: Why achieving better outcomes may require different agent skills, training, technology, and operating models. Practical next steps: How buyers can start changing their BPO relationship immediately, even without renegotiating their entire contract. Victor argues that the most important change is not simply how BPOs get paid, but how buyers and suppliers define success and work together to achieve it. The central message: Stop buying people and hours. Start building partnerships focused on business results. Victor's report, The Outcome-Based BPO Model, was published by Scale Edge Group on October 14, 2026, and is freely available through Scale Edge Group - link is below. --- https://www.linkedin.com/in/victor-manzanera/ https://www.scaleedgegroup.com/ https://www.scaleedgegroup.com/outcome-based-bpo-model https://www.linkedin.com/posts/scale-edge-group_bpo-outsourcing-cx-activity-7516022738088640513-BHiE Summary & Overview The discussion examined a gradual shift from FTE pricing to outcome-based BPO relationships, including incentives and prerequisites for adoption. Hybrid Transition Victor argued that pricing and performance measurement can evolve separately: companies can keep FTE contracts while aligning KPIs and incentives to business outcomes.Buyers and BPOs need to agree on the company's actual objectives; excessive or conflicting operational KPIs can obscure results and limit BPO ownership. Incentives and Readiness Bonuses tied to outcomes such as efficiency, first-contact resolution, revenue, or reduced churn can reward BPOs for improvements and support AI adoption.Transaction pricing is most viable with reliable volume forecasts, handle-time data, and contractual volume protections. How can companies without these prerequisites create aligned incentives while retaining FTE pricing?
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    41 min
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