CEM2023: Telcos and Insurance Companies Celebrate in the International Customer Experience Management Benchmark

Based on CEM Benchmark, the international study of the current state of customer experience management, hotel chain Sokos Hotels is this year's leading organisation investing in customer experiences. Last year's number one, telecom and digital service provider Elisa came second, and insurance company Fennia finished third.

  • 119 Responses
  • 103 Organisations
  • 30+ Industries
  • 51 Index

Top organisations 2023

See 2021 results

Results

Half of the organisations that responded to the survey reach the second level of maturity in customer experience management in the international benchmark.

This year, two (2%) of the respondent organisations reached the top maturity level for the overall score (Visionary). A quarter (25%) of the respondents  (2021: 25%) reached the second highest level (Executive).

Half (50%) of the respondent organisations reached the second lowest level (Apprentice) (2021: 54%) and now, no less than 22% remain at the lowest (Survivor) level (2021: 15%). On average, the overall Shirute Customer Experience Management Index(R) for organisations this year is 51 (scale 0-100) according to the international study results (2021: 54).

Based on the survey, organisations still have strong faith in their own successes in customer encounters.

A total of 65% (2021: 70%) of respondents believe they offer better customer experiences than their competitors. The goals set by the organisations are high. More than eight out of ten (86%) (2021: 85%) want to differentiate themselves from other competitors in their industry by developing customer experiences, but only 15% aim for pioneering across industries (2021: 21%).

Investments made in customer experience management are visible in concrete business figures.

Another 65% of the respondents feel that the activities related to customer experience management have had a positive impact on the results of their organisation also during the past year (2021: 67%, 2020: 78%).

The organisations that responded to the survey have recognised the strategic importance of customer experience management in their business.

A total of 92% of organisations say that customer thinking can be found in their strategy (2021: 90%). This time, only 58% of the respondent organisations have defined CX among their main strategic goals (2021: 67%).

More than half have a dedicated budget for customer experience management, and many are now planning to increase their investments again.

More than half of the organisations (63%) have or are considering a dedicated budget for customer experience management (2021: 60%). A tenth (10%) of the respondent organisations is planning to have a dedicated budget for CX development. The corresponding figure is at the same level in Finland (2023: 10% vs 9%/ 2021: 13% vs 8%). All in all, 53% of respondent organisations have a dedicated budget (2021: 48%), which corresponds to the level set before the Covid years.

Six out of ten (61%) say the their organisation plans to invest more in CX development projects in the next 12 months (2021: 67% / 2020: 71%). In Finland, the share has dropped to the same level (2023: 60%/ 2021: 67%, 2020: 75%). On the international level, a good fifth (22%) plan to invest considerably more in the next 12 months, whereas 20% in Finland say they will (2021: 25% vs 25%, 2020: 30% vs 32%).

The amount of CX development projects is on the rise again.

As many as 74% of respondents report that their organisations are currently working on a lot of projects to develop customer experiences (2021: 69%, 2020: 82%). At the Finnish level, the corresponding number has increased to 77% (2021: 73%, 2020: 87%).

According to 53% of respondents, CX development is carried out in a coordinated manner (2021: 45%, 2020: 57%). However, more than three out of ten (31%) of the respondent organisations have not appointed a CX leader responsible for the development of CX (2021: 24%, 2020: 25%).

The share of teams specifically appointed for the development of customer experiences has increased.

Most commonly, CX teams consist of 1 to 2 full-time CX developers. Currently, this is the case in almost a third (29%) of organisations (2021: 22%). Similarly to last year, 18% (2021: 19%) of organisations have teams of 3-5 employees. Now more than a quarter (26%) (2021: 18%) have 6 or more employees in CX development roles.

Almost seven out of ten respondent organisations (68%) have a unit or team responsible for developing customer experiences (2021: 65%, 2020: 77%).

CEM Benchmark International 2023 (TOP 10):

1. Sokos Hotels

2. Elisa

3. Fennia

4. DNA

4. Verkkokauppa.com

6. Elo

7. Pohjola Vakuutus

8. Fortum

8. Gjensidige

8. Port of Helsinki

8. Vaisala

About this study

ABOUT THIS STUDY

The CEM 2021 Benchmark is the most comprehensive international study evaluating the CEM capabilities and competences of organisations around the world. CXPA Finland and Shirute have been studying the current state of CEM in Finland since 2013. This study was originally based on research conducted in the U.S. by Temkin Group.

The participating organisations were evaluated against the Shirute Customer Experience Management Index™ to understand the level of CEM maturity internationally.

This index measures, e.g. how systematic and goal-oriented the activities are, how well the respondents are organising themselves, how much they co-ordinate their various CX development projects, how customer experiences are measured, and how much they invest or plan to invest in customer experience management.

It is important to notice that the index evaluates only how systematic the intentions of the participants are, as reported by themselves. It does not take a stand as to the content of the customer experiences, nor their quality from the point of view of customers, i.e. the results of the CEM activities. This aspect can be measured with other indexes that are based on exercises such as focus group interviews, customer journey mapping etc. Or try one of our CEM Audits to receive our expert opinion on your skills in various CEM competency areas.

HOW THIS STUDY WAS CONDUCTED

The data was gathered through an online form and phone interviews in May-December.

The target group consisted of top 500 companies, public administration and the most famous brands. Altogether, 119 CX professionals from 103 organisations from different industries participated. Almost a third (29%) of these organisations average a turnover of more than 100 million euros and nearly half (44%) over 20 million. A good third (35%) have over 1 000 employees.

The study consists of about 20 questions answered by customer experience management practitioners. Based on their answers, they are scored against the Shirute Customer Experience Management Index™. The index evaluates five areas related to customer experience management:

  1. Scope
  2. Organisation and governance
  3. Culture
  4. Processes
  5. Tools

The overall index score is based on the average points the organisation scores for sub-indexes in each of these categories.

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Please read the press release related to this study. If you would like more detailed information, you can buy our full report.

You can read more about CEM Benchmark on our website. We can also provide you with a deeper analysis of your results. If you need an expert view on your current state, we can audit your CEM practices in different capability areas and help you kick-started to the next level.

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Sirte Pihlaja
Sirte Pihlaja
CEO, CCXP
TRAINED LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® FACILITATOR
+358 50 5700 190

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    CXPA Finland is the local networking team of the global Customer Experience Professionals Association (CXPA) in Finland. We want to help organisations provide great customer experiences to build their success.We organise events with different CX/EX themes on a regular basis.
    Shirute is the first Customer Experience Agency in Finland. Customer Experience Path® is a registered trademark of Shirute. We are one of the founding members of the global Customer Experience Professionals Association.
    Surveypal delivers enterprise-class feedback management and survey software as an integrated or stand-alone online service. Designed for companies of any size, Surveypal allows businesses to collect, analyze and share critical feedback information and turn it into actionable insights.


    Customer Experience Magazine is the online magazine packed full of industry news, blogs, features, reports, case studies, video bites and international stories all focusing on customer experience.
    CX Network is the online community for global customer experience, service, insight and marketing professionals who are leveraging customer management strategies to increase customer acquisition and loyalty, whilst driving increased profits across the entire organization.
    Women in CX is the world’s first membership community for Women in Customer Experience and Technology. Our mission is to bring women in Customer Experience and Technology from across the globe together to network, overcome shared challenges and amplify their voices.