Foreword

Everything you should know about transforming into a cognitive enterprise

Businesses are moving forward on the road to digital transformation. They are learning to adapt to modern technology for improved last mile connectivity with customers, partners and employees.

These modern or cognitive technologies, viz., Artificial Intelligence (AI), advanced analytics, Internet of Things (IoT), blockchain and 5G, along with automation are reshaping their business architecture, providing a seamless experience through innovation and also helping brands build trust.

A National Association of Software and Services Companies (Nasscom) survey of 100 CEOs stated that AI and data would be the game changers for businesses. Furthermore, advanced analytics and AI were the No. 1 priority for over 50% of the CEOs, besides hybrid cloud and cyber security.

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Becoming a Cognitive Enterprise

In a contributed article featured in the January 2021 issue of CX Insights, one of the emerging trends identified for 2021 was “The Cognitive Contact Center Movement.” As explained in the piece, COVID-19 was a catalyst in accelerating the movement toward the Cognitive Contact Center, and for many reasons. Customers and contact center agents were both affected by the pandemic, forcing companies to adjust things like their channel strategies, workflows, customer journey designs, self-service offerings, automation, and the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI), just to name a few. It was further explained that the Cognitive Contact Center is indeed forcing the customer experience (CX) industry to re-imagine the journey, all with the goal of producing a better agent experience and, ultimately, a more “personalized” experience for customers. With the increased adoption of AI, natural language processing (NLP), machine learning, and sentiment analysis, all signs point to this movement as the start of a trend.

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How design can elevate strategy and performance

In a world full of disruption, approaches that have been the bedrock of strategies no longer provide complete answers. Historical data and inside-out analysis can’t be extrapolated with the same certainty. And entire industries have been reshaped so dramatically that the competitive landscape remains frustratingly fluid, raising a question: to stay relevant, where should companies focus?

To solve these new challenges, companies need new approaches to strategy. Design—and design thinking—is uniquely suited to complement traditional strategy, filling in factual gaps with a user-centric perspective that can help organizations rebound from downturns and improve performance over the long term. Our research has shown that companies that bring design thinking and design leaders into strategic planning generate significantly higher returns for shareholders while enabling their organizations to proceed with greater confidence in the face of shifting landscapes.

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A complete guide to the design thinking process

How many projects have you worked on that stalled because your team couldn’t align on the best path forward? How many more got shelved because they didn’t meet user needs or expectations? And how many got delayed in rounds and rounds of never-ending feedback?

Thankfully, you don’t have to keep repeating those experiences month after month. The (not so) secret weapon: design thinking.

Design thinking gives teams a new way to approach their projects and overcome some of those well-known challenges. It can help teams understand their users’ needs and challenges, then apply those learnings to solve problems in a creative, innovative way. Understanding design thinking can transform your team’s problem-solving approach — and how you work together.

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