Recently, global customer experience (CX) leader Avaya and Forrester Consulting jointly released a groundbreaking research report titled “From Automation to Orchestration: The AI-Powered Future of Customer Experience.” This report provides an in-depth analysis of how artificial intelligence (AI) is reshaping customer experience in contact centers and offers insights into the latest trends and key challenges enterprises face in implementing AI.

The research was conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Avaya through an online survey that covered 415 business decision-makers worldwide. Respondents came from a variety of industries, including technology, commerce, finance, healthcare, government, pharmaceuticals, aviation, travel, and hospitality—ensuring both depth and breadth in the findings.

AI is Transforming the Customer Experience Ecosystem

As global enterprises move toward hyper-personalized services, AI orchestration is fundamentally transforming the customer experience within contact centers. The study found that 52% of business decision-makers prioritize AI as a key tool to improve customer support efficiency. Meanwhile, 42% of respondents believe reducing operational costs and improving customer satisfaction are equally important—highlighting a dual focus on both efficiency and experience optimization when deploying AI.

Additionally, 45% of surveyed companies plan to deploy more advanced AI capabilities in the next 12 months, such as AI orchestration through data analytics tools and customer journey optimization. This indicates that businesses are proactively preparing for AI integration and are committed to continuously enhancing the customer experience as a key driver of customer retention and revenue growth.

Avaya CMO Pete Lavache commented, “Forrester’s research validates a growing market consensus: companies are rapidly embracing AI-driven strategies for business and operations. While there’s broad agreement that excellent customer experiences fuel revenue growth, the real challenge lies in orchestrating these experiences intelligently through diverse AI tools. Avaya is dedicated to empowering customers with flexible decision-making support so they can stay ahead of change and build lasting customer relationships.”

Hyper-Personalized Service Becomes the Core of CX

AI-driven hyper-personalized services are becoming central to modern customer experiences. The research shows that when every customer touchpoint is personalized, loyalty and satisfaction increase significantly, leading to repeat business. Delivering an exceptional customer experience relies on AI’s ability to analyze enterprise data, customer history, and prior interactions within seconds.

The speed at which enterprises adopt AI depends on their strategic goals. The report notes that companies with flexible and scalable technology platforms are better positioned to evolve alongside AI advancements, while balancing customer satisfaction with profitability.

Challenges and Strategies for AI Deployment

Despite the immense potential of AI, businesses still face numerous challenges during the deployment process. The two main concerns among respondents are the high cost of replacing existing technologies (37%) and data security and privacy (35%). These concerns highlight the financial investment required for integrating AI solutions and the importance of protecting sensitive customer information.

Research indicates that 76% of surveyed companies believe that phased implementation of AI is critical for maintaining service quality. Additionally, 72% of businesses emphasize the need for alignment with their corporate AI strategies, 71% prioritize flexible integration with other AI tools, and 59% consider AI compliance tools to be essential.

The data reveals a strong market demand for AI compliance tools. These tools help optimize processes and enhance customer experiences while safeguarding enterprise security—for example, by adhering to industry standards like GDPR and HIPAA, and ensuring data security through encryption and access controls. By combining advanced AI capabilities with strict security protocols, businesses can deliver secure and efficient customer experiences.

AI Technologies in Contact Centers Continue to Drive Industry Transformation

Despite deployment challenges such as high costs and data silos, research confirms that businesses are actively and continuously adopting AI technologies in contact centers to gain competitive advantages and unlock transformational potential—particularly in enhancing customer experience.

"Organizations that can strategically deploy and fully leverage existing AI capabilities while remaining open to new technologies will set new standards for customer engagement and competitive advantage," Lavache added.