Anna is an established customer experience and marketing professional with a proven track record of delivering excellent commercial performance over the 20 years of my career.
I started my career in marketing, planning and driving growth for large corporate organisations across industries such as health insurance, the motor trade, pharmacy and IT. Over the years my passion for marketing sparked an interest in customer behaviour and 6 years ago I moved into the Customer Experience profession.
I now head up the Customer Experience function at Bupa Insurance, aiming to be the world’s most customer centric healthcare organisation.
All helping to achieve our purpose of helping people live longer, healthier and happier lives and making a better world.
The Brewery, London – Tuesday 26th November
REVOLUTIONISE YOUR BUSINESS AT EUROPE’S PREMIER CONFERENCE DEDICATED TO CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT
KEY FACTS
1000+ Attendees
100+ presentations
roundtable sessions
CASE STUDIES, INTERVIEWS & PANEL DISCUSSIONS
1-2-1 MEETINGS
What to expect
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Anna Wilcox
Bupa Head of Customer Experience
Melanie Fischer
Xero Director, Customer Experience - UK & EMEAResults-oriented Director with 20+ years' experience in service excellence and continuous improvement. Expert in defining service excellence strategies that remove customer friction through AI-tooling, automation, and self-solve solutions. Motivational leader of 300+ staff, skilled in aligning global operations with business OKRs and leading Lean/Six Sigma re-engineering initiatives.
Areas of expertise include:
- AI & Technology Strategy: Defines and implements strategies to replace legacy tooling with AI-Assistance interwoven with human assistance.
- Process Innovation: Uses Lean/Six Sigma to simplify workflows and improve resolution speed
- Global Operations Leadership: Leads global teams including outsourced vendor BPO and in-house resolution and escalation teams
- Stakeholder Influence: Experienced C-level advisor and member of UK Leadership teams directly reporting to C-suite
- Quality Assurance and CSAT: Oversees CSAT and AI and Human-agent QA frameworks to drive Customer-Sentiment.
Vanessa Milan
Cambridge University Press & Assessment Head of Voice of the Customer, Global OperationsPassionate about Voice of the Customer and a natural customer advocate, I specialise in engaging internal stakeholders and turning customer insight into strategic improvements that enhance the customer experience across the organisation.
A self-starter with a multidisciplinary approach, I lead the development and execution of the Voice of the Customer programme, strategy, and governance across departments at Cambridge University Press & Assessment.
Karen Stewart
Standard Life Vulnerable Customer Centre of Excellence - Snr ConsultantJoining Standard Life in Q4 2021, Karen has previously supported customers in vulnerable circumstances throughout her career in both retail banking and energy services.
She supports colleagues in embedding Standard Life’s Principles and Standards, support with best practice, internal and external training and upskilling resources and supporting Standard Life Workplace client visits when looking at our vulnerability management.
Karen is active externally in focus groups and forums around vulnerability and is a Vulnerability Champion for the Collaboration Network.
Focused on providing good customer outcomes, Karen has a particular interest in inclusivity and accessibility for customers and colleagues and showcasing the work we do to support our members.
Having experienced vulnerability personally, Karen is passionate about working to remove barriers and helping people get on with living their lives.
Naomi Sweeting
Places for People Director of Customer Research & Insight.png?width=400&name=Ashutosh%20Pandey%20(1).png)
Ashutosh Pandey
Eutelsat Group VP Project Management, Quality and ProcessAshutosh is a leading Global Executive in the New Economy sectors of Space Technology, Satellites and Telecommunications.
As a Transformation and Turnaround Leader, he has successfully delivered multi-dimensional cost intensive sustainable transformations bringing in more than 1 Billion Euro financial savings globally for multiple organisations.
As a Business Process Management (BPM) leader, he successfully led enterprise wide transformation of key end-to-end processes across the organisation, thereby unlocking multi-million cash and generate value via simplification, standardization and ERP consolidation (incl Digital Transformation)
As a Quality Management leader, he led successful end-to-end assessments for International standards like ISO 9001, TL 9000, CMMI, IS 27001, IS 18001, EFQM and set up Corporate ESG and Sustainability management metrics.
He has strong expertise in leading Operations and Program management (incl Global PMO), change management and executing customer transformation using continuous improvement methodologies like Lean, Kaizen, Six Sigma and Hybrid/Agile PM.
He is a Certified Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt (CMBB), ASQ Certified Manager for Quality & Organizational Excellence (CMQ/OE), Certified Process Professional (CPP), ASQ Certified Quality Auditor (CQA), Certified Business Excellence Assessor (CBEA) on EFQM model, Certified Software Quality Analyst (CSQA), Project Management Professional (PMP) and a Fellow Chartered Manager(FCMI) from CMI UK.
Ashutosh is recognised as a cross-industry expert in Business Transformation, Operational Excellence and Lean Six Sigma and he has been a leading panellist and key speaker at multiple international forums globally since 2008.
As a trainer, he has trained 5000+ experts in various continuous improvement methodologies (lean/ kaizen/ six sigma/ design thinking/ agile).
By education, he is a Bachelor of Engineering and also holds a double MBA degree.
Nicola Adcock
Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (dstl) Optimisation LeadNicola Adcock is the newly appointed Optimisation Lead at Dstl, following five successful years as Customer Experience Lead. With over 15 years of experience designing and improving public services, Nicola brings deep expertise in translating user needs into meaningful, system-wide change.
Her work focuses on applying behavioural insights to drive engagement and embed customer-centric thinking across complex, multidisciplinary, publicly-funded environments. In her new role, Nicola will be building on the development of a customer-focused approach by readying services to be able to deliver future impact.
Nicola’s core strengths include:
- Leading customer-facing teams
- Service design
- Embedding KPIs and leveraging data analytics for continuous improvement
- Developing and implementing customer experience strategies
- Coordinating cross-functional activities to drive customer success
Nicola is passionate about using behavioural insights to influence decision-making, foster trust, and drive employee engagement.
Daniel Bunton
Cleo AI Head of Customer SupportAfter experiences in fine dining, sales, and entrepreneurship, he now leads Customer Support at Cleo AI—an AI financial advisor on a mission to whip your finances into shape.
Mark Nichols
Flagstone Head of OperationsMark has extensive experience in client success, experience and operations and is now the Director of Operations at Flagstone.
Helen Luty
Landmark Information Group Head of Customer ExperienceHelen has over 20 years of Customer Service Leadership experience across a variety of B2B and B2C businesses. As Head of Customer Experience for Landmark Information Group, Helen covers service, support and success across a variety of Landmark brands, building and improving processes to ensure Landmark are easy to do business with, that focus on positive outcomes, that seek and learn from feedback and that look to the ever-evolving needs of customers.
Helen’s passion for making a difference, cascades throughout the CX Teams and has resulted in high engagement scores and as we all know…engaged and happy teams mean engaged and happy customers.
Helen has been named in the CXM Stars Top 25 Professionals 2024 and 2025, Was awarded CX Professional of the Year at the UKCXA23, Customer Service Professional at the UK Customer Satisfaction Awards 2023 and her team won Best B2B Customer Experience at UKCXA24 and Best Use of Customer Insight at the Engage Awards 2024.
Marcus Hickman
Davies Hickman DirectorAn insight and data analytics leader, Marcus has spent over 20 years supporting well-known brands to understand and improve customer experience - working directly with senior executives to bring consumer perspectives alive and use them to drive business growth.
His current focus is helping clients navigate the shift to AI in customer experience. Marcus has led an assessment of 37 different vendors of Generative AI and Agentic AI customer experience solutions, giving a good basis for developing individual organisational AI strategies.
This builds on a long track record of shaping industry thinking on CX. Marcus runs Davies Hickman Research, home to one of the longest-running tracker studies of customer contact, The Autonomous Customer, which pioneered omni-channel strategies. Davies Hickman has advised a range of industry bodies including BSI and ISO standards committees for customer experience.
Previously, Marcus worked as Managing Director of futures consulting agency The Henley Centre, part of Kantar. He brings good experience in understanding future change in customer experience.
Jo Davies
Davies Hickman Global Director of Market ResearchJo and Marcus are founders of Davies Hickman Partners, set up in 2007. Responsible for one of the longest-running tracker studies of customer contact – The Autonomous Customer – they are market research advisers to the customer experience and contact centre industry, that includes some of the leading customer service associations. In 2023, Davies Hickman Partners were finalists in the Content Marketing Institute awards for research on AI for CX. Jo is on the BSI and ISO committee responsible for developing Contact centre, Customer service excellence and Complaint handling standards.
Aslesha Nargolkar
Freshworks CX Lead Solutions EngineerI also lead a global webinar program to increase presales scalability for mid-market deals, and mentor and train the wider European team as a Lead CX Solution Engineer. I hold a Master’s degree in Computer Science and Engineering, and two AWS certifications: Solutions Architect and Developer. I have expertise in various programming languages, scripting, web programming, and operating systems, as well as in application design, development, testing, documenting and product support.
Simran Kaur
Freshworks Enterprise Account DirectorMy success is based on an audience-centric approach, value-based selling & relationship building. Whilst I focus on achieving critical business goals.
Curious and ambitious to learn, I have enjoyed the challenge of many different industries, including IT, Research & Advisory, Advanced Manufacturing, Business Services, Energy & SaaS.
Creating a culture of equality & empowerment is very important to me, and I find great fulfillment through my volunteering activities with Khalsa aid and Thrive with mentoring. Amongst other things, my ambition is driven by my desire to be a positive role model to my 2 boys, encouraging them to build careers and lives of purpose and passion.
Jean-Francois Damais
Ipsos Global Chief Research Officer, Customer Experience
Dvir Hoffman
CommBox CEOAs the current CEO of one of the leading AI-based customer service and engagement solutions in our market, Dvir has over two decades of experience in technology innovation and product strategy. Dvir has pioneered several innovations in the realm of CX technologies, guiding them from their inception and transforming them into award-winning global CX and enterprise solutions. His original vision on AI bots that can easily resolve complex inquiries is catalyzing a revolution in the customer experience domain as a way to radically reduce contact center load.
Huw Jones
Verint Director, Solutions Consulting
Sam Phin
Foundever Customer Success Director
Leona Heymerdinguer
Blackhawk Network Director of Customer EngagementWith 19 years of profound expertise in the enterprise market, particularly in the domains of consumer acquisition, retention, loyalty, engagement and compensation solutions, Leona emerges as a visionary and pioneering business leader. Her dedication to nurturing customer relationships throughout their entire lifecycle is fuelled by an unwavering passion. Leona boasts extensive experience spanning diverse industries and exhibits a resilient commitment to infusing the market with innovation, achieved through the artful simulation of consumer behaviour and actions via ingenious, reward-centric solutions.
Simon Noakes
Columbus Global UK Business Line Director CXE
Martin Hill-Wilson
Brainfood Training Co-FounderMartin Hill-Wilson is a long-standing member of the Customer Engagement community. Over his career, he has launched a series of change initiatives using the dynamic of action-based learning – most recently AI for Non Technical Minds. All are designed to disrupt and reset the ‘art of the possible’ using new operating models re-imagined through foundation user education.
Gerry Brown
Customer Lifeguard Chief Customer Officer
Brandie Deignan
Pier Health Group Chief Executive OfficerIn early 2021 Brandie joined primary care within NHS in general practice as Chief Executive Officer. Prior to this role, Brandie was Managing Director at Marco Pierre White Restaurants, cementing her c20 years’ experience in the consumer service delivery industry across hospitality, retail and aviation. Before her MD role, Brandie held senior leadership positions at British Airways Plc, Tesco Plc, Whitbread, Travelodge and Hilton Hotels, where she started her career as a graduate trainee and worked her way up.
A true trailblazer, Brandie was the first female MD to hold her MD role at MPW Restaurants. As of 2020, Brandie was the first black female MD within branded restaurant groups in the UK. Brandie was recently named as one of the top 15 BAME high fliers in travel and tourism industry, and was a finalist at the Black British Business Awards, Senior Leader, Consumer and Luxury 2020. Brandie was recently voted No 41 of the Top 50 listening leaders and also nominated in the National Diversity Awards for positive role model, gender diversity.
Vinay Parmar
Druva Star Founder
Brian Manusama
Actionary Executive Partner
09:00 - 09:10
Opening Remarks
Speaker:
Martin Hill-Wilson
Brainfood TrainingCo-Founder
Martin Hill-Wilson is a long-standing member of the Customer Engagement community. Over his career, he has launched a series of change initiatives using the dynamic of action-based learning – most recently AI for Non Technical Minds. All are designed to disrupt and reset the ‘art of the possible’ using new operating models re-imagined through foundation user education.
09:10 - 09:30
Driving Outcomes With Customer Obsession
The customer experience (CX) realm is constantly evolving, presenting new opportunities to drive business outcomes with customer obsession. Emerging technologies like generative AI (genAI) are accelerating innovation and yielding new possibilities in customer and employee engagement.
It will start with low risk, low cost, or even “free” experiences, and as we build trust, we will learn to embrace more and more complex interactions. But don’t be distracted by noise. At the end of the day it’s about the steak, not the sizzle.
Basics like reliability, lowest price, and features account for about half of the purchase decision in most industries and countries. The fusion of human and AI capabilities will revolutionise how customers and organisations interact. In this world, empathy, trust, and emotion will be as essential as technology.
Speaker:
09:30 - 09:50
How Hobbycraft Retooled Customer Service to Better Serve Crafters
In this session, learn how Hobbycraft successfully transitioned its renowned in-store expertise to digital channels, ensuring customers receive quick and accurate responses across their preferred platforms.
Learn how Freshworks technology has empowered Hobbycraft’s customer service agents by automating repetitive tasks, allowing them to focus on delivering a better, personalised service. Explore how Hobbycraft has leveraged AI and an omnichannel approach to maintain high standards of service and enhance customer experiences across digital channels.
Three reasons to join us:
• How Hobbycraft has used Freshworks technology to free up agent time for more complex, personalised customer service
• How to use technology to create a customer journey that allows a leading UK brand to extend in-store experiences to digital channels
• Implement hybrid working and enhanced employee satisfaction and performance
Speakers:
09:50 - 10:10
Opening Keynote: Mental and Physical Readiness That Will Enable You To Think, React & Perform
We are thrilled to announce that Ollie Ollerton - former UK Special Forces soldier, bestselling author of How to Survive Almost Anything, and star of Channel 4’s SAS: Who Dares Wins - will be headlining this year’s Customer Engagement Summit.
Ollie’s extraordinary life journey and achievements provide a powerful and unique lens on leadership, resilience, and mentorship. His firsthand experiences in life-or-death situations as a Special Forces operator will captivate and inspire, offering lessons that transcend the battlefield and apply to both personal and professional success.
In his keynote, Ollie will arm you with proven mental and physical strategies to elevate your ability to think clearly, react swiftly, and perform at your best - even under pressure.
Speaker:
10:10 - 10:30
Navigating the AI Revolution: Transformative Impacts and Proven Strategies for Success
In the midst of a technological storm, our industry is experiencing a revolution comparable to the industrial revolution, driven by the rapid advancements in AI. This transformation is reshaping the way we work, introducing new roles such as Data Curators and Prompt Engineers, and promising efficiency gains unseen in decades. However, the hype around AI often overshadows its practical impacts.
This session will explore the significant changes AI brings, the potential risks of being led by technology, and the critical elements that make AI projects successful. We will highlight real-world results from leading brands, demonstrating stronger and faster outcomes. By cutting through the AI noise, we aim to show how businesses can benefit from AI without disruption, ensuring future-proof investments and improved customer touchpoints across various channels.
Key points include:
• The transformative potential of AI in creating new roles and driving efficiency.
• The challenges associated with AI adoption, including data quality, governance, and the risk of prioritizing technology over customer outcomes.
• Proven strategies for successful AI projects, focusing on team structure, clear objectives, robust data governance, and practical implementation approaches.
• Real-world examples of AI delivering substantial ROI and improved CX, demonstrating the tangible benefits of integrating AI into business processes.
Speakers:
Huw Jones
VerintDirector, Solutions Consulting
10:30 - 11:00
Coffee & Networking
11:20 - 11:40
Bupa Case Study: Creating Great Customer Experiences by Design
In this session Anna will talk about the importance of creating great customer experiences by design. And how in large organisations it is critical to have a clear and defined strategy which creates a structured framework to set a vision and expectations and to define best practice.
She will share some of the practices that Bupa use to create a customer centric culture where every employee remains close to the customer and understands how their job impacts the customer experience.
As well as a discussion on how they distil 1000’s of pieces of daily customer feedback into actionable insight.
A reminder of the CX basics and not a single mention of AI
Speaker:
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Anna Wilcox
BupaHead of Customer Experience
Anna is an established customer experience and marketing professional with a proven track record of delivering excellent commercial performance over the 20 years of my career.
I started my career in marketing, planning and driving growth for large corporate organisations across industries such as health insurance, the motor trade, pharmacy and IT. Over the years my passion for marketing sparked an interest in customer behaviour and 6 years ago I moved into the Customer Experience profession.
I now head up the Customer Experience function at Bupa Insurance, aiming to be the world’s most customer centric healthcare organisation.
All helping to achieve our purpose of helping people live longer, healthier and happier lives and making a better world.
11:40 - 12:00
Leading the Way in CX: Leveraging Human-Centric AI for a Competitive Edge
Speaker:
12:00 - 12:20
Inside IKEA's Loyalty, Personalisation, and Ethical Engagement Strategies: In Conversation with Marco Merkx, Global Customer Engagement Development Leader at IKEA
Speaker:
12:20 - 12:40
Rewarding Customer Connections
Connection is key to every good relationship, and a brands relationship with its customers is no different. With more options than ever before, and the ability for customers to switch suppliers with the click of a button, how can your brand easily build a meaningful connection to increase loyalty, reduce churn and foster brand advocacy?
Leona Heymerdinguer, Director of Customer Engagement at BHN, explores the subject of acquiring and retaining customers in the right way, sharing her expertise on how to easily and authentically build solid, long-lasting relationships with your customers.
Speaker:
12:40 - 13:40
Lunch & Networking
13:40 - 14:00
Research Reveal: The UK CX Report 2024
The UK CX landscape is still dominated by unremarkable experiences, and the need to connect brand promise and customer experience remains as strong as ever. In this thought-provoking and dynamic session, we reveal the latest findings from research by Engage and Ipsos, and how customers are still crying out for brands to deliver on the basics.
We look at what brands can do in response, and what's now needed to elevate experiences to build stronger relationships. We also reveal customer perspectives on personalisation and the use of AI in customer service delivery - the findings may surprise you. Join us when we reveal key findings from the report, and our recommendations for action.
Speakers:
Jean-Francois Damais
IpsosGlobal Chief Research Officer, Customer Experience
14:00 - 14:20
An Honest Look in the Mirror: New Data Reveals if Brands Are Meeting Customer Expectations
Join us for an exclusive session to discover what's really driving positive customer experiences, how AI and automation become an inseparable part of customer experience, and strategies to align your business with customer expectations in today's competitive market. After the session, you’ll walk away with actionable insights to transform your customer experience and drive lasting loyalty.
Speaker:
Dvir Hoffman
CommBoxCEO
As the current CEO of one of the leading AI-based customer service and engagement solutions in our market, Dvir has over two decades of experience in technology innovation and product strategy. Dvir has pioneered several innovations in the realm of CX technologies, guiding them from their inception and transforming them into award-winning global CX and enterprise solutions. His original vision on AI bots that can easily resolve complex inquiries is catalyzing a revolution in the customer experience domain as a way to radically reduce contact center load.
14:20 - 14:40
Victoria's Secret UK Case Study: Thinking Global, Acting Local
As one of the world’s biggest lingerie retailers, Nicky shares her insights on how the UK is successfully bringing the iconic Victoria’s Secret brand to life, and winning new audiences in the market, through the increase of localised content creation.
Everything from guerilla marketing campaigns that grow regional awareness to subtle changes in language that increase the brands SEO strength in the UK, and all things in between, Nicky will explore how relevant local activity is being delivered in a way that engages the UK consumer, while remaining sympathetic and aligned to the Global brand.
Nicky will also share how combined localised market efforts helped create a swell that supported one of largest Global Moments of the year for Victoria’s Secret.
Speaker:
14:40 - 15:00
Growing from Experience: What Are Meaningful and Different Customer Experiences? And Why Are They the Best Predictor of Long-Term Success?
How did Aldi go from the margins to the mainstream? How did Octopus become the biggest energy supplier, in less than 5 years? Can Monzo revolutionize retail banking, or will it remain the fun challenger in financial services?
Spectacular success is years in the making. Kantar research demonstrates that brands grow by being meaningful and different to more people: delivering on the functional and emotional needs required in their category, and demonstrating they offer something that sets them apart from their peers. This is more than marketing. Successfully differentiating requires an organization to consistently reinforce its positive associations at every possible opportunity. Great experiences are vital.
Speaker:
15:00 - 15:20
Panel Discussion: The Importance of Human Experience in Cultivating Brand Loyalty
In an era where consumer choices are abundant and fleeting, organisations must go beyond traditional tactics to create lasting connections with their customers. This panel discussion brings together industry leaders and experts to explore the critical role of human experience in creating brand loyalty.
Join us as we delve into the nuances of what it means to create authentic, meaningful interactions with customers. Our experts will examine best practices for integrating empathy, transparency, and responsiveness into customer engagement strategies. We’ll also discuss the impact of emotional connections on customer retention and advocacy, as well as the role of storytelling and brand values in shaping consumer perceptions.
You'll leave with actionable insights on how to prioritise human experience in your own customer engagement strategies, ensuring they not only meet but exceed customer expectations in today’s competitive market.
Speakers:
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Ashutosh Pandey
Eutelsat GroupVP Project Management, Quality and Process
Ashutosh is a leading Global Executive in the New Economy sectors of Space Technology, Satellites and Telecommunications.
As a Transformation and Turnaround Leader, he has successfully delivered multi-dimensional cost intensive sustainable transformations bringing in more than 1 Billion Euro financial savings globally for multiple organisations.
As a Business Process Management (BPM) leader, he successfully led enterprise wide transformation of key end-to-end processes across the organisation, thereby unlocking multi-million cash and generate value via simplification, standardization and ERP consolidation (incl Digital Transformation)
As a Quality Management leader, he led successful end-to-end assessments for International standards like ISO 9001, TL 9000, CMMI, IS 27001, IS 18001, EFQM and set up Corporate ESG and Sustainability management metrics.
He has strong expertise in leading Operations and Program management (incl Global PMO), change management and executing customer transformation using continuous improvement methodologies like Lean, Kaizen, Six Sigma and Hybrid/Agile PM.
He is a Certified Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt (CMBB), ASQ Certified Manager for Quality & Organizational Excellence (CMQ/OE), Certified Process Professional (CPP), ASQ Certified Quality Auditor (CQA), Certified Business Excellence Assessor (CBEA) on EFQM model, Certified Software Quality Analyst (CSQA), Project Management Professional (PMP) and a Fellow Chartered Manager(FCMI) from CMI UK.
Ashutosh is recognised as a cross-industry expert in Business Transformation, Operational Excellence and Lean Six Sigma and he has been a leading panellist and key speaker at multiple international forums globally since 2008.
As a trainer, he has trained 5000+ experts in various continuous improvement methodologies (lean/ kaizen/ six sigma/ design thinking/ agile).
By education, he is a Bachelor of Engineering and also holds a double MBA degree.
Mark Nichols
FlagstoneHead of Operations
Mark has extensive experience in client success, experience and operations and is now the Director of Operations at Flagstone.
15:20 - 15:40
Achieving High-End Customer Experiences and Strengthening Brand Loyalty: How to Avoid Common Pitfalls in Technology Adoption and Maximise Value
Speakers:
Simon Noakes
Columbus GlobalUK Business Line Director CXE
15:40 - 16:00
Renault Group Case Study: Creating Customer Champions for a Customer Centric Organisation
Speaker:
16:00 - 16:30
Coffee & Networking
16:30 - 17:00
Panel Discussion: Emerging Trends, Challenges & Opportunities in Customer Engagement
In today’s fast-paced, digital-first world, customer engagement has become a critical differentiator for organisations aiming to build lasting relationships with their customers. As technology evolves and expectations rise, organisations must navigate an ever-changing landscape to deliver personalised, seamless, and meaningful interactions. This panel will explore the emerging trends shaping customer engagement, the challenges organisations face in staying ahead, and the opportunities for innovation that can drive growth and competitive advantage.
Topics our panellists will explore include:
- The evolution of engagement
- The role of personalisation
- Maintaining consistency across channels - Data and insights
- The role of AI
- Balancing technology with human experience
- Mapping customer journeys
- Privacy and trust
- Shifting customer expectations
- Scalining customer engagement
- Opportunities for innovation and growth
Speakers:
17:00 - 18:30
Drinks & Networking
13:35 - 13:40
Host Welcome
Speaker:
Gerry Brown
Customer LifeguardChief Customer Officer
13:40 - 14:00
Standard Life Case Study: Customer Experience & Outcomes – Improvements to the Retirement Journeys
We’re part of Phoenix Group, the UK’s largest long-term savings and retirement business. We share an aligned ambition to help every customer enjoy a life full of possibilities. With over 12million policyholders, we have societal responsibility to deliver on our purpose.
This responsibility is especially crucial in the current economic climate, with cost-of-living pressures increasing the number of consumers displaying vulnerability characteristics. We know that at any given time, more than half of our customers could be displaying one or more characteristics of vulnerability. That’s why, using customer insight, data, and MI, we’ve made improvements to our Retirement Journey.
Ensuring we meet the needs of all customers and minimise the risk of harm, we will share how our approach has improved the retirement journey and share best practice around our approach and understanding to help improve customer experience and support good outcomes.
Speakers:
Karen Stewart
Standard LifeVulnerable Customer Centre of Excellence - Snr Consultant
Joining Standard Life in Q4 2021, Karen has previously supported customers in vulnerable circumstances throughout her career in both retail banking and energy services.
She supports colleagues in embedding Standard Life’s Principles and Standards, support with best practice, internal and external training and upskilling resources and supporting Standard Life Workplace client visits when looking at our vulnerability management.
Karen is active externally in focus groups and forums around vulnerability and is a Vulnerability Champion for the Collaboration Network.
Focused on providing good customer outcomes, Karen has a particular interest in inclusivity and accessibility for customers and colleagues and showcasing the work we do to support our members.
Having experienced vulnerability personally, Karen is passionate about working to remove barriers and helping people get on with living their lives.
14:00 - 14:20
The Art and Science of Open-Ended Feedback in the AI Era
Open text remains the most authentic and detailed form of written feedback. While video and audio surveys have been vying for its throne, open-ended responses continue to dominate in tracking studies, ad hoc surveys, online reviews, and social media data.
In this presentation, we will share findings from a meta-analysis of over 100,000 projects processed through the AI application Caplena and explore insights gathered from a survey conducted among end clients & research agencies.
The results not only quantify the rise in popularity and anticipated trends, but also provide best practices drawn from industry leaders like Lufthansa, DHL, and eBay:
- What's the optimal number of open-ended questions?
- Which question formulations yield the richest, most analyzable responses?
- How can high-quality analysis be achieved at scale without sacrificing accuracy?
- How to handle evolving themes over time?
Finally, we will explore buzzworthy tech trends in open-ends—like generative responses, active listening chatbots, and conversational insights tools—oRering a peek into the future of feedback analysis.
Speaker:
14:20 - 14:40
Landmark Information Group Case Study: How to Re-Engage Your Customers the Landmark Way
This presentation will take you through the reimagining of the customer proposition, the use of customer feedback and how we used that to shape how we moved from supplier to partner. We will talk about our holistic approach to customer relationships and how we work together as a team to identify opportunities that benefit our customers as much as they benefit the business.
We will also talk about how we won the hearts and minds of our people and boosted our Employee Engagement Scores to 91%.
And finally, we’ll talk about the impact that our transformation has had. We’ll demonstrate how our customers success is our success, and why we are bucking the trend both from a customer satisfaction point of view, but also a market point of view.
Speakers:
Helen Luty
Landmark Information GroupHead of Customer Experience
Helen has over 20 years of Customer Service Leadership experience across a variety of B2B and B2C businesses. As Head of Customer Experience for Landmark Information Group, Helen covers service, support and success across a variety of Landmark brands, building and improving processes to ensure Landmark are easy to do business with, that focus on positive outcomes, that seek and learn from feedback and that look to the ever-evolving needs of customers.
Helen’s passion for making a difference, cascades throughout the CX Teams and has resulted in high engagement scores and as we all know…engaged and happy teams mean engaged and happy customers.
Helen has been named in the CXM Stars Top 25 Professionals 2024 and 2025, Was awarded CX Professional of the Year at the UKCXA23, Customer Service Professional at the UK Customer Satisfaction Awards 2023 and her team won Best B2B Customer Experience at UKCXA24 and Best Use of Customer Insight at the Engage Awards 2024.
15:00 - 15:20
Places for People Case Study: Embedding Inclusion as a Service Design Principle
How customer psychographic segmentation can inform strategy, customer engagement , service design and customer experience.
In this session you will achieve an overview of what psychographic segmentation is and how understanding customers from a capability and needs perspective can be used as a tool to inform customer service design, strategy, operational delivery and efficiency, regulatory compliance and improve customer experience.
You will be introduced to evidenced housing organisation customer results and data, and have the opportunity to understand how to apply and consider service design through the lens of segmentation and vulnerability.
Speaker:
Naomi Sweeting
Places for PeopleDirector of Customer Research & Insight
15:20 - 15:40
Unleash the Power of Premium Engagement
Would you like to capitalise on advances in mobile, social media, and AI to deliver personalised, valuable experiences that your customers truly desire? And would you like to provide this experience without the worry of fake accounts, promotional abuse, and other security risks?
Join our upcoming session to gain the insights you need to navigate this dynamic landscape with confidence. We’ll explore how to make the most of both new and traditional communication channels, while solving the puzzle of secure customer engagement.
Our goal? To empower your business to meet the expectations of the modern customer.
Speaker:
15:40 - 16:00
Panel Discussion: Harnessing the Power of Data in Engagement: Turning Insights into Action
Topics our panellists will explore include:
- The role of data in shaping strategies
- Turning data into actionable insights
- AI's role in data
- Real-time data for immediate decision-making
- Data visualisation and storytelling
- Governance and compliance
- Challenges of data siloes
- Predictive analytics
- The role of data and insights in personalisation and customer journeys
- Future trends
Speaker:
Vanessa Milan
Cambridge University Press & AssessmentHead of Voice of the Customer, Global Operations
Passionate about Voice of the Customer and a natural customer advocate, I specialise in engaging internal stakeholders and turning customer insight into strategic improvements that enhance the customer experience across the organisation.
A self-starter with a multidisciplinary approach, I lead the development and execution of the Voice of the Customer programme, strategy, and governance across departments at Cambridge University Press & Assessment.
16:00 - 16:30
Coffee & Networking
13:35 - 13:40
Host Welcome
Speaker:
Brandie Deignan
Pier Health GroupChief Executive Officer
In early 2021 Brandie joined primary care within NHS in general practice as Chief Executive Officer. Prior to this role, Brandie was Managing Director at Marco Pierre White Restaurants, cementing her c20 years’ experience in the consumer service delivery industry across hospitality, retail and aviation. Before her MD role, Brandie held senior leadership positions at British Airways Plc, Tesco Plc, Whitbread, Travelodge and Hilton Hotels, where she started her career as a graduate trainee and worked her way up.
A true trailblazer, Brandie was the first female MD to hold her MD role at MPW Restaurants. As of 2020, Brandie was the first black female MD within branded restaurant groups in the UK. Brandie was recently named as one of the top 15 BAME high fliers in travel and tourism industry, and was a finalist at the Black British Business Awards, Senior Leader, Consumer and Luxury 2020. Brandie was recently voted No 41 of the Top 50 listening leaders and also nominated in the National Diversity Awards for positive role model, gender diversity.
13:40 - 14:00
Cleo AI Case Study: Make It AI… but Less Boring
Yes, we’re here to solve customer problems but what if we could do it in a way that delighted users.
Making a customer smirk during an interaction might just put some polish on the issue that brought
them to us in the first place.
In this session, Daniel will be sharing some of the do’s and don'ts of injecting personality into our AI has led to at Cleo AI.
Speaker:
Daniel Bunton
Cleo AIHead of Customer Support
After experiences in fine dining, sales, and entrepreneurship, he now leads Customer Support at Cleo AI—an AI financial advisor on a mission to whip your finances into shape.
14:00 - 14:20
From Feedback to Engagement: Harnessing Insights to Drive Customer and Agent Success
Customer feedback—whether solicited or unsolicited—holds the key to unlocking deeper customer engagement and improving business outcomes. Every interaction, whether through surveys, reviews, or unsolicited feedback from the interactions that you have with customers, offers valuable insights that can shape the experiences you deliver. However, many organisations struggle not only with data silos but with turning these insights into meaningful action.
In this session, we will explore how to leverage all forms of customer feedback to create more personalised, data-driven experiences, whilst improving agent performance and delivering long-term business success.
• Democratising Data: Learn how unifying feedback and breaking down data silos can lead to more personalised customer experiences, smarter product strategies, and transformative business decisions.
• Turning Insights into Action: Discover how to use both solicited and unsolicited feedback to generate actionable insights that drive engagement and satisfaction.
• AI-Powered Agent Coaching: Understand how AI-driven coaching based on customer feedback enhances agent performance, improves customer satisfaction, and creates a cycle of continuous improvement.
Speaker:
14:20 - 14:40
Learning & Development's Role in Transforming Customer Contact: In Conversation with Charlotte Burridge-Taylor, Head of Training for Global Customer Care at Volvo Group
Speaker:
14:40 - 15:00
Empowering the Future: Exploring the Future of Consumer Behaviour in the era of AI
How do we empower people in the era of AI? This session explores the profound shifts in consumer behaviour that we've seen from our customer's early adoption of Microsoft's Copilot solutions.
The mindsets, tools, and routines of employees in the workplace are evolving and while the core principles remain, their actions are transforming quickly. The contact centre stands at the nexus of these significant changes, forming a crossroad between the consumer, the agent, the brand, the tech, and now the AI that charges those pathways.
Launching a modern Contact Centre amidst such rapid transformation requires empathy and foresight to navigate the uncertainty of the future of these shifts. Any change can be met with resistance and a change of this calibre that requires time, money, and specialisation demands a deep understanding of how to empower people in this new age of collaboration between people and technology.
And more is yet to come: Agentic AI is on the horizon. How will we adapt?
Speaker:
15:00 - 15:20
Westminster City Council Case Study: Developing Report It - Our Resident Led Gen-AI Tool
Speaker:
15:20 - 15:40
Revolutionising Contact Centres: The Strategic Impact of Proprietary AI
Speaker:
15:40 - 16:00
Panel Discussion: Evolving Customer Contact: Balancing Human Touch, Technology, and Engagement
Key themes include:
- Balancing human touch with technology in customer contact
- Data-driven insights for optimising customer contact performance
- Agent empowerment and training for improved customer interactions
- Omnichannel integration for seamless customer support
- Managing remote and hybrid customer contact teams
- Reducing customer contact attrition through employee engagement
- Personalisation and customer segmentation
- Building a customer-centric culture
- Proactive customer engagement
- Addressing the needs of vulnerable customers
Speakers:
Melanie Fischer
XeroDirector, Customer Experience - UK & EMEA
Results-oriented Director with 20+ years' experience in service excellence and continuous improvement. Expert in defining service excellence strategies that remove customer friction through AI-tooling, automation, and self-solve solutions. Motivational leader of 300+ staff, skilled in aligning global operations with business OKRs and leading Lean/Six Sigma re-engineering initiatives.
Areas of expertise include:
- AI & Technology Strategy: Defines and implements strategies to replace legacy tooling with AI-Assistance interwoven with human assistance.
- Process Innovation: Uses Lean/Six Sigma to simplify workflows and improve resolution speed
- Global Operations Leadership: Leads global teams including outsourced vendor BPO and in-house resolution and escalation teams
- Stakeholder Influence: Experienced C-level advisor and member of UK Leadership teams directly reporting to C-suite
- Quality Assurance and CSAT: Oversees CSAT and AI and Human-agent QA frameworks to drive Customer-Sentiment.
16:00 - 16:30
Coffee & Networking
13:35 - 13:40
Host Welcome
Speaker:
Vinay Parmar
Druva StarFounder
13:40 - 14:00
Financial Times Case Study: Leveraging Data and Personalisation to Drive Conversions
In today’s competitive landscape, leveraging data and personalization has become critical to converting users into paying, loyal customers. In this session, Sam Lewis-Williams, Head of Marketing Automation at the Financial Times, will share key strategies in a case study from the FT for utilising customer data to create tailored experiences that drive paid conversions.
The presentation will explore how the FT has successfully employed data-driven approaches to understand user behavior and motivations, allowing for more personalised content and messaging. By mapping the customer journey and segmenting audiences effectively, the FT has been able to target potential subscribers with relevant, timely interactions that guide them through the funnel from registration to conversion.
From this session you’ll hopefully learn actionable insights on creating personalised user journeys, optimising touchpoints, and using automation to scale these efforts. With a focus on real-world examples and measurable results, this session will equip marketers with the tools to enhance conversion rates and build stronger relationships with users by delivering the right message at the right time.
Speaker:
14:00 - 14:20
Growth & Loyalty Are Easier Than You Think - Fix These Basics
Speaker:
14:20 - 14:40
Oxford Languages Case Study: Put Your Mission Where Your Mouth Is: Innovating Language for a Global Impact
The presentation “Put Your Mission Where Your Mouth Is” begins with an introduction to Harriet, a dedicated team member who exemplifies our mission and values. This personal touch sets the stage for a deeper connection with the audience, showcasing the human element behind our work.
We then delve into the core of Oxford Languages (OUP) and our mission. We emphasize our commitment to continual innovation and the advancement of language knowledge for the benefit of everyone, everywhere. This section highlights the driving force behind our initiatives and the broader impact of our work.
Next, we share how our values are reflected in our products. By focusing on under-resourced languages and promoting inclusivity in world English, we demonstrate our dedication to linguistic diversity and accessibility. This part of the presentation underscores the importance of aligning our products with our ethical standards.
The presentation continues with a look at how we foster growth through collaboration. We discuss our co-creation efforts with customers, the celebration of the word of the year, and our engaging webinars. These collaborative initiatives not only enhance our offerings but also build a sense of community and shared purpose.
Finally, we address our approach to building relationships and loyalty. By giving our branding a personable and human touch, we move away from a serious persona and emphasize human curation. This strategy helps us connect more deeply with our audience, fostering trust and long-term loyalty.
Speaker:
14:40 - 15:00
Busting the Loyalty Myth
Speaker:
14:40 - 15:00
Seeing the World From the Outside In
15:00 - 15:20
Research Reveal: Breaking down Silos to Create Customer Engagement
Speakers:
Jo Davies
Davies HickmanGlobal Director of Market Research
Jo and Marcus are founders of Davies Hickman Partners, set up in 2007. Responsible for one of the longest-running tracker studies of customer contact – The Autonomous Customer – they are market research advisers to the customer experience and contact centre industry, that includes some of the leading customer service associations. In 2023, Davies Hickman Partners were finalists in the Content Marketing Institute awards for research on AI for CX. Jo is on the BSI and ISO committee responsible for developing Contact centre, Customer service excellence and Complaint handling standards.
Marcus Hickman
Davies HickmanDirector
An insight and data analytics leader, Marcus has spent over 20 years supporting well-known brands to understand and improve customer experience - working directly with senior executives to bring consumer perspectives alive and use them to drive business growth.
His current focus is helping clients navigate the shift to AI in customer experience. Marcus has led an assessment of 37 different vendors of Generative AI and Agentic AI customer experience solutions, giving a good basis for developing individual organisational AI strategies.
This builds on a long track record of shaping industry thinking on CX. Marcus runs Davies Hickman Research, home to one of the longest-running tracker studies of customer contact, The Autonomous Customer, which pioneered omni-channel strategies. Davies Hickman has advised a range of industry bodies including BSI and ISO standards committees for customer experience.
Previously, Marcus worked as Managing Director of futures consulting agency The Henley Centre, part of Kantar. He brings good experience in understanding future change in customer experience.
15:20 - 15:40
Empathy in Action - Supporting Vulnerable Customers to Shape the Future of Loyalty
In this new era of customer engagement, the key to building lasting loyalty is delivering good customer outcomes through tailored and consistent experiences. Achieving this requires a cultural shift within organisations, where both empathy and innovative solutions play vital roles.
With nearly 50% of customers typically classified as vulnerable, businesses must build a customer experience that starts with the assumption that any customer may be vulnerable, laying the foundation for more meaningful and personalised engagement.
In this session, we’ll share insights from our latest vulnerability research, showing how a thoughtful combination of empathetic human service and cutting-edge technology can drive loyalty.
Learn how addressing the needs of vulnerable individuals not only aligns with regulatory changes like Consumer Duty, but also generates deeper trust, loyalty, and sustainable growth across all customer segments.
Speakers:
15:40 - 16:00
Panel Discussion: Building Lasting Customer Relationships: Strategies for Growth and Loyalty
In this panel discussion our experts will delve into essential components that drive customer grwoth and loyalty, including:
- Strategies for acquisition and retention
- Leveraging data to create personalised experiences
- The impact of customer feedback on loyalty building
- Delivering value beyond the transaction
- Measuring and optimising customer lifetime value
- Cultivating brand advocates to enhance engagement
- Ensuring omnichannel integration for sustained growth
- Developing long-term customer relationships
- Aligning marketing efforts with loyalty objectives
Speakers:
16:00 - 16:30
Coffee & Networking
13:35 - 13:40
Host Welcome
Speaker:
Brian Manusama
ActionaryExecutive Partner
13:40 - 14:00
John Lewis Case Study: Shaping and Delivering a Customer Experience Strategy
Speakers:
14:00 - 14:20
Transforming Customer Support Into a Competitive Advantage
Support quality is an important factor to consider when purchasing a system that’s core to one’s business, and you’ll hear companies left and right talking about delivering “a better customer experience,” but what does that actually mean?
In 2023 Front made our support metrics public to “show, not tell” the high service standards we commit to for our customers. While the benefits are clear for our customers, there’s been a positive impact for our team and company as well. We’ve had overwhelmingly positive responses to our “Support Report,” which has made it easier than ever to communicate the value of support as a revenue driver (not a cost center) to leadership outside of support and to hold our team accountable to a high standard of work.
Join Luke, our Senior Customer Support Specialist as he covers why making support metrics public is worth the risk; how to get started/the most important metrics to include; and how you should respond if your metrics start to slip.
Speaker:
14:40 - 15:00
Quilter's Transformative Journey to Customer-Centric Excellence
Quilter, one of the UK's leading wealth managers, has been recognised with the Best VoC Transformation award at the CX Live Global Awards for its innovative approach to enhancing customer experience (CX). Committed to providing high-quality financial advice and sustainable operations, Quilter empowers customers to achieve financial prosperity for generations.
In this presentation, Terry Ward explores Quilter's alignment of customer and digital experiences, highlighted by a new mobile app and an engaged Customer Community that promotes active feedback.
The firm's enhanced Voice of the Customer Programme, along with its adherence to Consumer Duty regulations, ensures a seamless and transparent experience. Despite economic challenges, Quilter has achieved notable growth and high customer satisfaction scores, driven by insights that guide continuous improvement.
This journey showcases how customer-centricity can effectively reshape the wealth management landscape.
Speaker:
15:00 - 15:20
Experian Case Study: Programme Governance to Enable Success
Speaker:
15:40 - 16:00
Panel Discussion: Customer Experience Management: The Strategic Key to Success
In this panel discussion our industry leaders will explore the key strategies behind effective Customer Experience Management.
This panel will focus on critical elements that enhance customer engagement and drive satisfaction, including:
- Implementing technology for improved customer engagement
- Creating a unified experience across all channels
- Empowering employees to enhance customer interactions
- Defining and measuring the customer experience
- Implementing effective metrics for customer experience
- Training teams to ensure consistency in service delivery
- Handling customer complaints and resolving issues effectively
- The role of emotional intelligence in customer service
- Emerging trends in customer engagement
- Proving the ROI of customer engagement excellence
- Designing customer engagement services for optimal impact
Speakers:
16:00 - 16:30
Coffee & Networking
11:00 - 12:00
Focus Group: Closing the Loop on CX Insights: From Data to Action
Led by SmartSurvey's Head of Product, Tom Barrie, this session invites CX leaders to explore practical strategies for turning customer feedback into meaningful actions. Through engaging discussions and real-world examples, you'll discover how to close the loop at every level of your organisation—frontline, management, and executive.
This collaborative session emphasises learning from both Tom’s insights and your peers’ experiences. Participants will delve into proven methods to operationalise feedback using the right tools, integrate insights seamlessly into workflows, and leverage customer success stories to drive results.
Leave with fresh approaches and practical tactics to elevate your CX initiatives and foster real change within your teams.
Speaker:
11:00 - 12:00
Focus Group: Maximising the Value of Open-Text Feedback: AI and Creative Solutions for CX Success
Speaker:
11:00 - 12:00
Cinema Session: The Big 2024 Customer Service Review: Where Do You Stand? What Insights and Trends Should You Be Focusing On for 2025?
Join Simran, Will and Aslesha from Freshworks for a fast-paced session unveiling the findings of the Freshworks 2024 Customer Service Benchmark Report. Discover how your performance stacks up against peers from 17,170 businesses across 25+ industries, analysing over 37 million conversations and 19 million tickets.
We’ll highlight key successes from 2024, the channels that customers and your support teams love to use, along with pinpoint the areas for improvement. We will also share three critical trends shaping customer service in 2025. Get ready to assess your position in 2024 and learn where to focus your efforts for the year ahead!