CMP Research, a division of Customer Management Practice, equips customer contact and CX executives with its unlimited advisory support, diagnostic tools, insights, and data. As the CX business model continues to evolve, CMP Research has noticed significant challenges in the marketplace.

For end-users, the abundance of technology options in the marketplace often challenges executives to identify and select solutions that align with their needs. End-users also struggle with integrating new solutions into existing systems and customizing them to meet unique requirements.

And that's just the tip of the iceberg.

Solution providers, on the other hand, often find it difficult to distinguish their offerings, especially in such a saturated market as CX. Plus, with the increasing adoption of artificial intelligence and self-service, the priorities of customer contact leaders continue to change, causing solution providers to balance needs on unsteady grounds.

As businesses continue to evolve and face the challenges of navigating a crowded technology marketplace, they need the ability to identify the best solution providers for their unique needs. Enter – CMP Research's Prism, a technology assessment framework for customer contact and customer experience (CX) executives.

What is CMP Research Prism?

CMP Research Prism clarifies technology purchasing decisions for buyers and influencers of the customer contact and CX technology stack. The Prism’s objective evaluation of solution providers is based on analyst, user, and marketplace perspectives. It uses a rigorous, criteria-based evaluation system to assess vendors for the investment benchmarks most essential to customer contact and CX executives, including:

• Price
• Customization and Flexibility
• Integration Capabilities
• Security Standards
• User Experience
• Reporting Features
• Customer Support
• Innovation and Future Strategy
• Accuracy of AI
• Implementation
• Marketplace Perception and Awareness

The Prism helps executives make better investment decisions for customer contact and CX functions. Likewise, it helps solution provider brands differentiate from competitors, fortify value propositions, and showcase their CX strengths. In short, The Prism leverages insights from user experiences, analyst expertise, and marketplace perception and segments providers into five categories:

• Pioneering
• Leading
• Core Performing
• Up and Coming
• Emerging

Real-time agent assist/co-pilot was the first technology category to be released in October, as 75 percent of companies are increasing investment in real-time agent assist and co-pilot within the next two years. As burnout and front-line stresses lead to employee attrition, CX leaders plan to use assist and copilot tools to avoid costs of employee churn.

Categories to be announced include:

• December 2024: Customer Analytics
• January: Chatbot/Virtual Agent
• February: Conversational IVR
• March: Workforce Optimization
• April: Updated Real-Time Assist/Copilot

CMP Research end-users and solution provider clients alike get full access to Prism results, drilldowns into investment criteria performance and unlimited advisory support for understanding Prism results and various marketplace offerings.

How The Prism Works

CMP Research’s Prism combines the perspectives of analysts, users, and the broader marketplace to provide a 360-degree view of solution providers. In a recent white paper, CMP Research evaluated ten solution providers that offer real-time agent assist and copilot for customer contact, CX, and sales functions. The findings unveiled how each provider compares and informs investment decisions.

Observe.AI, Cognigy, and CRESTA were named Pioneering providers of real-time agent assist/copilot. Other companies that were evaluated include:

• Assembled
• Creovai
• SESTEK
• Gleen
• Sharpen
• Capacity
• Zingly

Results indicated that a majority of the companies evaluated indicated high confidence in marketplace perceptions, as well as progressive analyst and user perspective.

For end-users struggling with complex technology landscapes, The Prism offers objective evaluations to streamline decision-making. Furthermore, integrating new solutions is no longer a daunting task for executives since The Prism assesses vendors on criteria such as integration capability and flexibility, providing clarity where needed.

Differentiators of The Prism

CMP Research Prism is the only marketplace assessment framework built exclusively for customer contact and CX executives. The Prism helps customer contact leaders and CXOs differentiate solution providers in a complex market and make more informed, confident investment decisions that future-proof the CX technology stack. The Prism stands out for its user-centric, niche evaluation approach, offering a more detailed perspective for CX technology investments compared to other tech assessments in the marketplace.

CMP Research's Prism is already making waves in the industry. Notable recognition includes Becky Ploeger, Global Head of Reservations and Customer Care at Hilton, who says, "The CMP Research Prism streamlines technology sourcing, eliminates misaligned providers, enables informed decisions to meet requirements, and helps you avoid buyer's remorse." Additionally, Mark Killick, Senior Vice President, Experiential Operations of Shipt says, "The CMP Research Prism enables the marketplace to cut through the noise of the technology landscape by empowering strategic decision-making and driving success. Who doesn't need that?"

As the CX world continues to expand, the Prism will provide game-changing solutions for executives seeking confidence in their technology investments. By leveraging a unique, user-centric model that combines analyst, user, and marketplace perspectives, The Prism will continue to empower organizations to refine their CX strategies and future-proof their technology stack.

In short, CMP Research’s Prism methodology brings organization and clarity to a blurry market.