Industry executives and experts share their predictions for 2023.  Read them in this 15th annual VMblog.com series exclusive.

An inside ear for managed services, CX and digitalization in 2023: Consolidate, Tailor and Tread with Caution

By DJ Oreb, president managed services, DMI

The looming recession's impact on teams, delivery of superior customer experience through hyper-focused customization and careful steps moving forward with cloud migrations are all insights into the digital landscape by DJ Oreb, president of managed service at DMI. DJ predicts business will need to be wise with their spending in the coming year as the market remains in turmoil, and a next-level customer experience will be needed to keep people engaged.

Prediction 1: As recession concerns abound, workforces will need to be consolidated and optimized, leading to more reliance on managed services and outsourcing, rather than developing teams in-house.  

Moving into 2023, I think a big trend will be for businesses to figure out how they can consolidate and optimize their workforce while still providing a present end user experience with the ability to scale. I think the drive for managed services will become more prevalent, not only in the commercial sector, where it has been customary for years, but in 2023 we'll see this drive coming for the state, local and federal sectors as well. Managed services may be the way of the future for them to control costs as well as grow and continuously innovate. 

A big portion of this stems from the Great Resignation. As talent left jobs where they no longer felt valued, the way employees are hired, recruited, and maintained changed completely. As such, a lot of companies may realize that, while they want to invest in their employees, in culture, and in growing teams, outsourcing to larger companies that have the economy to scale might be a more viable solution. Managed services companies can hire those same employees, manage those same components and service those employees, giving them the same experience they would get with a company, but just from a different perspective.  

This presents a big opportunity for managed services companies. They will be able to grow and absorb some of the workforce that has been laid off, and mold them into supporting managed services capabilities. This will build strong teams that are scalable but more optimized. Workers will have the ability to support multiple companies versus one and will maintain their job rather than being replaced by a managed services provider. 

Prediction 2: How companies deliver superior customer experience will need to be more tailored.  

Customer experience and the way companies think about how they service their internal employees and  external customers will be as crucial as ever. Businesses will need to make sure they can provide services the way users prefer to interact.   

There are three types of customers that businesses looking to provide a tailored customer experience need to cater to: 

• Old School - these customers want to speak to a human. They want to get their task over with and make sure it is done as quickly as possible.
• New Generation - these customers want to handle their issues via text, email or social media.
• Self-Service - these customers prefer a self-service portal that will walk through how to address an issue step by step so the customer can resolve it on their own.
  

Where businesses might be used to a typical SLA - call answer times or hold lengths - businesses will now be looking at XLAs, or experience SLAs, always asking the question, "what are we doing to enhance the customer experience?" 

Businesses will begin to see the brand experience coming into play here. People buy brands, they don't buy businesses. The fact that you're empowering people to self-serve, or delivering services how customers want them, shows that you know who your customers are, which builds trust and brand loyalty. 

Prediction 3: Continued cloud migration, but with caution.  

More companies are really focused on migrating to the cloud for increased access and reliability, but there's still fear, with a possible recession on the horizon, because cloud can be expensive. Businesses are realizing that if their migration is not managed properly, they could spend more money. The continuous migration to the cloud will be something that will be relevant at least over the next few years.  

Businesses who are considering this in 2023 will see more value when partnering with a third-party organization that can come in and assess the overall project: how much cost optimization or savings will this result in? What are your performance requirements? Sometimes, there is a push to migrate because business leaders mandate it, rather than focusing on what is best for the company at a current point in time. Is your current infrastructure still reliable? Maybe you have two or three more years in it. Maybe the strategy should be to migrate 50% now and save the other 50% for one or two years down the line. A trusted partner can help a business work through these scenarios to find a solution that optimizes cost and performance without introducing expensive overhauls at every turn.  

Rough Seas Require Careful Navigation

Economic hardship on the horizon means businesses will need to take care with their next steps. Organizations will need to find trusted allies to help consolidate and optimize their workforces in the wake of budget cuts. Cloud migration may be efficient, but without keen attention, it can quickly run an organization dry. To keep customers in lockstep moving forward, the bar has been significantly raised. That said, there are plenty of avenues a business can take to ensure they are fulfilling the needs of budgetary constraints while keeping customers happy.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

DJ Oreb - President, Managed Services, DMI

As the President of Managed Services, DJ provides guidance and customer insights while retaining loyal and satisfied customers in today's mobile-connected world. He possesses extensive industry experience in mobile lifecycle management, mobile strategy, help desk, telecom expense management, procurement and MDM management. DJ helps build strong reputable relationships to develop robust mobile programs for customers that drive business results to enhance and grow their mobile eco-system and user experience.

Upon joining DMI, DJ brought with him an extensive background of Information Technology, operations management, mobility management, managed services, systems administration, and project management experience. His customer-focused approach has brought customers new insights on how they manage their mobile programs today.