Let’s revisit some of the highlights and top takeaways to come out of our episodes in 2023:
Episode one: DXC Technology
Our first episode of DEX Drive saw our CEO and host, Mark Banfield, hop in the car with Jeff Monaco, VP Modern Workplace at DXC Technology, for a drive around Boston, MA.
DEX is a board-level topic
“From my vantage point, there isn’t a single company we talk to, that the topic around a DEX tool doesn’t come up.”
Mark highlights the huge drive in the market around DEX, alluding to the fact that even the prestigious analyst house, Forrester, recognizes the significance of this tech. Mark asks Jeff why he thinks DEX has become an executive-level discussion and boardroom topic, and why now?
“All of our customers collectively in the enterprise are trying to stretch their investment dollars as far as possible. There’s plenty of evidence that CIOs are trying to take existing budgets for core IT (cloud, network storage, etc.) and reinvest dollars saved into their own digitization efforts.”
Jeff notes that growing recognition of the ROI of DEX tools, and their ability to enable teams to do more with less, may be behind the rise in DEX.
“DEX is equal parts driving the right experience for the humans using these devices but it’s also about lowering the type of work, the quality of work, and duration of that work for IT operators – do more with less, as no one’s getting any more labor to drive excellence.”
Not only does DEX provide users with a better experience, but by extension, it improves productivity, employee retention, customer experience, and more.
“Employees know when they’re not being productive. And when they know their input into their job does not match the expected output of what they should be getting done, they feel like they’re not making a difference. There’s plenty of evidence to show that employees are voting around that situation by leaving”
Hear more from Mark and Jeff on the benefits of DEX, remediation driving value, and what’s next for DEX in the full episode here.
Episode two: Forrester
In the second episode of DEX Drive, 1E CEO, Mark Banfield visits Boulder, CO to catch up with Andrew Hewitt of Forrester.
DEX will remain a top priority
Despite the pressures of a potential economic downturn and the associated cost-cutting, DEX is set to remain a top priority for IT. When asked by Mark about the trends in DEX right now, Andrew expresses his excitement that people remain invested in this space and operationalizing digital employee experience.
“I’m talking to more and more CIOs, VPs, and SVPs about the importance of DEX. A lot of folks are seeing the value of employee experience in their overall business. 60% of the IT decision makers we’ve surveyed say employee experience is a top priority from an IT perspective over the next 12 months.”
But why is it that DEX is set to remain a priority for leaders? Andrew answers that question for us…
DEX drives real business outcomes
Mark notes that—perhaps due to the macroeconomic climate—there’s an increased focus on driving real business outcomes, e.g., cost-saving, revenue generation, improved user satisfaction, customer satisfaction, and so on.
“What we’re starting to see from CIOs and other business leaders is a recognition that DEX plays into broader question around how do I deliver value for my customers?”
Andrew agrees, explaining that digital employee experience tools aren’t just a way to keep employees placated. They help drive real, tangible, business outcomes, too. He encourages leaders to think about the value of DEX by translating it into the fundamentals of what their business is trying to do.
“Ultimately, it’s about making sure they have a resilient environment that doesn’t impact customers, for example… It’s that translation into “What is that business outcome?” If you’re a large food production company, does investing in DEX allow you to sell more candy? Does it enable you to do the things you’re meant to do as a business?”
Mark and Andrew dive deeper into the impact of DEX on the workplace, the future of the service desk, and how AI plays into all of this. Watch the full episode now for more insights.
Episode three: ServiceNow
Episode three of DEX Drive took Mark to the Cotswolds in England, where he spent time discussing digital employee experience with Damien Davis, Senior Product Leader at ServiceNow.
The connection between CX and DEX
“When we talk to our customers… they start with that employee strategy so that it’s a foundation to deliver their customer strategy.”
Mark introduces the idea of DEX as a currency of trust and a key differentiator in businesses today. If you’re able to deliver a strong DEX strategy and a frictionless digital workplace for your employees, you can build trust.
Damien expands on this by explaining how creating employee trust with DEX can impact your customer experience (CX).
“If your employees trust you to look after them every time they interact with your organization, then they’re going to give their heart and soul. Richard Branson once famously said, “I’ll take care of my employees and they’ll take care of my customers.” Trust and the employee experience is a foundation for success”
Mark and Damien also explore the importance of creating a consumer-grade experience in the workplace. In a digital-first world, where our children have flawless experiences playing games on an iPad, for example, why are employees still experiencing considerable digital friction with workplace technology?
“Consumerizing the enterprise is a term that’s been coined by many technology vendors… [With this] you can build out flows, automate fixes, reduce mean time to resolve an issue, improve employee satisfaction…”
For more insights into the DEX market, the role of AI, and how DEX and observability can work together, watch the full episode here.
Episode four: Sumir Karayi
Our final episode of DEX Drive for 2023 was very special as it features not only 1E’s current CEO, Mark but also 1E Founder, Sumir Karayi.
AI, augmentation, and remediation
The role of AI when it comes to DEX is becoming clearer and clearer. Especially with the needs of knowledge workers becoming increasingly more sophisticated, requiring consolidation of tools. Sumir explains that AI has an important role to play in the future of IT.
“The IT department using generative AI, is always going to outperform IT departments that are not using generative AI. Not that AI is going to replace an IT department right now, it’s going to augment it.”
With AI, IT teams can diagnose issues faster and figure out fixes in a matter of seconds. But where generative AI has room for improvement is regarding our remediation capability — an area where human workers remain essential. Sumir explains that while we can’t trust AI to take over fully, we can entirely trust AI to help us and to improve digital employee experiences.
“Augmenting the type of work we do with AI is fantastic and incredibly powerful… [With AI] IT employees can focus on higher value stuff, focus on genuine experience issues… Rather than have hundreds of issues in the queues, they can do what employees really want, which is to have a real conversation.”
To hear more from Sumir and Mark on digital employee experience, the role of monitoring, and the future of AI and end-user computing, watch on!
