Forrester: The Consequences of a Customer-led, Digital-centric Market Are Becoming Clear

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Three years into the age of the customer – a fundamental shift in the market where technology-empowered customers force companies to rethink their operations – the market is moving fast. CEOs are considering structural and leadership changes to compete in a market where companies win or lose based on singular customer experience, and new technologies are emerging to change the market landscape. Forrester identified the 15 major dynamics that will shape 2017 and help determine the fate of companies in an introductory piece to its predictions reports.

“2017 will be a year of action for many companies, as they address the realities of a fast-moving customer-led and digital-centric market,” said Cliff Condon, chief research and product officer at Forrester. “Empowered customers are forcing the hand of virtually every industry. And so the question for most companies and business leaders is not if they will respond to these market dynamics, but when and how. Inaction presents immediate revenue risk – or much worse – a threat to a company’s existence.”

The top 15 dynamics that will shape 2017 are:

1. The extent to which businesses will need to restructure to adapt to a customer-led market.
2. How – and how many – CMOs can successfully evolve to meet new and expansive leadership demands.
3. The likelihood that CIOs will rise to the challenge of leading digital business strategies.
4. How CEOs will handle business unit and product leadership in a market dominated by empowered customers and disruptors.
5. How transitional roles like chief data officer, chief digital office, and chief customer officer will fare.
6. How businesses will react to acute cyber risk to maintain customer trust.
7. Determining the scarce but critical talent required to lead in the age of the customer – and how that will place significant pressure on both talent management and talent acquisition.
8. Identifying new levels of revenue risk directly attributed to underperforming or even mediocre customer experiences.
9. The extent to which companies are able to measure and operationalize emotion, which continues to be a primary driver of customer affinity and spend.
10. How companies are designing signature moments to capture customers’ hearts, minds, and spend.
11. The beginnings of a new technology revolution that will reshape how businesses operate and interact with customers.
12. The role augmented reality and virtual reality will play in 2017 and where both are in their evolution.
13. The implementation and impact of the internet of things in 2017.
14. The impact and evolution of artificial intelligence to deliver contextually-rich, personalized experiences.
15. The next steps in cloud computing to change the architecture and economics of technology.

To gain more insights on the dynamics that will shape 2017, download Forrester’s predictions guide. These trends and others will be discussed at Forrester’s Age of the Customer Executive Summit, Nov. 1-3, 2016 in Laguna Niguel, CA.

About Forrester
Forrester (Nasdaq: FORR) is one of the most influential research and advisory firms in the world. We work with business and technology leaders to develop customer-obsessed strategies that drive growth. Forrester’s unique insights are grounded in annual surveys of more than 500,000 consumers and business leaders worldwide, rigorous and objective methodologies, and the shared wisdom of our most innovative clients. Through proprietary research, data, custom consulting, exclusive executive peer groups, and events, the Forrester experience is about a singular and powerful purpose: to challenge the thinking of our clients to help them lead change in their organizations.