What is your biggest success story in the world of digital transformation so far?

Chris: As the Great British arm of a global hotel chain, there are various systems in place. Those locally will have a direct influence and those driven globally we need to integrate with. Over the past couple of years, a global effort has been undertaken to modernise various systems. Ensuring our local systems are working effectively and not having negative impacts on customers has been a huge undertaking.

 Jonathan: It's hard to pick one when digital transformation is so often about making lots of small incremental changes that add up to something bigger, but here's a top 3. i) Improved customer comms increasing CSAT by +5 points; ii) Successful implementation of our new subscription proposition (+£1m net profit); iii) Growing omni channel experiences to over a third of digital orders. 

What challenges or potential roadblocks are currently dominating your thoughts at night?

Chris: It has to be the final switch. After all the planning, preparation and hard work, you want the final go live to be as smooth as possible. We are undergoing a large project at the moment and this is on my mind a lot.  

Jonathan: Data quality. The rapid adoption and potential for AI is huge. It works seamlessly within the www as it can scan all of it's data, but when AI or ML models have to collect it's data from company data sources, that can become problematic and ruin a brilliant use case you may have. I believe businesses that focus/invest on improving internal data will succeed in adopting AI faster than the competition.

Based on your unique experiences and insights, what emerging trends are you most excited about, and why do you think it holds such potential for 2025 and beyond?

Chris: Is it too cliché to say AI? I think AI is going to finally provide companies the ability to deliver more personalised experiences at scale. In travel where there are so many accommodation options and types of travellers, this is a huge opportunity to make life easier for our customers.

Jonathan: I think Social Commerce is fascinating and has the potential to disrupt consumer buying even more than it already has. I would also include in this, the ability to buy via messaging channels such as WhatsApp.

Could influencers be the shop assistants of the future? How can brands make Social Commerce profitable? How does it shape the marketing budget in the future? What does it mean for physical store strategies, both in terms of location and the role of the store?

The potential is huge if we are to believe consumers/customers will continue to adopt Social platforms for purchasing. There seems no let up in this adoption, so brands need to be where their customers (and future customers) are shaping and making their purchasing decisions.

At Digital Commerce Expo, Jonathan will be joining a panel on ‘Winning with worldclass CX: Investing for impact’, on 2 October at 13.40pm to 14.25pm, in the Future of CX Stage. Chris will be delivering a presentation on ‘Migrating your legacy platforms to meet consumer expectations and technology advancements’, on 3 October at 12.40pm to 13.05pm in the Digital Agility Stage.