How APAC practitioners are building their CX strategy in 2025

The evolution of customer experience (CX) in Asia-Pacific (APAC) is accelerating, with leaders pivoting from operational efficiency to developing core competencies around AI, data and measurable business outcomes. According to the Global State of CX 2025 report, which surveyed senior CX practitioners and analysts responsible for APAC, this pivot is fundamentally redefining the strategic CX landscape across the region.

Strategic maturity of CX in APAC

The research paints a varied picture of CX maturity across APAC organizations. While just under one in five practitioners (18 percent) describe their company's CX strategy as “mature” and a further 10 percent see it as “advanced,” roughly equal proportions consider themselves either 'established' (31 percent) or in “early implementation” (33 percent), with 4 percent at the pre-deployment stage and a small minority (2 percent) reporting no formal CX strategy at all.

A mixed picture is also evident in the seniority of respondents: 22 percent hold C-suite positions, 28 percent are managers, and 14 percent are directors. With more than half (55 percent) sitting on executive teams and almost a third (31 percent) working in dedicated CX functions, the data points to both senior-level buy-in and the maturing of CX as a professional discipline across the region.

Strategic aims: AI capabilities and measurable value

When asked about their top strategic aims, APAC CX practitioners revealed ambitions that balance technological innovation with core business objectives. The leading priorities are:

• Developing AI and generative AI capabilities (35 percent).
• Driving data literacy across teams (35 percent).
• Increasing NPS, CSAT, or other customer satisfaction metrics (33 percent).
• Driving more sales (31 percent).
• Growing the customer base (27 percent).
• Enhancing user experience across devices and channels (27 percent).

This emphasis on AI and data comes with a caveat: governance is lagging behind ambition. Some 37 percent of organizations have formal approaches to generative AI best practice and governance, but 49 percent do not and 14 percent are unsure. The pattern suggests widespread recognition of AI's importance but inconsistent implementation across the region.

Budgets, investment and omnichannel realities

The investment outlook remains positive despite broader economic uncertainty. Some 42 percent of APAC practitioners have bigger CX budgets this year compared to last, and only 16 percent are facing reductions.

Budget levels vary widely: the largest group (40 percent) of organizations allocate $100,000 or less, but 19 percent have between $500,000 and $1 million available, and 9 percent are working with up to $2.5 million.

The way these funds are being deployed tells its own story. When asked where they expect spending to increase, AI projects for CX and service (63 percent) and digital experience (63 percent) led the field, closely followed by customer acquisition/retention (58 percent) and cybersecurity (56 percent).

There also appears to be a strong investment appetite for customer understanding: 49 percent plan to spend more on insight, data and analytics, and 42 percent on Voice of the Customer (VoC) initiatives, showing the emphasis on turning feedback into action.

However, when it comes to omnichannel capabilities, the region still faces significant hurdles. Only one in five (20 percent) have fully implemented an omnichannel strategy, while 35 percent are stuck with fragmented multichannel models and 16 percent said their channel connections aren’t completely seamless. These gaps are clearly both a challenge and an area of focus for future improvement.

The expanding role of AI

With AI now a strategic priority, attention is turning to how organizations develop these capabilities. Most practitioners (70 percent) acquire new AI tools from third-party vendors rather than building in-house (30 percent).

Key investment priorities include AI and machine learning for business operations (30 percent), while notable use cases mentioned are conversational AI chatbots and virtual assistants (14 percent) and generative AI chatbots (5 percent).

Results from generative AI implementations are promising but mixed: 47 percent report positive profit impact and none cite negative effects, yet 40 percent remain unsure of the financial benefits.

Conversational AI and cloud contact centers are reported to deliver positive returns by 40 percent and 44 percent of practitioners respectively, but uncertainty remains high in these areas – 40 percent are unsure of conversational AI’s impact and 30 percent don’t use cloud contact center solutions yet.

Interestingly, data analytics shows clearer returns – 81 percent report positive profit impact, suggesting established data capabilities remain crucial even as organizations embrace newer AI technologies.

ROI, buy-in and skills gaps

Across the region, the pressure to prove the return on investment (ROI) of CX initiatives is intensifying – 74 percent of practitioners said these expectations are increasing, while none report a decrease.

In fact, demonstrating ROI (51 percent) is named as the single biggest obstacle to investment, followed by finding budget (37 percent), integration with existing tools (25 percent) and gaining buy-in from stakeholders (23 percent).

Talent is another persistent challenge. Nearly one in five (19 percent) pointed to developing or locating the right talent as a primary obstacle, with staff skills and training (16 percent) also ranking highly.

The need for better data skills is reflected in the top training areas cited, including customer journey mapping (49 percent), product knowledge (37 percent) and data regulatory compliance (37 percent). Soft skills, such as emotional intelligence, empathy and adaptability, are also highly valued (37 percent).

New tools, training and collaboration across departments

To address these strategic challenges and capitalize on emerging trends, APAC CX teams are investing in new tools (55 percent), ramping up team training and development (55 percent), and increasing collaboration across departments (43 percent).

Half (50 percent) are conducting market research and competitor analysis to stay ahead of changing customer needs.

Customer behavior and strategic trends

Practitioners identified several trends as most likely to reshape CX strategy over the next year. The leading trends are:

• Generative AI chatbots and virtual assistants (43 percent).
• AI-powered technologies for operations (38 percent).
• Generative AI for marketing/hyper-personalization (35 percent).
• Automation (25 percent).

Evolving customer expectations are also shaping strategy. The top behavior influencing 2025 planning is the expectation for instant service and delivery (50 percent), followed by awareness of how AI works and uses customer data (40 percent), and a growing demand for convenience (38 percent).

Notably, most practitioners strongly agree or agree that automation is critical for delivering CX at scale (95 percent) and that data privacy and security is becoming more important to customers (93 percent).

Building CX in APAC for the next chapter

In 2025, APAC’s CX leaders are poised between aspiration and reality. There is growing C-suite engagement, increased budgets and ambitious plans for AI, data and omnichannel strategy. However, the region continues to grapple with organizational silos, fragmented channel connections and an ever-present need to demonstrate ROI and business impact.

As generative AI and automation become more deeply embedded in the strategic CX landscape, the most successful practitioners will be those who combine innovation with robust measurement, cross-team collaboration and a relentless focus on customer outcomes.

For APAC, the strategic direction is clear: the move toward smarter, more seamless and more accountable customer experiences continues at pace.

Special Report: The Global State of CX

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