CX Today

Rhys Fisher sits down with James Hughes, VP of Solutions at Sabio, to explore what’s really happening behind the scenes of AI’s rapid rise in the contact center world. 
With more than two decades of industry experience, James brings a clear, grounded perspective on where AI creates true business value. Together, they dig into the financial impact, the operational challenges, and why most organizations still struggle to turn AI hype into real transformation. 
AI is reshaping nearly every part of the enterprise, but in the contact center, it’s unlocking one of the biggest competitive advantages James Hughes has seen in 25 years. 
In this candid conversation, Rhys and James unpack the gap between AI’s promises and its real-world execution – from feature overload and platform migrations to the rising trend of buyers’ regret. 
James also reveals Sabio’s outcomes-based AI model and walks through their Inform, Transform, Perform framework, designed to help CX leaders cut through noise and focus on measurable business results. 
Key discussion points: 
Why companies can now decouple CX costs from revenue more effectively than ever 
How AI deployments fail when organizations chase features instead of transformation 
Sabio’s outcomes-based AI model: customers only pay when value is proven 
The blurry line between helpful personalization and intrusive data use 
Identify your top three AI use cases that can deliver meaningful ROI.
Start with a data-led “Inform” assessment before making technology decisions.
Explore outcomes-based AI models to reduce organizational risk. 
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Find out why leaders are rushing into AI under pressure from boards, competitors, and vendors, often without truly understanding how it works or putting the right guardrails in place. Adrian explains how agentic AI and highly interconnected cloud systems are driving up complexity, risk, and consumer concern around data security and privacy.
From there, they get practical: what third-party AI risk actually means, why customers always blame the brand (not the vendor), and how things typically go wrong inside organisations – from broken workflows to poor communication when incidents happen. Adrian shares key questions to ask vendors about data, governance, and model performance, as well as how CX leaders can work more effectively with security, procurement, finance, and legal.
He closes with a powerful challenge: stop acting like the “hare” chasing AI hype – and start winning like the “tortoise” with a slower, more deliberate, trust-first approach.
If you’re considering AI in your CX stack, this is 30+ minutes you can’t afford to skip.

Waiting on hold has become a cultural meme for a reason. People now experience “instant” everywhere else, food deliveries, banking, streaming. So when support asks them to wait, it doesn’t feel normal. It feels like outdated plumbing.
In this CX Today video, Rob Wilkinson sits down with Nuri Goj, Director of Platform Architecture for Zendesk Contact Center, to unpack what’s really happening inside the queue. From repeat contacts and KPI trade-offs to agent burnout and “AI theatre”, this is a grounded conversation about what it takes to remove uncertainty and reduce avoidable demand.
What you’ll take away:
Why hold time isn’t neutral, it creates churn, repeat calls, and public complaints
The hidden cost of “queue economics”: staffing spikes, escalations, and conflicting KPIs
Why customers arrive to agents looking for justice, not help, and what that does to frontline teams
Where “zero wait” works best (high-volume, repeatable intents) and where it needs human judgement
The difference between bolt-on bots, hyperscaler DIY, and integrated service AI
Why integration is the line between a helpful conversation and a resolved issue
Who should watch
Heads of CX, Contact Centre Directors, COOs, and Customer Success leaders
IT and digital leaders responsible for service platforms, data, and governance
CX marketing and ops teams looking to reduce repeat work and improve resolution

In this interview, Kristian McCann speaks with Lathan Lewis, Head of Products at Tango Networks, about a challenge every IT leader faces: keeping communications online without overspending.
Throughout the talk, Lewis unpacks how companies can ditch dual UC platforms and aging copper lines - and still achieve flawless business continuity.
Key takeaways:
Why maintaining duplicate UC platforms and legacy POTS lines drains budgets and resources.
How “Mobile Network as a Service” enables real-time continuity - even if your UC platform suffers an outage.
Practical steps to replace aging analog infrastructure with VoIP or cellular-powered alternatives.
How mobility integration enhances security, efficiency, and end-user experience under IT control.
Next steps:
Explore modern mobility solutions like Tango Networks’ Tango Extend to consolidate continuity across platforms.

For years, the CX industry has obsessed over deploying AI to serve customers better. But a seismic shift is already underway and most contact centers aren't prepared for it.
Customer-initiated AI agents are now making calls, placing orders, and navigating your IVR on behalf of humans. Tools like OpenAI's Operator, Google Call Assist, and Kickoff's debt negotiation service aren't coming, they're here. A large US bank recently received its first live call from a personal AI agent attempting to negotiate debt settlement. The human agent had no policy, no playbook, no idea what to do. They didn't hang up. They authenticated the AI. They negotiated. The deal closed.
This is what Wayne Kay, Regional VP of Sales Leadership EMEA at TTEC Digital, calls "the gasp moment" - the instant CX leaders realize the script has flipped. AI isn't just the tool anymore. It's becoming the customer.
In this exclusive video interview, Wayne reveals what's catching organizations off guard, why authentication methods designed for humans are failing, and what contact centers must do now to prepare for a future where the majority of inbound interactions may not be human at all.
You'll discover:
Why a major US bank's first AI customer call sent shockwaves through the industry
The three blind spots CX leaders can't afford to ignore in 2026
How to build AI customer readiness into your authentication, knowledge systems, and workflows
What "trust between machines" actually means—and why your security team needs to be at the table
TTEC Digital's approach to sandboxing AI customer scenarios before they become chaos
This isn't science fiction. It's happening on contact center floors right now. And if you're not thinking about it yet, you're already behind.
Listen to the full interview to understand the inversion - and what to do about it before your next call arrives.