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CX Files

CX Files

Written by: Mark Hillary and Peter Ryan
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CX Files features your hosts, CX industry analysts Mark Hillary and Peter Ryan, speaking each week to leading analysts, thinkers, and practitioners focused on managing the Customer Experience (CX). In each episode Mark and Peter talk to their guests about the future of CX, the important trends, and what customers really expect from brands today.(C) IT Decisions and Carnaby Content 2018-2026 Economics Management Management & Leadership
Episodes
  • Victor Manzanera - Scale Edge Group - Beyond FTEs – The Road to Outcome-Based BPO Pricing

    Victor Manzanera - Scale Edge Group - Beyond FTEs – The Road to Outcome-Based BPO Pricing
    Oct 15 2026
    CX Files Episode 435: Beyond FTEs – The Road to Outcome-Based BPO Pricing Guest: Victor Manzanera, Founder and Principal Analyst, Scale Edge Group – Oslo, Norway Everyone in the BPO industry is talking about outcome-based pricing, but how do we actually move away from charging for headcount and hours? And is the industry ready for such a fundamental change? In this episode of CX Files, Mark Hillary and Peter Ryan explore the challenges of traditional BPO contracts before Mark interviews Victor Manzanera, founder of Scale Edge Group. Victor has just published The Outcome-Based BPO Model, a 33-page report examining how BPO buyers and suppliers can gradually transition from traditional FTE pricing towards contracts that reward genuine business outcomes. Key discussion points include: Evolution, not revolution: Why outcome-based pricing requires a gradual transition rather than an overnight replacement of FTE contracts. Rethinking KPIs: Why traditional performance metrics often have little connection to the business outcomes clients actually want. Sharing the rewards: How gain-sharing agreements and meaningful bonuses can encourage BPOs to improve efficiency, customer retention, and revenue. The AI incentive problem: Why headcount-based contracts can discourage automation and how new commercial models could accelerate AI adoption. Beyond pricing: Why achieving better outcomes may require different agent skills, training, technology, and operating models. Practical next steps: How buyers can start changing their BPO relationship immediately, even without renegotiating their entire contract. Victor argues that the most important change is not simply how BPOs get paid, but how buyers and suppliers define success and work together to achieve it. The central message: Stop buying people and hours. Start building partnerships focused on business results. Victor's report, The Outcome-Based BPO Model, was published by Scale Edge Group on October 14, 2026, and is freely available through Scale Edge Group - link is below. --- https://www.linkedin.com/in/victor-manzanera/ https://www.scaleedgegroup.com/ https://www.scaleedgegroup.com/outcome-based-bpo-model https://www.linkedin.com/posts/scale-edge-group_bpo-outsourcing-cx-activity-7516022738088640513-BHiE Summary & Overview The discussion examined a gradual shift from FTE pricing to outcome-based BPO relationships, including incentives and prerequisites for adoption. Hybrid Transition Victor argued that pricing and performance measurement can evolve separately: companies can keep FTE contracts while aligning KPIs and incentives to business outcomes.Buyers and BPOs need to agree on the company's actual objectives; excessive or conflicting operational KPIs can obscure results and limit BPO ownership. Incentives and Readiness Bonuses tied to outcomes such as efficiency, first-contact resolution, revenue, or reduced churn can reward BPOs for improvements and support AI adoption.Transaction pricing is most viable with reliable volume forecasts, handle-time data, and contractual volume protections. How can companies without these prerequisites create aligned incentives while retaining FTE pricing?
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    41 mins
  • Peter Ryan - Ten Years of BPO: What Changed, What Didn't, and What Comes Next

    Peter Ryan - Ten Years of BPO: What Changed, What Didn't, and What Comes Next
    Oct 8 2026

    This week, the CX Files turns the tables on co-host Peter Ryan. Ryan Strategic Advisory has just celebrated its tenth anniversary, so Mark Hillary interviews Peter about what he has learned from a decade of advising BPOs, enterprise buyers, governments, and CX leaders around the world.

    Peter looks back at how the industry has changed since 2016 — from the growth of remote and hybrid work to automation, AI, employee experience, and the changing ways companies discover and select CX partners. He also explores the evolution of global delivery locations, including the continued strength of India, the Philippines, South Africa, Egypt, and Mexico, alongside the emergence of markets such as Colombia, Serbia, Kenya, Rwanda, and Ghana.

    The conversation also tackles one of the biggest challenges facing CX today: separating genuine structural change from industry hype. Peter reflects on earlier predictions around IVR, RPA, remote work, and now AI, arguing that technology continues to transform the industry — but the human element remains central.

    Finally, Peter shares some of the lessons he has learned from running an independent advisory business for ten years: the importance of visibility, relationships, investment, resilience, and being present in an industry that is still built around conversations, handshakes, and personal connections.

    https://www.linkedin.com/in/peter-ryan-montreal/

    https://ryanadvisory.com/

    https://ryanadvisory.com/2026/10/06/10-learnings-from-10-years-of-ryan-strategic-advisory/
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    24 mins
  • Victor Botto - TP - Why Kenya Is Ready for the Global CX Stage

    Victor Botto - TP - Why Kenya Is Ready for the Global CX Stage
    Oct 1 2026
    In episode 433 of the CX Files, Mark Hillary talks to Victor Botto, Vice President for Business Development for Sub-Saharan Africa at TP, about why Kenya deserves far more attention as a global CX and BPO location. Victor explains why Kenya's opportunity goes well beyond lower-cost customer service. They discuss the country's highly educated workforce, deep experience in fintech and tourism, its growing technology ecosystem, and the importance of an employee-first culture in building better customer experiences. The conversation also explores the bigger African opportunity. Could establishing CX operations in Kenya give global companies not only a new delivery location, but also valuable experience and insight into one of the world's fastest-growing consumer markets? Topics include: Kenya as an alternative global BPO hub, fintech and M-Pesa, tourism and hospitality expertise, the "Silicon Savannah" technology ecosystem, employee experience, talent development, and Africa's future consumer growth. ------ https://www.linkedin.com/in/victorbotto/ https://www.tp.com/ https://theservicecontinent.substack.com/ ------ Overview / Summary Kenya was presented as a high-value CX and BPO destination whose advantages extend beyond labor cost. Strategic Position Victor described Kenya as a diversification option for companies facing saturation, rising costs, attrition, and talent competition in established hubs.Kenya offers a GMT+3 time zone, C1 English proficiency, cultural familiarity with Western markets, and a BPO career path viewed as desirable by graduates. Sector Expertise Digital experience with M-Pesa supports fintech and digital-wallet service operations through lived understanding of payment issues.Tourism and hospitality experience supports empathetic, flexible customer service for airlines and travel companies.Nairobi's technology ecosystem includes engineering, cloud, automation, AI data operations, fintech, and software development capabilities. Open Questions How quickly can Kenya build market awareness, delivery capacity, specialized accreditation, and infrastructure to compete with mature hubs?Can companies use Kenyan operations as a platform for broader growth in African consumer markets through the Africa Continental Free Trade Area?
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    32 mins
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