Customer experience (CX) has become a defining factor in how businesses attract and retain customers. But who should your CX team report to?
Companies that prioritize CX are more likely to see higher customer satisfaction, loyalty, and long-term success. However, one major challenge for businesses lies in structuring their CX teams, particularly figuring out who the CX team should report to.
Reporting lines can have a massive impact on the effectiveness of your CX strategy. Should they sit under marketing? Operations? Or perhaps under the CEO’s leadership? Here, we explore the options.
The Role of a Customer Experience Team
First, consider the role of the CX team within your organization. Their job is to develop and execute strategies that enhance the overall experience of your customers, ensuring every touchpoint—from first contact to post-service—is seamless, satisfying, and aligned with your brand promise. To do this effectively, CX teams must have access to key customer data, the authority to implement changes, and the ability to collaborate with various departments.
This broad scope means that where the CX team fits in the organizational structure can influence their visibility, resources, and ability to drive change.
Common Reporting Structures for CX Teams
- Reporting to the CEO
One of the most effective structures is having the CX team report directly to the CEO. This approach sends a clear message that customer experience is a top priority for the business. It also provides the team with the authority and visibility needed to address company-wide issues.
Pros:
- CX becomes a core component of the company’s overall strategy.
- The team has greater influence and faster access to decision-making resources.
- Customer insights can directly reach the highest levels of leadership.
Cons:
- Can be challenging in larger organizations, where the CEO may need to delegate responsibility to other C-suite leaders.
- Reporting to Marketing
Reporting to the marketing team is a common option, especially in organizations where CX is seen as part of building and maintaining brand perception. The CX team and marketing often share goals such as customer engagement, retention, and loyalty.
Pros:
- Creates alignment between customer experience and branding efforts.
- Enhances the ability to use customer insights to create targeted campaigns.
Cons:
- Risks focusing too much on external-facing initiatives (such as advertising) while neglecting internal processes (e.g., customer support or operations).
- Reporting to Operations
For companies with a strong focus on process efficiency, having the CX team under operations may make sense. This is particularly relevant for industries like retail or e-commerce, where operational processes significantly influence customer satisfaction (e.g., checkout speed, delivery times).
Pros:
- Strong focus on streamlining key touchpoints in the customer lifecycle.
- Allows the CX team to directly influence operations that impact the customer journey.
Cons:
- May lack the marketing and branding perspective needed to create cohesive customer experiences.
- Hybrid Reporting Structure
Some organizations take a hybrid approach, where the CX team works across multiple departments and reports to a shared leadership team (e.g., a combination of marketing, operations, and product heads).
Pros:
- Facilitates collaboration between departments to deliver a consistent customer experience.
- Offers flexibility to align CX initiatives with both operational processes and marketing goals.
Cons:
- Can create confusion or delays if there’s no single decision-maker for the CX team.
Key Factors to Consider
When deciding where your CX team should report, it’s important to consider the following:
- Organization Size
- Smaller companies might benefit from having CX report directly to the CEO or a hybrid leadership team.
- Larger organizations may find it more practical to integrate CX under a specific department like marketing or operations.
- Business Goals
Is your focus on driving brand loyalty through exceptional customer engagement? Reporting to marketing might be your best bet. If you’re aiming to streamline processes to reduce friction, operations could be the way to go.
- Industry
Different industries will have different priorities. For example, a SaaS company might need its CX team closely aligned with customer success and marketing, while a retail business might prioritize operational efficiency and logistics.
- Resources
Does the department you’re aligning CX with have the right resources and authority to support the team’s initiatives? For example, marketing may have customer insights but might not control internal processes that affect CX outcomes.
So, Who Should CX Report To?
There’s no one-size-fits-all solution when deciding who your CX team should report to. What matters most is ensuring they have the resources, visibility, and authority needed to make meaningful changes across the organization. Aligning their reporting structure with your business’s unique goals and challenges is key to creating a seamless and impactful customer experience.
Many successful companies ensure that while the CX team officially reports to one department, they have cross-functional responsibilities and open lines of communication with other key areas of the business.
Who does your CX team report to? Let us know in the comments below!
