Creating Total Value: Connecting experience and performance to drive growth in B2B

B2B customer experience (CX) has reached an inflection point. Accelerating digitization, rising customer expectations and the rapid evolution of AI are reshaping how value is created across complex B2B ecosystems. Traditional differentiators — product depth, contracts and even trusted relationships — are no longer enough on their own.

KPMG’s research reveals a clear pattern. While many organizations continue to invest in digital tools, CX remains fragmented, operationally siloed and difficult to scale. Data is disconnected, journeys are reactive and experience improvements often fail to translate into measurable business impact.

Leading CX organizations are moving ahead by reframing the challenge. They’re connecting Total Experience — customer, employee and partner interactions — with Total Performance — orchestrating operations, data and AI around shared outcomes. The result is Total Value: stronger retention, higher lifetime value and sustained growth.

For CX leaders, this marks a pivotal moment. Those who champion orchestration over ownership are positioning experience as a true growth engine — while setting the pace for what comes next.

Creating Total Value in B2B

Explore how leading B2B organizations are connecting experience, performance and outcomes to drive measurable growth.

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Findings from our research reveal

CX leaders are clear on the stakes, but execution is uneven

B2B CX leaders believe organizations that embrace AI will gain a competitive edge.

Agentic AI is moving from concept to reality

58% report significant or extensive use of autonomous systems and another 61% are actively implementing agentic AI.

Data fragmentation remains the biggest barrier to CX excellence

66% say data access, quality and management are the most significant challenges to delivering a seamless experience.

Experience is shifting from touchpoints to outcomes

B2B CX leaders are increasingly measuring success through customer lifetime value, retention, adoption and profitability — not satisfaction alone.

Complex buying dynamics demand orchestration, not silos

B2B purchases now involve several stakeholders, increasing the need for coordinated end-to-end engagement.

In the very near future, value will no longer be derived from experiences delivered by a single function — or even a single company – but from highly proactive, personalized experiences delivered by an ecosystem focused on shared customer outcomes.

Walt Becker

Global Customer CoE Lead

KPMG International

Strategic recommendations for B2B CX leaders

Research shows that leading B2B CX leaders aren’t making incremental tweaks to their business. They are fundamentally reframing CX as a growth discipline, guided by a set of six clear strategic priorities.

Build AI-augmented capabilities

Move beyond automation toward AI that actively supports hybrid customer journeys.
Unify experience around value streams and journeys

Integrated value streams to enable coordinated action across marketing, sales, service and success.
Evolve the CX measurement model

Leaders are expanding measurements to include trust, value realization and journey performance.
Create a culture of orchestration, not ownership

CX leaders are championing shared goals, cross-functional collaboration and intelligent routing to bring the right intervention at the right moment.
Prioritize digital empathy and emotional design

Emotional awareness, clarity and transparency are being embedded into digital experiences to reinforce trust in moments that matter.
Champion customer outcomes, not just experiences

Success is increasingly defined by growth, retention and transformation — not satisfaction alone.

Explore our latest thinking

A benchmark study now in its 16th year, CEE captures perspectives from over 80,000 consumers across 16 markets worldwide.

As “agentic AI” transforms business processes and functions, we believe that the outperformers will balance their adoption of evolving technologies with a relentless focus on humans — especially customers.

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