According to the Genesys release of its Getting Closer to the Customer report, surveying more than 798 senior executives worldwide, 58% of C-level respondents consider the CEO responsible for new customer communications channels like social media and mobile, but only 28 of middle managers agree with their superiors’ assessment, and 38% of those non C-suite executives pinpoint the marketing department as having the ultimate responsibility in this area. The disconnect between top-level and mid-ranking executives might be explained by the novelty factor of social media. Paul Segre, President and CEO of Genesys, says “As companies tackle the demands of delivering a great customer experience across an increasing number of communication channels... delivering an exceptional customer experience requires a comprehensive strategy for emerging mobile and social channels, including how they align and integrate with existing channels, and spanning both marketing and customer service organizations.” When it comes to driving the customer conversation, the marketing department, not customer service or the C-suite, is driving the response to new channels with 44% of executives saying the marketing department has dominated the dialogue between company and customer, says the report. The report also found that 43% of companies only began using social media in the last year and only 11% of businesses have been using social media to communicate with customers for three years or more. Customer Service has not been a priority with new communications channels. Only 42% of organizations use call centers to communicate with customers and just 6% see customer support/service as the main purpose of new communication channels. Additional Findings of Interest: