In a recent episode of The EX Conversation, Kaz, reflects on why that gap still exists — and why 2026 (and beyond) may mark a genuine turning point.
This isn’t about incremental improvement. It’s about whether EX leaders are willing to rethink the model entirely.
1. Incremental progress is no longer enough — and leaders are feeling the drag
Most EX teams would agree they’ve made progress. The narrative has evolved. There’s more recognition of the link between employee and customer experience. The community is stronger, more vocal, and increasingly strategic.
And yet, the lived reality hasn’t caught up.
As Kaz Hassan puts it:
“Employee engagement remains stagnant and so do our budgets… every year it feels like we’ve got this constant battle for tiny investments which we know will make a big difference.”
That tension — between progress in theory and stagnation in practice — is where many EX leaders are stuck. You can build a compelling case. You can point to benchmarks and research. And still find yourself asked to “do more with less” when it matters most.
What’s interesting here is not just the frustration, but the diagnosis. The issue isn’t effort or capability. It’s that the current model of EX — built on incremental gains and marginal improvements — simply isn’t designed to deliver the step-change organizations now expect.
Kaz’s framing is blunt but useful: small wins are being outpaced by bigger structural challenges. And continuing to optimize within that model risks keeping EX permanently in a defensive position.
2. AI will amplify the problem — unless EX leaders use it to redesign the system
There’s a natural instinct to see AI as the long-awaited unlock for EX. More automation. Better personalization. Smarter insights.
But Kaz highlights a more uncomfortable reality: AI could just as easily make a broken system worse.
“In a world where digital workplace fragmentation is already a leading cause of employee dissatisfaction and stress… the introduction of AI stands to compound that problem.”
This is a familiar experience for many teams — layering new tools onto already fragmented environments, hoping each one will solve a specific pain point. Without a rethink of the system itself, complexity increases faster than value.
The shift Kaz is pointing to is more fundamental. Rather than adding AI onto existing experiences, the opportunity is to rebuild around it:
“The Big EX Reset isn’t about incremental improvements… it’s about a new era, rebuilt with AI at the core, not patching AI on top like a plaster.”
In practice, that changes the question from “Where can we use AI?” to “What would EX look like if it were designed around intent, not tools?”
His examples are deliberately practical. A digital front door that anticipates needs. Experiences that reduce friction instead of introducing more steps. Systems that allow employees to act, not just find information.
For EX leaders, the takeaway isn’t that AI solves everything. It’s that it raises the bar. If you don’t rethink the experience, you risk accelerating the very issues you’re trying to solve.
Episode 14: How AI Will Transform Employee Experience with Kaz Hassan
3. The language of value needs to change or EX stays on the margins
Perhaps the most pragmatic shift comes in how EX is positioned internally.
For years, engagement scores, clicks, and participation rates have been the default metrics. They’ve helped tell a story — but not always the story that resonates with senior leadership.
Kaz is clear on this point: that language isn’t enough anymore.
“The new method of employee experience ROI doesn’t attach its value to engagement surveys… we need a new value language anchored in business outcomes.”
This is where many EX leaders hit a wall. It’s not that they don’t see the connection to outcomes — it’s that translating it in a way that lands with CFOs and CEOs is difficult.
The shift he’s describing is grounded in operational reality:
- How much faster are employees completing critical tasks?
- How much friction has been removed from key journeys?
- What does it cost when employees can’t find what they need?
These aren’t new questions, but they represent a different emphasis. Less focus on perception, more focus on performance.
And importantly, they move EX into a conversation leaders are already having.
“These are the numbers the CFO and the CEO talk about, and that’s the conversation we need to be in.”
For teams struggling to secure investment, this isn’t just a measurement challenge — it’s a positioning one.
Why this matters
Taken together, these shifts point to a broader reality: the environment EX leaders are operating in has changed faster than the way EX is being delivered.
Incremental improvements don’t hold up when expectations are higher and resources are tighter. Layering new technology onto fragmented systems creates more noise, not less. And relying on familiar metrics can keep EX disconnected from the decisions that matter most.
What Kaz’s perspective offers isn’t a simple solution — it’s a reframing.
A reframing that accepts:
- You won’t have perfect data before acting
- You may need to rethink the system, not just improve it
- You have to meet leadership in their language if you want to influence outcomes
For experienced EX leaders, none of this is entirely new. But seeing it connected in this way makes the trade-offs clearer — and the urgency harder to ignore.
Want the full conversation?
If this conversation resonated, the full episode of The EX Conversation explores additional themes around AI, DevOps, communication between technical and non-technical teams, and what more human-centered organizations could look like over the next few years.
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