Integration, Price and AI Expertise are Top Criteria for CX Provider Selection

These three priorities offer platform providers more of an advantage than any individual type of channel partner.

Three core criteria are dominating the reasons IT and CX leaders select a service provider—and decide when it’s time to change their providers, according to Metrigy’s Buying Strategies for Communications Services 2026-27 global study of 203 companies.

The three factors — integration capabilities, pricing, and AI expertise — are causing more to lean toward platform providers over any individual type of channel partner. In the past, factors such as managed services, existing relationships, and geographical reach were much more significant.

The research findings document that all types of providers must excel in these areas, but many are not. For example, platform providers often treat integration as a professional-services line item instead of delivering it from within the product itself, while channel partners leave AI expertise to the platform providers because, after all, it’s complicated. At the same time, enterprise decision-makers must re-evaluate their provider to ensure aggressive pricing to accompany increasing demands for integrated platforms, systems, and applications, along with AI expertise.

The value gap nobody’s talking about

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Author(s)

Robin Gareiss