Meet the Finalists
Winners announced June 25th
We’re thrilled to reveal the finalists for this year’s Inspiring Women in CX Awards 2025!
These remarkable individuals have been recognised for their outstanding contributions to the world of Customer Experience, breaking boundaries, leading with empathy, and lifting others as they rise.
Chosen from more than 500 nominations around the globe, our finalists represent the very best of women in CX — from innovative change-makers to passionate advocates, and trailblazing leaders making a real impact in their organisations and communities.
Congratulations to all our finalists!
Meet the Collaboration Finalists
In recognition of the women who value collaboration over competition and bring people together to achieve great things. Whether uniting colleagues across different functions, bridging silos, or fostering partnerships beyond their own teams, these women demonstrate the power of cross-functional collaboration to deliver exceptional outcomes and drive meaningful change.
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A seasoned Customer Experience and Banking Executive with over 20 years in leadership. Formerly a Vice President at Absa Bank Kenya, she is currently the Divisional Head of Customer Experience at M-Gas Ltd, where she drives the Customer Experience Strategy. She has led large teams, managed complex cross-functional projects across Africa, and spearheaded initiatives that improved customer satisfaction, operational resilience, and revenue growth. Anita is passionate about a human centered approach and recognized for her execution-driven mindset, ability to lead high-impact transformation, coaching Teams and Individuals.
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Lisa is a seasoned CX professional at RS Group. Leading the global Voice of the Customer (VoC) programme, Lisa excels in breaking down silos and fostering collaboration across diverse teams. Her unwavering commitment to enhancing customer experience has led to significant improvements in satisfaction and engagement. With a strategic vision and inclusive approach, Lisa delivers actionable insights and drives business performance, creating a customer-centric and data-driven organisation.
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Dr. Liz Okuma is a seasoned executive with a higher education and philanthropy background. As VP of Student Affairs and Athletics, she enhanced student experiences and institutional excellence. At the American Endowment Foundation, she leads client experience efforts, aligning business strategy with meaningful engagement. Her work fosters trust and advances a client-centric approach focused on ease, responsiveness, and long-term impact. A thoughtful coach and collaborator, Liz is a strategist and change agent driving transformation.
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Naketrice Snow is the Director of People Experience (PX) for Mohegan, a global entertainment and gaming organization with over 10,000 team members. In her role, Naketrice develops strategies and initiatives to enhance team member & guest experiences. Additionally, she oversees the internal communications team and manages the Corporate People Team vendor partnerships. Ultimately, Naketrice's leadership fosters a strong organizational culture that supports our brand, and business results.
Prior to Mohegan, Naketrice worked for hospitality brands including Waldorf, Hilton and Starwood in various CX leadership roles.
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Rachel is a seasoned insight and customer experience expert and a Certified Customer Experience Professional (CCXP), recognised for her expertise in designing and implementing strategies that enhance customer relationships. With decades of experience spanning multiple industries and markets worldwide, she helps clients to design smart customer metrics, optimise experiences, and embed customer-centric thinking.
Rachel has spent her career committed to upholding the highest standards in insight and research. A proud Certified Member of the Market Research Society, she recently chaired the 2025 MRS CX|UX|MR conference.
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Rhea is a Senior User Researcher at Westminster City Council. Alongside her work in the Council, she is a PhD candidate exploring the employment rights of care workers in the UK. Her focus areas are service transformations, digital design and experience, and strategic recommendations. She is passionate about harnessing her research expertise to deliver exceptional customer experiences.
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Sarah has spent the last 20 years helping businesses take better care of their customers. She’s worked with hospitals, private equity-backed companies, & municipalities, making sure the experience they deliver keeps people coming back.
She spent 11 years in patient experience. Four years in private equity, leading customer experience.
Now, she runs Cupola CX, a consulting firm that helps businesses improve how they serve their customers. She focuses on making the experience better for both customers & employees—driving loyalty & revenue.
Sarah lives in South Bend with her husband & 3 teenage sons.
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Sarah has 20 years of experience in CX and the automotive industry. As an Automotive Lead for Kantar UK's CX team, she is passionate about using her knowledge to drive CX impact and growth.
Meet the Culture Finalists
Celebrating women who have fostered a positive organisational culture, prioritising inclusivity, psychological safety, and employee well-being. These women have created environments where people feel empowered to thrive and do their best work. Because as we know, EX greatly impacts CX.
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Alma Angela Olela is a seasoned customer experience leader with over 16 years of experience transforming service cultures and driving business growth. Passionate about building customer-centric organisations, she empowers teams to deliver meaningful, human-first experiences that inspire loyalty and trust. Known for her inclusive leadership and strategic clarity, Alma is helping shape the future of CX in Africa through bold innovation, empathy, and purpose-driven transformation.
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Dr. Hui Wu-Curtis is an executive who specializes in contact center operations. She has over 20 years of experience in leadership roles across multiple industries including hospitality, utilities, healthcare, financial services, technology, and telecommunications. Hui is a forward-thinking innovator and thought leader for customer experience and has worked with organizations to transform their customer service, sales, and technical support teams. She has published CX articles, a speaker, and participated in numerous industry webinars and podcasts.
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Emma Watson is a passionate CX and digital marketing leader with a wealth of experience working with key brands using a human-centred approach. As a Senior Strategy Director at Kantar, Emma is constantly working with high-performing brands to identify and drive growth opportunities, combining impactful insights with consulting and activation skills across industries. Emma's skillset allows her to lead and coach teams, design global strategies that drive transformation and, help brands strive for impactful experiences.
Isabelle Angeon
Quality and Training Manager
Westminster City Council
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A dynamic, resourceful, and enthusiastic education, employment and skills professional with unique interpersonal skills and the ability to embrace and promote change, I lead under pressure and my contagious positive outlook and hard work help to keep learners, clients and colleagues enthused, motivated, and inspired.
I believe in transformative journeys, and I have a clear VISION of the contribution education, training and employment make to people’s lives and the drive to make it happen.
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Service Design Expert at Santander Bank with over 8 years of experience in customer experience and journey management. Previously worked at the consulting agency Fuzers. I combine research, strategy, and facilitation to improve CX and EX across complex organizations. Author of a bestselling practical guide to Customer Journey Mapping. I help teams break silos, act with empathy, and turn insight into action—because CX is everyone’s job.
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Sarah Caminiti is a strategic CX leader, retention expert, and host of The Career Strategist podcast. As Manager of Customer Support at Tailscale, she builds scalable, people-first systems that drive loyalty and growth. Known for challenging industry norms and mentoring the next generation of CX leaders, Sarah combines operational clarity with human insight—transforming how teams are built, voices are heard, and careers are defined.
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Stephanie Swan is a passionate champion of customer experience and service culture, currently serving as the Service Engagement Manager at NCBA Group. She is deeply committed to creating an environment where individuals feel seen, supported, and motivated to thrive—making customer obsession not just a value, but a lived experience.
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A senior global Customer Experience leader at SCIEX, a Danaher Company, since 2014. With 25+ years in Life Sciences, she has lead teams in sales, technical support, Market Development, and CX. She holds a PhD in Chemistry and Biochemistry and began her career as a researcher and professor at the University of Barcelona. Passionate about customer-centricity, she leads global teams to enhance CX and drive growth. She champions Diversity, Equity & Inclusion. Susanna combines expertise in CX, a commitment to DE&I, and a genuine desire to help others to succeed, empowering them and driving meaningful impact.
Meet the Inclusion Finalists
In recognition of the women who champion intersectional diversity, equity, and inclusion. These women have thought beyond the boundaries of their own identity and advocated for the rights of those who are marginalised. They inspire others through activism, going beyond lip service to take action and create a better world.
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Candace Powell is a CX leader specialising in measurement, co-design, facilitation and business analysis. She works with clients and teams to develop solutions that reflect client, community and sector needs. She balances analytical rigor with practical insights and pragmatism, ensuring engagement strategies are effective, responsive, sustainable and result in positive experiences. She helps build capability in evidence-based decision-making, how to demonstrate and contextualise outcomes, and elevate the organisation’s reputation. Candace empowers organisations to deliver meaningful and lasting impact.
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Christine is a disability and age-inclusive inclusive researcher, designer, and innovator. She founded and leads Open Inclusion, which is based in the UK, operating globally. Open is a global leader in disability and age-informed market, social, design and innovation research with specific expertise in emerging technologies, consumer experiences and inclusive brand communications. She teaches disability-inclusive research at the Institute of People-Centred AI, Uni of Surrey as part of their doctoral course on AI for digital media inclusion.
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I don’t take on easy fights. I’m a C-suite leader and strategist with 15+ years’ experience helping people lead where safety, justice, and dignity are on the line—inside £200 million boardrooms, through war and displacement, and in frontline struggles for justice. I’ve worked with Sodexo, Cancer Research UK, and the British Red Cross, and supported people facing conflict, discrimination, and erasure in some of the world’s most powerful institutions. Whether they’re rebuilding from conflict or speaking up in rooms built to silence them, my work helps them not just survive hard systems—but out-strategise them.
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A CX strategist and cultural advocate, I lead with empathy, systems thinking, and a deep commitment to inclusion. With over a decade of experience spanning Fortune 500 brands, accessibility innovation, and inclusive marketing, I build human-centered strategies that connect design, technology, and culture. I amplify underrepresented voices and champion intersectional equity because real change happens when everyone has a seat and a voice that's heard at the table.
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Keishla Ceaser-Jones is a customer success leader with over 20 years of success and sales experience. She serves as Managing Director of Partner Success at EAB. She is focused on delivering value to partners and helping them achieve their business goals.
With expertise in onboarding, implementation, lifecycle management, and retention, she empowers teams to drive outcomes for partners that lead to overall business success. Keishla believes in building strong and inclusive collaboration within and across teams, including product, marketing, sales, implementation, and technical support to drive a cohesive GTM strategy.
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Lara Husselbee [she/her] is an enthusiastic CX Leader and facilitator who is driven by the belief that a little bit of empathy can go a long way. Over a 15-year career, in sectors like Financial Services, Health, Tech, Gov, Hospitality and Not-For-Profit, her consulting practice uses HCD, CX, Design Thinking, Agile and Learning Development methodologies to help brands uplift and deliver exceptional and inclusive customer and employee experiences.
Her expertise has seen her make impactful contributions to brands across the globe, including India, the US, South Africa, Iceland, the UK, and across Australia.
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Natasha den Dekker is currently a Lead UX Researcher within financial services. Her role is focussed on developing and carrying out research across within the organization. As well as supporting her team with global research. Prior to this she worked at LexisNexis, working across current products and the new development of products. She has also worked at varying agencies as a User Research consultant focussed on improving digital services for different government departments across the English government and abroad. Natasha has also worked as information professional in the NHS and a librarian at Microsoft.
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Stine Marsal is a sociologist and inclusion strategist specialising in customer and employee experience. As former Nordic Director of the Hidden Disabilities Sunflower, she helped over 500 companies improve accessibility. Today, she leads InklusioNordic, a platform for inclusive training and community learning, co-created with NGOs. Stine combines lived experience with strategic insight to help organisations unlock business value by removing hidden barriers and designing for diversity.
Meet the Innovation Finalists
This is for women who have introduced groundbreaking ideas, methodologies, or technologies in CX. These innovators have pushed boundaries, solved complex challenges, and shaped the industry's future with their creative problem-solving.
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Alma Angela Olela is a seasoned customer experience leader with over 16 years of experience transforming service cultures and driving business growth. Passionate about building customer-centric organisations, she empowers teams to deliver meaningful, human-first experiences that inspire loyalty and trust. Known for her inclusive leadership and strategic clarity, Alma is helping shape the future of CX in Africa through bold innovation, empathy, and purpose-driven transformation.
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Passionate about driving meaningful change for both company and customers by designing customer journeys that encompass ease, trust and empathy across all touchpoints. Currently working with AIB as Customer Experience Design Manager and previously Customer Experience Strategy Manager at Electric Ireland. My qualifications and experience extend across CX, UX, Customer Psychology, Digital marketing and training. I am customer obsessed!
Customer-Centric Marketing Leader
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Charlotte is a passionate marketing leader who builds and scales customer-centric teams, programs, and strategies that drive real business outcomes. She specialises in turning customer insight into action — influencing product strategy, strengthening brand loyalty, and amplifying advocacy. With a focus on breaking silos and putting customer needs at the heart of decision-making, Charlotte champions a more human, connected approach to marketing in global tech organisations.
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Emma Watson is a passionate CX and digital marketing leader with a wealth of experience working with key brands using a human-centred approach. As a Senior Strategy Director at Kantar, Emma is constantly working with high-performing brands to identify and drive growth opportunities, combining impactful insights with consulting and activation skills across industries. Emma's skillset allows her to lead and coach teams, design global strategies that drive transformation and, help brands strive for impactful experiences.
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Self-confessed Customer Contact Quality nerd Helen is keenly interested in how we forge and ultimately improve human connections.
Helen has spent the past decade immersed in the Quality Frameworks of some of the world’s biggest brands—always thinking about what could be better for our customers, our businesses, and our people.
She is passionate about human-centric training, coaching, and leadership. Helen brings years of experience in the design, implementation, and management of multilingual, meaningful Quality & CX programmes, Training, Coaching, & SaaS solutions for some of the world’s largest brands.
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Patrícia Osorio is a serial entrepreneur and investor passionate about building customer-centric companies. She is the co-founder and Chief Customer Officer of Birdie.ai, a feedback analytics platform that uses AI to help companies uncover the root causes behind customer dissatisfaction, churn, and inefficiencies—turning unstructured data into actionable insights.
Beyond Birdie, Patrícia is a co-founder and board member of GVAngels, one of Brazil’s most active angel investment groups, supporting the next generation of tech startups.
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Paula Kennedy Garcia is a CX design and innovation leader with 25 years in BPO, known for driving future-focused strategies at the intersection of technology, AI, and customer experience. An award-winning executive and Forbes Technology Council contributor, she has led transformative work across digital health, online safety, adaptive learning, and the gig economy. A 2024 TEDx speaker and global thought leader, Paula champions inclusive, human-led innovation that empowers the next generation and reshapes the future of work and service.
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Shannon Knowlton, Voice of the Customer Manager at Selective Insurance, leverages eight years of customer experience expertise to analyze satisfaction and foster loyalty. She directs the Customer Survey Initiative, overseeing eight key surveys and driving organizational enhancements. Shannon's skills include facilitating DiSC workshops, conducting relationship surveys, journey mapping, and championing employee engagement. She holds an MS in Customer Experience Management from the Eli Broad College of Business at Michigan State University and a BA in Sociology from Centenary University.
Meet the Solopreneur of the Year Finalists
This award recognises women running their own CX businesses who are making a significant impact. These solopreneurs embody entrepreneurial spirit, resilience, and innovation, demonstrating success through their unique contributions to the CX industry. They inspire others by overcoming challenges, driving growth, and delivering meaningful results for their clients, all while staying true to their vision.
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Amélie Beerens is a CX/EX strategist and leadership coach helping ambitious leaders stop winging it and start leading in a way that actually works—for their team and for themselves. She blends business strategy with coaching to build systems rooted in alignment, confidence, and influence. Through her Brazen Leaders Incubator, podcast, and daily content, she helps women lead boldly—without burning out or selling themselves short.
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Voted Global CX Leader of the Year 2024, I have helped global brands like IKEA, Pandora, du.ae, Bang & Olufsen and Svenska Spel among orhers turn CX into a real growth engine. With 25 years in digital innovation, I deliver strategies that align CX, EX, and UX, break silos, and embed AI where it adds value. As Founder of The Outcome Store, I work with executives to transform how businesses operate—building customer-led strategies that stick and upskilling teams to run them. CX isn’t a cost. It’s your most powerful driver of retention, revenue, and relevance—if you do it right.
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Erin Helcl is the founder of New Helio, a boutique consultancy focused on customer and employee experience strategy, service design, and leadership development. With over 20 years of experience leading transformation in complex industries, Erin now partners with organizations to design more human, impactful experiences. She’s also an instructor at the University of Toronto and a passionate mentor to early-career professionals and entrepreneurs—helping them grow with clarity, creativity, and purpose.
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Jannecke Drangert-Hveding, CCXP, is a firm believer in the “outside-in” approach to strategy. She is CEO of Customer C and founder of The Customer Community, a network for CX leaders in Norway. Named a top 25 global CXM influencer in 2025, she brings deep experience as an advisor, board member, and former Strategy & Transformation Lead in Scandinavian health tech. Jannecke now focuses on supporting, advising, and connecting leaders to drive customer-centric transformation across industries.
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Katie is a passionate customer experience (CX) thought leader, advocate, and best-selling author who has over a decade of experience transforming businesses through customer-centric strategies.
She has worked across industries worldwide, from major financial institutions to local non-profits, helping organisations create meaningful, human-centred experiences.
Katie is a host of the CX Awards and the author of the book CX-ISM. She also co-authored Amazon’s #1 best-seller Customer Experience 2, and has been recognised as one of the top 20 global CX thought leaders year after year.
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With 20+ years of international experience in customer experience, marketing and manager roles, Marleen van Wijk, CCXP, helps companies to build, improve and drive customer strategies.
As managing director of eCXperience, a customer experience management consultancy and training firm, she currently helps companies to better connect to customers by using an integrated approach that is based on years of practical experience.
Marleen is a passionate CX believer, an energetic trainer and communicator, hands-on and challenging organizations to create a fact-based customer centric culture.
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Natalia is an executive and leadership coach with a flair for uplifting ambitious women in tech and customer experience, guiding them to lead with confidence and define success on their own terms. Her career stretches from showbiz to cybersecurity in B2B and B2C arenas, where she’s helped steer companies through tricky acquisitions, demergers, and the rollercoaster of imposter syndrome and career transitions.
A self-confessed lifelong learner, Natalia champions action-oriented, non-hierarchical leadership. She believes that the best workplaces make room for emotional growth, genuine vulnerability, and big ambitions.
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Sarah is the Founder of Sukses Today, a consultancy helping Web3, AI and emerging tech companies scale through customer experience and operational excellence. With 14 years’ experience in SaaS and 4 years' experience in Web3, AI and emerging tech, Sarah specialises in building customer-first foundations that drive sustainable growth. She is passionate about educating founders on embedding CX at the earliest stages and bridging the gap between complex technology and human-centred customer journeys.
Meet the Rising Star Finalists
This is in recognition of the women in the pipeline of up-and-coming industry talent who are set for a bright future ahead. These women inspire others by role-modelling the Women in CX values of courage, collaboration, inclusivity, authenticity, and audacity and are taking bold steps to shape their careers in their own way, on their own terms.
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Alex specializes in CX Insights and Strategy for the Retail sector. From the moment she took a Market Research course in undergrad, she knew consumer insights and CX was her passion. Starting her CX career as a Consumer Insights Intern, she has successfully progressed CX maturity at a number of Fortune 500 retailers through impressive CX insights, storytelling, and strategy skills. Always striving to connect dots and "tell the whole story," Alex helps organizations and stakeholders think about and understand customers from a holistic point of view – not just through one lens.
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Currently serving as Customer Experience Design Manager at AIB, one of Ireland’s largest banks. With a dynamic background in retail, training, and digital marketing I aim to bring a unique blend of customer insight, strategy, and innovation to every role. I am passionate about human-centered design, CX psychology, and driving customer-first thinking across organizations i continue to strive to shape the future of CX through empathy, strategy, and continuous learning.
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Customer Experience Manager at a female health D2C start-up, blending science and strategy to deliver impactful, customer-led innovation. A Registered Nutritionist with a BSc in Human Nutrition and MSc in Business, I bring 10+ years in customer-facing roles and a deep passion for Health and Wellness. From mentoring others in CX to leading product development through customer insights, I’m committed to building inclusive, meaningful experiences that drive loyalty, access, and change, one conversation at a time.
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Cheyna Gant-Logan is the Manager of Customer Operations at Blue Zones Health, where she leads the organization’s first contact center with a focus on compassion, structure, and impact. Known for her people-first approach, Cheyna has built a remote team culture rooted in service excellence, operational efficiency, and patient trust. With a background spanning healthcare, project coordination, and systems development, she is passionate about transforming frontline service into a space for connection, growth, and change.
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Claire is a CX consultant, speaker, and founder of The Customer Connexion, where she uses storytelling and humor to make customer experience more relatable and impactful. She’s worked across the US and Australia with leading brands to design better experiences for customers and frontline staff. As Senior Manager of the Voice of Customer program at a major Australian supermarket, she turns feedback into insight that drives store strategy. She’s known for her contagious enthusiasm—and sparking customer-centric change across organizations. Claire is a CX consultant, speaker, and founder of The Customer Connexion, where she uses storytelling and humor to make customer experience more relatable and impactful. She’s worked across the US and Australia with leading brands to design better experiences for customers and frontline staff. As Senior Manager of the Voice of Customer program at a major Australian supermarket, she turns feedback into insight that drives store strategy. She’s known for her contagious enthusiasm—and sparking customer-centric change across organizations.
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Corinne is a strategic CX specialist with 20+ years' experience across industries including retail, financial services, utilities, hospitality, and higher education. She specialises in turning complex challenges into clear, customer-focused strategies that drive transformation. At Waitrose, she established the first customer journey mapping function, gaining senior backing and shifting the business toward greater customer-centricity. Corinne shares insights through LinkedIn and professional networks to elevate CX across sectors.
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CX leader and behavioral strategist passionate about designing human-centered products, services, and experiences. As Head of Customer Experience at Magnum Insight, she leads strategy across multiple touchpoints—fusing psychology, service design, and tech to shape how people engage and stay loyal. She’s built CX systems from scratch, optimized journeys, and mentored future leaders, proving that when women lead with empathy and structure, experiences transform.
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Jasmine is an Enterprise Customer Success Manager with nearly two decades of experience in customer-facing roles, spanning pharma, medtech, and SaaS. Known for blending operational excellence with creative storytelling, she’s become a sought-after speaker, content creator, and conference correspondent in the CX space. From leading strategic onboarding programs to amplifying frontline voices at events like Gainsight Pulse and Rocketlane Propel, Jasmine is reshaping what leadership and visibility look like in Customer Success.
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Joanne is a passionate customer experience professional with a knack for turning empathy into strategy. From starting as a customer service intern to becoming Salesperson of the Year and building a CX department from scratch across multiple countries, she’s driven by a deep belief that putting customers first transforms businesses. With a background spanning real estate and insurance, Joanne blends insight, innovation, and heart to create experiences that inspire loyalty and drive growth.
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Kajol is a Customer Experience Strategy Leader with over 8 years of experience driving growth and innovation across FTSE100 and NASDAQ-listed brands. She specialises in helping B2C organisations deliver omnichannel transformation and next-generation customer strategies -building new propositions, experiences and products using human centred design with commercial strategy, from idea to launch. Kajol has been recognised for her impact in mentoring the next generation of CX leaders, being awarded Top 100 Women in Tech 2020, MCA Young Consultant of the Year 2021 and Women of the Future 2024 – Tech & Digital runner up.
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Kylie Moskevich is a seasoned consumer insights leader with over 10 years of experience in market research, customer experience strategy, and data-driven storytelling. She currently leads Voice of Customer initiatives at Westfield Insurance, helping the organization understand and act on customer needs. Kylie is known for bridging qualitative and quantitative insights to drive strategic decisions and improve business outcomes.
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Maureen Ndegwa is a Customer Experience (CX) Leader with over a decade of experience in transforming customer journeys, driving service innovation, and building customer-first cultures across the financial services sector.
Maureen plays a pivotal role in shaping strategy, embedding customer obsession into organizational DNA, & translating insights into action.
A passionate advocate for data-driven CX, Maureen has spearheaded the design and implementation of Voice of the Customer programs, Quality Assurance systems, and closed-loop feedback mechanisms.
Recognized as the 2024 CX Warrior of the Year - 1st Runners Up.
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Head of Online Customer Experience at Westminster City Council, I lead award-winning digital transformation in local government. With a background in cloud consulting, I’ve spent seven years delivering services that put people first — from scaling AI-powered platforms to designing with residents at the heart. I’m passionate about inclusive innovation, mentoring future leaders, and reshaping public services to be fairer, faster and more human.
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Shaheen Qureshi is a passionate and purpose-driven Customer Experience professional at CIPD Middle East. She connects strategy with empathy across client engagement, sales, events, and support. Known for her proactive mindset, she’s led webinars, hosted podcasts, and represented CIPD at fairs and awards. Her focus on enhancing experiences and brand visibility reflects her leadership and growing impact in the CX and HR space.
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Vaishali Dialani is a bold leader reshaping global CX with a deep commitment to inclusivity, authenticity, and collaboration. A multi-award-winning strategist and human-centered design advocate, she’s revolutionizing complex digital products and services across education, healthcare, manufacturing, and fintech. Her work creates lasting business transformations, combining innovation with strategy to drive measurable impact. Beyond her expertise, she is a passionate mentor, shaping the future of CX by inspiring and empowering the next generation of professionals to lead with purpose.
Meet the Woman in Tech Finalists
This category honours women working in technology vendors or providers who are transforming the CX landscape through cutting-edge solutions. These women are driving innovation, enhancing customer and employee experiences, and showcasing the power of technology to solve complex challenges. Their work is shaping the future of CX by making technology more effective and impactful.
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Ali B. leads Forsta's Global Analytics practice. Previously, she led custom Text Analytics and Social Media Insights for Nielsen and the Harris Poll. Since 2008, Ali has pioneered advancements in sentiment, emotion, and unstructured data analysis, bridging client and supplier sides across numerous industries. Utilizing NLP, NLU, and GenAI, she designs hybrid methodologies to drive actionable insights. Ali emphasizes integrating unstructured with structured analyses for the most comprehensive human understanding. She speaks on actioning text and speech analytics across the globe.
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Alma is a dynamic leader with multifaceted expertise in transforming customer success within complex organizational frameworks. Passionate about driving positive change that impacts both employees and customers, she serves as the Head of Enterprise and Public Sector Customer Success at Qualtrics, where she plays a key role in enhancing the internal operating model and implementing organizational changes to drive efficiency and business results. Alma has received honors such as EMEA Customer Success Representative of the Year and ranked as a Top 10 Global Contributor. She holds an MBA from INSEAD.
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As an Enterprise Account Executive at Quiq with over a decade in conversational AI, I combine my expertise with a background in sociocultural anthropology to explore how humans and technology co-evolve. This perspective enables me to guide enterprises through strategic transformations, ensuring that technological advancements enhance human work processes. My approach demystifies complex AI concepts, making them accessible and actionable, and fosters seamless collaboration between humans and intelligent systems. As a mom of 3 young children, I stay busy balancing professional and family life.
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Caroline Fox is a sales professional based in the North East of England, who has 12+ years of expertise selling software to enterprise businesses which have included: Virgin Atlantic, Inditex Group, Lloyds Banking Group, Nuffield Health, EY, and NEXT. With a BA (Hons) in English from the University of Leeds, Caroline’s passion for the power of words and communication has proved foundational in all her roles, from estate agency branch manager for a national chain, via IT recruitment, to her current focus on software sales. Caroline is also the co-chair of her current organisation’s women’s network ERG.
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Cheryl Hodgkinson is the Chief Product Officer at Kauz.ai, where she has been driving innovation for nearly seven years. With a background in linguistics, she has led both the Development and Customer Success teams and played a key role in shaping strategic initiatives with marketing and sales. Her cross-functional expertise directly influences Kauz.ai’s product strategy, ensuring that innovation is aligned with customer needs and market demands.
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Christine Ramsey is a results-driven professional with extensive experience in telecommunications and customer experience. Passionate about delivering innovative solutions, she has a proven track record of driving business growth and operational excellence. Known for her leadership, strategic vision, and commitment to team development, Christine consistently delivers impactful results. Her expertise spans [specific skills or areas of focus], making her a dynamic and influential presence in her field.
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Erin Toth is a pioneering force in conversational AI and customer interaction technology, currently serving as AI and Automation Advisory Manager at Glia. With extensive expertise in conversational design and AI implementation, she supports the transformation of customer service through Glia's AI Contact Center Platform.
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Experienced and highly motivated multi-lingual professional dedicated to customer experience and success, business value, strategic alignment, and communication. Skilled in building long-term, trusted relationships with clients and partners. Accomplished manager adept at applying problem-solving and decision-making skills to drive business outcomes, adoption and expansions. Enthusiastic about innovation and a community builder at heart, ensuring customers maximize their investment and value through successful business transformational projects.
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Judy is known as an innovative Customer Experience leader with a passion for process improvement, driving change, and designing connected omni-channel experiences. She has served in various CX leadership roles, including supporting both B2B and B2C programs, where she delivered quantifiable results that were industry recognized for their innovation. Judy is an Industry Executive Advisor at Medallia, focusing on Financial Service, and consulting with global brands to deepen and grow their CX programs, share best practices and thought leadership.
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Justyna Jakubek – a consultant and low-code solutions developer with experience at the intersection of technology and business. She specializes in implementing CRM systems and contact center solutions, supporting organizations in automating their sales processes, customer service, and internal operations. By combining analytical thinking with a practical approach to designing and deploying low-code systems, she effectively guides clients through digital transformation.
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Kat Stroud is a Senior CX Consultant at Forsta, a leading company in customer experience solutions. With extensive experience in the field for 12+ years, Kat specialises in helping organisations develop and enhance their customer experience programmes. Kat is known for her strategic approach to customer experience, emphasising the importance of leveraging the right technology and ensuring that CX initiatives are aligned to business goals. She enjoys understanding each business, building strong relationships with clients and advising on customer experience best practices.
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Lisa Rentrop is the CEO of zenloop, a CX Action Management Platform. Originally from Sweden with a Master’s degree in Chemical Engineering she brings over 20 years of tech industry experience. Before joining zenloop in late 2023, Lisa has held leadership positions at NEW WORK SE as well as founded and led a startup. Together with CTPO Ali Shaheen, she’s spearheading zenloop’s transformation with AI at its core through the development of zenloop 2.0. Lisa is recognized for her entrepreneurial mindset, team-building expertise, and customer-centric approach to innovation.
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Lori Neisel has nearly three decades of leading large scale strategic business and technology and transformations. She is a seasoned professional currently serving as the Director of Digital and Technology Product at American Family Insurance. In her role, Lori is responsible for delivering optimal technology and services that enhance the experiences of customers, agents, partners, and employees. She oversees the contact center shared services digital and technology product organization, which includes product management, program oversight, project delivery, and continuous improvement.
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Shameem is a recognised expert in CCaaS & Contact Center technology. With a strong focus on Customer & Employee Experience, she drives innovation while fostering a culture of empowerment and inclusion. She places people at the heart of technology, bridging business and systems with purpose. A committed DEI advocate and Women in Tech champion, she supports shifting mindsets and building inclusive leadership across individuals, teams, and organisations.
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I’m an experienced executive specializing in client experience, with a strong track record in driving retention, reducing churn, and building lasting partnerships. My focus on understanding client needs and delivering consistently high-quality service has helped fuel long-term business growth.
I have deep experience in mergers and acquisitions, particularly in team and culture integration. I’ve led seamless transitions that protect client relationships while aligning internal teams around shared goals.
Meet the Leader of the Year Finalists
This award recognises women who are at the forefront of leading customer experience and technology. These women inspire us by role-modelling the Women in CX values of courage, collaboration, inclusivity, authenticity, and audacity. They are highly influential within their organisations, among their colleagues, and across the wider community. These women have demonstrated a tangible impact on business performance through the CX initiatives they have led and are undoubtedly paving the way for others to succeed through their commitment to the development of others.
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With over 25 years of experience leading customer-focused transformation, Alison is passionate about redesigning services around the real needs of people. She takes a human-centric, strategic approach—combining empathy, agility, and innovation to deliver meaningful change. Whether improving everyday customer journeys or empowering teams to lead differently, she is driven by the belief that better experiences start from within. Alison champions bold thinking, collaboration, and continuous learning to create lasting impact for customers and colleagues alike.
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Amy Sessions is a seasoned CX leader with over 30 years in customer service, operations, and team development across brands like Disney, HunterDouglas, and the City of Clearwater. As an AuDHD professional, she brings a unique lens to problem-solving, people leadership, and process design. Known for leading with authenticity, strategy, and humor, Amy creates systems that work and cultures that thrive. She believes in empowering teams, improving the customer journey, and fixing what’s broken—with clarity, compassion, and a solution already in hand.
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A self-described Octopus, Daphne Akatugba is the Group Head, Customer Experience at The Alternative Bank who is committed to creating simple, seamless and rewarding experience for her customers.
She has spent the last 5 years overseeing Customer Success, Customer Service, Customer Marketing, CX Measurement and believes that grooming leaders and impacting lives is the most rewarding part of her work.
She was recently recognized as one of the top 100 Leading Women in Finance in Nigeria.
Outside of the office, Daphne enjoys binging on documentaries, puzzle games and spending time with family.
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Liz Okomba is the Group Director of Customer Experience at Equity Group Holdings, driving African financial services transformation. Beginning her career in aviation at Virgin Atlantic Airways, she joined banking in 2012, pioneering CX at CBA and NIC banks before orchestrating their merger. Liz has championed award-winning customer experience programs and large-scale digital transformations. Named 2024 CX Leader of the Year and among Africa's Top 45 Women in Digital Transformation, she has earned multiple industry awards. She is a Success Coach and Autism awareness advocate.
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Ewa is a seasoned CX lead, with over 15 years of experience in the industry.
Ewa gained her extensive experience across a wide variety of sectors (technology, , finance, professional services) and methodologies (brand and ad tracking, customer engagement, pricing, and platform-based CX) working with clients such as Lloyds Banking Group, HSBC and Nationwide Building Society.
Ewa’s success is based on her ability to facilitate communication with stakeholders at all levels internally to deliver complex CX programmes effectively with maximum demonstrable benefit to the business and its customers.
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Faith Toyambi is the Head of Customer Operations at Carepay (MTIBA), a trailblazing health tech company transforming healthcare access in Kenya, with its headquarters in the Netherlands. She leads the Kenyan customer operations team, championing seamless and impactful experiences across the customer journey.
With over 22 years of expertise in customer experience and a strong foundation in business administration, Faith is passionate about aligning customer service strategies with organizational growth. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Kenya Methodist University and is pursuing her MBA at Strathmore Business School.
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Laura O'Toole is a passionate and visionary leader in Customer Experience (CX). Her Customer Experience vision is very clear to make journeys easier and more accessible for every customer.
Laura’s innovative approach has set new standards in inclusivity, employee empowerment, and customer experience excellence. She cultivates a culture of empathy and empowerment within her team, inspiring them to develop creative solutions that elevate the customer experience.
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Mai Momani–CX Leader, storyteller and women empowerment advocate.
Mai is a passionate and award-winning Customer Experience leader, currently heading Client Experience at Invest Bank in the UAE. With a career rooted in empathy,strategy,and storytelling,Mai has established end-to-end CX frameworks in both retail and wholesale banking, and successfully embedded customer-centric culture in two organizations from the ground up
Named one of the Top 100 Women Leaders in Asia in 2023, Mai is a certified trainer and public speaker. A true customer advocate, Mai brings her heart to work everyday, and encourages others to do the same
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Marta Federici is a global executive with 20+ years of experience in Digital Transformation, Customer Experience (CX), and CRM. She has led CX and data-driven innovation across international markets for companies like Henkel and Philips, building high-performing, diverse teams and delivering measurable business growth. Marta specializes in scaling digital platforms, AI-powered insights, and omnichannel strategies that drive customer-centric transformation. She is passionate about inclusive leadership, mentoring women in tech, and shaping purpose-driven organizations.
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A transformative customer experience leader with over 25 years of banking and consulting experience. Recognised for delivering innovative solutions that drive business transformation, and industry recognition across diverse sectors in Africa and International markets, shaping CX as a critical driver of business success. A frequent speaker, panellist, and contributor to the global CX discourse. With an unwavering passion for customer-centricity and a proven track record of success, she continues to push boundaries, making her one of the most respected CX professionals in her industry.
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Ralphette “Ralphie” White is a distinguished Customer Success and Revenue Leader with over 15 years of experience driving post-sales revenue, retention, and productivity through AI innovation. Recognized for her expertise in building, scaling, and transforming high-performing Customer Success organizations, Ralphie has been instrumental in helping startups and B2B SaaS companies achieve exceptional business outcomes.
Ralphie prioritizes customer-centric transformation and aligning organizational goals with customer outcomes.
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Sabina Onwuka is an award winner, champion of Customer & Employee Experience. She is a passionate & knowledgeable Public Speaker who engages and inspires audiences with a dynamic approach tailored to their specific needs. A Coach, a Mentor and Leader with a genuine desire to support young leaders to be a better version of themselves for tomorrow's world. Sabina teaches how to foster team spirit, resilience, team motivation and confidence. She demonstrates how to create a safe place for people to express their concerns in any workplace situation, which is more important than ever. Sabina sits on the Standard Advisory Board.
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With more than 22 years of professional experience in various sectors and domains, Sara a customer-centric Senior Manager at Virgin Mobile UAE, where she leads the delivery of the Voice of the Customer Program to ensure seamless customer experience across touchpoints in the customer journey.
She is passionate about driving changes and innovations that support business growth and improve customer satisfaction. She is also a motivational speaker and a female role model for the UAE's new generation of leaders and entrepreneurs.
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Sarah Williams is a seasoned CX professional with over two decades of experience in Customer Service, Strategic Planning and Organisational Leadership. As the Chief Customer Experience Officer at Westminster City Council, Sarah leads a dedicated team of CX professionals in ensuring that residents, businesses and visitors receive the highest level of service. With a passion for innovation and commitment to excellence, she drives CX initiatives to enhance the customer journey, streamline processes and implement cutting-edge technologies to meet the evolving needs of the communities she serves.
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Sarah Caminiti is a strategic CX leader, podcast host, and retention expert known for building scalable systems that center both people and performance. As Manager of Customer Support at Tailscale and creator of The Career Strategist podcast, she challenges industry norms, mentors rising CX leaders, and designs team structures that drive loyalty and growth. Her work bridges the gap between frontline truth and executive strategy, making space for bold conversations and sustainable change.
Timeline of Events
April 2nd, 2025
May 2nd, 2025
June 11, 2025
June 25, 2025
Nominations Open
Nominations Close
Finalists Announcement
Winners Announced
