Franck Attia, Nordic Head at Adobe, shares his perspectives on how AI and digital customer experiences are changing the Swedish manufacturing industry. Here he answers questions about data silos, agentic AI, digital buying journeys and how industrial companies can strengthen their competitiveness.
Why do you say that the Swedish manufacturing industry is world-leading but that the customer experience is analog?
– The technology behind Swedish industrial products is world-class, but the digital experience is often built in silos. In an era when B2B buyers also expect the same simplicity, relevance and AI-driven personalization as consumers, this risks becoming a clear competitive disadvantage. Customer experience must be recognized for what it is: a strategic competitive factor on par with product development, production and sustainability work.
Why has customer experience become a strategic issue for the manufacturing industry as well?
– The buying journey has become digital, complex and collective. Imagine a typical industrial buyer today. Before he or she even speaks to a salesperson, the person has already visited the supplier’s website, downloaded product sheets, compared specifications, watched demo videos and read third-party reviews. According to Adobe Global Report State of Customer Experience in Industrial Manufacturing in an AI-Driven World The average service transaction in industry is preceded by 13.4 such interactions across different channels. The problem is that only a small proportion of them are tailored to the customer – in some phases as little as 8 percent. This means that industrial companies meet the customer in many places but rarely with the right message. Add to that the fact that decisions are increasingly made by buying groups rather than individuals, and it becomes clear why the customer experience is no longer a support process. It is a strategic part of the business.
What is the biggest challenge for many manufacturing companies today?
– It comes down to three factors: scattered data, organizational silos, and AI visibility. The first and most fundamental challenge is data. Many industrial companies have huge amounts of valuable customer data, but it is scattered. According to Adobe’s report, a full 97 percent of manufacturers have customer data that is siloed or only partially integrated. It’s a bit like having all the pieces of a puzzle without being able to see the big picture. Without that picture, it becomes difficult to create a cohesive customer experience, and almost impossible to get the full impact of AI.
The second challenge is that organizations themselves are built in silos. Website, product information and after-sales are often in separate systems, with separate teams, which lengthens sales cycles and burdens sales and support organizations. The third challenge is one that few industrial companies have yet to address: visibility in the AI era. As customers increasingly start their research in AI-powered assistants and search engines, it is determined early on which brands will even show up. Companies that have not structured their product content for AI searches risk becoming invisible before the buying journey has even begun.
How is AI changing the customer experience in the industry?
– AI makes it possible to manage complex information much smarter than before. Industrial companies can use AI to improve searchability, personalize content, and make technical information more relevant in real time. It changes how customers discover products, compare suppliers, and make decisions. AI becomes especially powerful in environments where the product offering is large and the amount of information is complex.
Adobe talks a lot about agentic AI, how far has the manufacturing industry actually come in that area?
– Honestly: short. Adobe report shows that just over half of manufacturers have no plans to adopt agentic AI, and 96 percent require security audits and regulatory compliance before scaling up. That’s a sound stance – the industry has very different requirements for traceability and regulatory compliance than the consumer sector. We see agentic AI first gaining traction in the back-end: monitoring supply chains, predictive maintenance and early detection of equipment failures. This is where the technology needs to prove itself before moving closer to the customer experience. A pragmatic path, but it requires the foundation to be built now: unified data, clear governance and measurable results.
Where do you see industrial companies getting the most impact from AI-driven customer experience?
– In practice, AI-driven customer experience is about using AI for content, insights and automation – within robust frameworks for regulatory compliance, version control and quality, which is crucial in a regulated industry. The effect is seen in shorter sales cycles, more efficient aftermarket, better self-service and stronger customer loyalty. The aftermarket is particularly interesting for Swedish engineering companies with large revenue streams from service, spare parts and upgrades. By connecting data from products in the field with customer data, companies can offer the right service at the right time, suggest relevant spare parts and predict maintenance needs. This is where AI stops being a marketing function and becomes a direct revenue driver.
Are digital customer experiences replacing personal encounters in the industry?
– No, and that’s an important nuance. Adobe’s report shows that 82 percent of industry leaders still see trade fairs, conferences and personal meetings as their most important sourcing channel. It’s about trust, technical expertise and long-term relationships, which the Swedish engineering industry is traditionally very good at. The point of digital customer experience is not to replace the human element, but to enhance it. Digital signals tell us when a customer is ready for a conversation, what technical issue they are struggling with and which solutions are relevant. This allows salespeople and technicians to use their time where it creates the most value. The industrial companies that understand that combination – digital insight and human expertise – will win in the short and long term.
Are there international examples that Swedish industrial companies can be inspired by?
– Absolutely. Danish Grundfos, a global manufacturer of pump and water solutions, has digitized the management of technical documentation for thousands of products and markets. By collecting content, data and publishing in a common structure, they have increased quality, reduced lead times and made it easier for customers, partners and service organizations to find the right information. Dutch AkzoNobel is systematically working to create a coherent global B2B customer experience despite a very broad and highly regulated product portfolio – by connecting data, content and digital channels, they have been able to shorten time-to-market. A Swedish example is Ericsson, a manufacturer of mobile telecom equipment, which has invested in digital customer interaction.
What characterizes the industrial companies that are most successful digitally?
– The most successful companies do not see customer experience as an isolated marketing initiative. They work cross-functionally between marketing, sales, IT, service and product organizations. They also invest in unified data and build structures that make it possible to scale globally without losing relevance locally.
How should a Swedish industrial leader think about investments in the coming years?
– Manufacturing market leaders need to adopt a revenue-driven model that clearly links investments to actual business impact. This requires closer collaboration with sales, real-time visibility into results, and more agile budget management that prioritizes outcomes over activity. Investments in marketing technology, analytics, and aggregated data are critical to moving from intuition-based to insight-driven decisions. Those who adapt will not only withstand budget cuts, they will help lead the transformation of the entire business.
How important are digital customer experiences going forward for Swedish industry leaders?
– The manufacturing industry of the future will not be defined solely by production capacity, but by how intelligently and effectively companies connect with their customers and partners. The question is not whether Swedish industry can afford to invest in digital customer experiences, but whether companies can afford not to.
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