The next frontier of work isn’t just digital, it’s deeply human. As technology personalises every interaction, employees expect the same from their workplaces. The companies rethinking experience now are the ones shaping what work feels like next.

At the recent panel discussion at People Matter’s GCC Hyderabad 2025, industry leaders like Tanmaya Jain, CEO, inFeedo, Kameshwari Rao, Global CPO, Publicis Sapient and Hakim Badshah, Managing Director - Talent, Deloitte came together to unpack what it truly means to craft meaningful, scalable, and intelligent employee experiences for the future.

Under the theme, “EX in 2025: Designing Personalised Employee Journeys with Science & AI”, the discussion explored the delicate balance between technology and empathy, structure and culture, instinct and insight.

Excerpts from the session:

Design vs default: Are leaders truly intentional about EX?

The conversation began by confronting a hard truth: many employee experiences today happen by default, not by design. The panellists noted that the driving force behind most EX decisions isn’t philosophy, but finance. While intent matters, budget and business models often define the limits of what's possible. In India, for instance, Global Capability Centres (GCCs) may highlight talent as a strength, but in reality, affordability often wins.

This acknowledgement set the tone for a nuanced discussion, where the goal isn't perfection, but intentionality. Designing experiences means moving beyond templates and surveys to something far more human and intelligent.

Gut feel or data-driven? Finding the right balance

As AI becomes more embedded in workplace systems, a key question emerged: Should managers trust their gut or trust the algorithm? The consensus was that it’s not an either/or. AI can offer patterns and signals, but the context and nuance still come from people. The panellists agreed that though the signal will come from the AI, the story has to be created by the managers and coaches. 

That’s why the balance between gut and data becomes even more crucial when dealing with employee issues like burnout, disengagement, etc. Mental health days, while necessary, were seen as band-aids unless employees found their work meaningful. Similarly, engagement surveys alone are not enough. Silent employees, one panellist pointed out, are three times more likely to leave, proving that passive signals are just as vital as active feedback.

The stories of failures, fixes, and bold predictions

Panellists shared candid stories of where EX design had failed. One example involved an AI tool that, after misinterpreting employee feedback, gave tone-deaf responses like “I’m so glad to hear that” to someone expressing unhappiness with office politics. Another time, an AI suggested a manager tell an unhappy employee to quit, underscoring the need for ethical boundaries and context-aware design.

On the flip side, success stories highlighted how trust in AI could evolve. In one organisation, a sceptical CEO was eventually won over when AI-driven EX insights improved onboarding and shaped better leadership decisions.

Looking ahead, the panellists offered bold predictions. Annual engagement surveys and standard performance reviews could become obsolete, replaced by real-time AI coaching tailored to individuals. The role of the “manager” as we know it may also evolve into one of a mentor, i.e. focusing on empathy rather than enforcement.

Building the EX blueprint for 2025

If there’s one takeaway from the session, it’s this: designing employee experience in 2025 requires both science and soul. AI and behavioural data are enablers, not replacements. Human insight remains essential for trust, culture, and connection.

And while budget constraints are real, EX innovation doesn’t always need expensive solutions. Instead, it needs brave ones. From democratising promotions to using passive feedback more meaningfully, organisations that design with intention will find themselves ahead of the curve.

The panellists rightly agreed that the culture doesn’t happen when leaders are in the room; they are designed by them to make it happen.