From Industrial Inclusion to Human Inclusion: Lessons for CX Leaders from LDCMC11
When nations unite to accelerate inclusive industrialization, they’re not just building factories — they’re building futures. As Saudi Arabia prepares to host the 11th Ministerial Conference of the Least Developed Countries (LDCMC11) this November, the global conversation is set to pivot toward accelerated investment, innovation, and partnerships that reshape economic landscapes.
But beneath the policy papers and plenary sessions lies a human story — one that mirrors the daily realities of Customer Experience (CX) and Employee Experience (EX) leaders. The themes driving LDCMC11 — inclusion, innovation, and partnerships — are the same principles redefining how organizations create meaningful experiences for people.
This article connects the industrial ambitions of LDCMC11 with the human-centered ambitions of CX and EX. Let’s explore how businesses can learn from global cooperation to design more inclusive, innovative, and partnership-driven experience ecosystems.
Inclusive Growth: Parallels Between Industrialization and Experience Design
The conference’s core theme, “Advancing Inclusive Industrialization: Investment, Innovation, and Partnerships,” captures a shift from transactional growth to inclusive transformation. That’s precisely what CX professionals face today — moving beyond satisfaction metrics toward equitable, emotionally resonant, and accessible experiences.
In industrial policy, inclusion means ensuring least developed countries (LDCs) access fair opportunities within global value chains. In CX, inclusion means ensuring every customer — regardless of background, ability, or region — can access and enjoy value with dignity.
A McKinsey study on inclusive business models revealed that companies prioritizing accessibility saw customer loyalty scores rise by 70%. Similarly, research from the CXPA (Customer Experience Professionals Association) indicates that inclusion-driven CX programs outperform peers in retention and advocacy metrics.
Inclusivity is no longer a compliance checkbox — it’s a growth lever. Just as nations compete for equitable trade partnerships, businesses compete for equitable attention and enduring trust.
Investment in Capabilities: Human Capital as the New Factory
One of LDCMC11’s key pillars is “investment and financing.” In global development terms, that means mobilizing local and international capital for long-term industrial sustainability. In the world of CX and EX, the same idea applies — but the capital is human.
Organizations that invest in employee skill-building, digital literacy, and behavioral design unlock exponential experience dividends. According to Deloitte’s 2024 Human Capital Trends report, companies that double their investment in employee enablement outperform competitors by 40% in customer satisfaction indices.
Take Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 transformation journey. By coupling infrastructure investment with workforce upskilling, the Kingdom is proving that sustainable industrialization and human development can, in fact, move in lockstep. For CX leaders, that’s the playbook: treat human capital as the factory of the future.
Build internal ecosystems where empathy is manufactured daily, and output is measured not just in revenue but in readiness — the organization’s ability to adapt, respond, and elevate experiences amid constant change.
Innovation Ecosystems: From Policy Labs to Experience Labs
LDCMC11 emphasizes innovation ecosystems that help LDCs leapfrog traditional development pathways. That principle also holds true for organizations seeking to leapfrog legacy customer journeys.
Leading CX innovators are designing “Experience Labs” — collaborative environments that fuse technology, behavioral science, and customer co-creation. For example, Unilever’s “People Data Centres” use real-time analytics to shape consumer interactions across 90 markets, delivering local relevance at scale.
Similarly, in the context of industrial policy, UNIDO’s “Innovation Labs” pair local entrepreneurs with global mentors, enabling localized innovation that drives industrial modernization.
For CX and EX leaders, this cross-sector learning is invaluable. The message is clear: innovation isn’t about isolated breakthroughs. It’s about ecosystem thinking. Whether you’re scaling digital self-service or building immersive onboarding experiences, innovation must be systemic, inclusive, and iterative.
To replicate this success:
- Build open innovation frameworks with partners, startups, and academia.
- Design customer co-creation sessions that test new ideas quickly.
- Use data ethics as a foundation, not an afterthought.
Strategic Partnerships: The Currency of Sustainable Experiences
The upcoming Riyadh conference will explore public-private alliances to accelerate industrialization in LDCs. Strategic partnerships are also the beating heart of sustained CX transformation.
A recent PwC CX report found that over 60% of organizations achieving double-digit CX ROI did so through cross-functional partnerships rather than siloed department initiatives. These partnerships often bridge marketing, operations, HR, and IT — mirroring the very cross-sector collaborations that global development depends on.
In the LDCMC11 context, partnerships determine which nations can access technology transfer or investment flows. In CX terms, partnerships determine which companies can deliver smooth omnichannel experiences or integrated employee support systems.
To emulate this model:
- Foster partnerships with technology vendors who prioritize long-term enablement, not short-term sales.
- Collaborate with policy or academic institutions to understand evolving customer expectations, especially in emerging markets.
- Partner internally — ensure HR and CX share goals, data, and vocabulary to align employee and customer journeys.
Transformative Policy, Transformative Culture
The LDCMC11 program highlights discussions on “Transformative Industrial Policies for Irreversible Graduation.” It’s a phrase that inspires reflection for CX leaders. In corporate culture, we often seek “irreversible transformation” — where customer-centricity becomes self-sustaining, not campaign-based.
Transformative industrial policy combines strategic intent with execution infrastructure — much like effective CX governance. According to Forrester’s 2025 CX Index, companies with formalized CX governance boards outperform peers by 33% in overall satisfaction scores. These businesses codify customer empathy into decision-making frameworks, leaving little room for arbitrary backslides.
To implement transformative CX policy:
- Establish a clear CX operating model with accountability metrics.
- Integrate CX success indicators into executive performance reviews.
- Create feedback loops that connect policy with daily practice — in both customer and employee interactions.
Just as industrial policies must align with national development plans, CX strategies must align with corporate north stars. When leadership, culture, and measurement converge, transformation becomes irreversible.
The Empathy Engine: Shared Humanity in Development and Experience
Behind every industrial agenda lies a human aspiration — the will to live better, earn better, and belong better. That same empathy drives the future of CX and EX design.
UNIDO Director General Gerd Müller once said, “Industrialization is not only about machines; it’s about people, dignity, and opportunity.” Replace “industrialization” with “experience,” and the meaning holds. CX is not about systems; it’s about belonging, acknowledgment, and emotional equity.
Empathy isn’t just a leadership trait; it’s an operational advantage. Harvard Business Review’s research reveals that organizations with high empathy ratings outperform the S&P 500 by more than 30%. They respond faster, understand deeper, and adapt smarter.
CX leaders can operationalize empathy by:
- Embedding ethnographic insights into customer journey mapping.
- Using AI responsibly to humanize personalization.
- Training frontlines to sense, not just satisfy, customer emotions.
Empathy is what makes inclusion sustainable, investment meaningful, and innovation ethical. It is the silent engine behind every successful transformation — national or organizational.
Lessons for CX and EX Professionals
LDCMC11’s themes can be reframed as guiding principles for rebuilding CX and EX in a volatile world:
- Inclusive Access Builds Trust
Design experiences that work for all users — including marginalized, differently-abled, and low-income customers. - Investment Unlocks Readiness
Invest in employee empowerment technologies and skills that accelerate adaptive execution. - Innovation Thrives in Collaboration
Nurture ecosystems, not silos. Build cross-functional innovation models. - Partnerships Drive Scalability
Combine public, private, and academic partnerships to design robust end-to-end experiences. - Policy Shapes Permanence
Codify CX rules like industrial reforms — not one-time initiatives, but living frameworks. - Empathy Anchors Sustainability
Place human well-being at the core of your experience strategies.
The Road Ahead: Building Future-Ready Experience Economies
As world leaders gather in Riyadh to craft industrial futures for least developed countries, CX and EX leaders should craft human futures within their organizations.
Both missions share the same currency — trust. Both depend on the same resources — people. And both require the same mindset — collective progress over individual gain.
Saudi Arabia’s hosting of LDCMC11 and UNIDO’s General Conference symbolizes collective determination to close developmental gaps. Likewise, modern organizations must aim to close experiential gaps — between promise and delivery, leadership and workforce, business and society.
The real lesson from global collaboration is this: sustainable progress demands inclusive design, continuous investment, and courageous partnership. Whether building nations or building brands, human-centered development is the ultimate growth engine.
