By
Erica Marois
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Date Published: January 21, 2026 - Last Updated January 21, 2026
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Comments
For more than a decade, ICMI has called on the contact center community to help us shine a spotlight on the thought leaders shaping the future of customer experience. After pouring over hundreds of nominations, we’re excited to reveal ICMI’s 2026 Top 25 Thought Leaders, this time with a special twist.
In addition to sharing the 2026 roster, we’re unveiling a new part of this program: ICMI’s Hall of Fame. Thought leaders on the Hall of Fame list have achieved recognition five or more times on the prestigious annual list since 2020.
All of the honorees were nominated by their peers for standout contributions across four key areas:
1. Thought leadership
2. Industry impact
3. Knowledge sharing and professional achievements
4. Leadership impact
So much more than just a list designed to serve as vanity or clickbait, this program is meant to connect the ICMI community with some of the best and brightest in contact centers and customer experience. Throughout the year, expect to learn from these professionals. We’ll share exclusive content and experiences and invite you to be a part of it all. Stay tuned!
If you haven’t already, connect with these remarkable thought leaders and explore their work. Without further ado, we present to you the 2026 list of ICMI’s Top 25 Thought Leaders, along with our newly instated ICMI Hall of Fame.
Please join us in thanking these visionaries for their leadership and congratulating them on this well-deserved recognition.
Inaugural Inductees into the ICMI Thought Leaders Hall of Fame
ICMI’s 2026 Top 25 Thought Leaders
Vicki Bracket, Head of CX & Chief Knowledge Officer, Knowledgely™
“I have known Vicki for more than 10 years and she's always been a valuable source of industry knowledge and always willing to share that knowledge. She is constantly mentoring to prepare future CX leaders. Earlier this year Vicki designed a 30-minute Lunch & Learn to help teams understand how AI and strong knowledge. Vicki Brackett is a pioneering CX thought leader whose work-at-home leadership strategies, knowledge management expertise, and published insights have shaped industry best practices. Her impact spans two decades of leading large-scale virtual contact centers, elevating CSAT, reducing attrition, and driving operational excellence. She generously shares her expertise through articles, events, podcasts, and mentoring emerging leaders, including serving as an ICMI mentor and consistently guiding professionals pro bono.”
Mark Brody, CEO & President Brohawk Solutions, LLC
“Few people are doing as much as Mark is for the industry. He’s been actively leading the Austin Contact Center Alliance for quite some time. He’s got his podcast. He’s writing, consulting, and often saying things no one else will. And he facilitates executive mastermind sessions that are really valuable.He is the real deal.”
Priscilla Brooke, Head of Podcaster Success and Buzzsprout
“I love Priscilla's podcast, Happy to Help! She is a breath of fresh air and a needed voice in this space. Her passion and kindness shine through everything she does. She’s always shining a light on others, which to me is what the best thought leaders do well. By elevating voices in our industry,she’s making us all better. Priscilla deserves more recognition and is a shoo-in to be a thought leader for the ICMI community.”
Sarah Caminiti, Consultant for Epochal Operations
“Sarah Caminiti is a standout thought leader redefining what modern CX leadership looks like. Her work challenges outdated models and replaces them with systems that drive clarity, retention, and real business impact. Through CX Roundtable, The Career Strategist, and her mentorship with XMGlobal Collaborative and Mentors CX, she consistently uplifts the profession sharing frameworks, amplifying voices, and guiding practitioners through pivotal career and leadership moments. With award-recognized achievements and a proven track record building high-performing, human-centered teams, Sarah’s influence is reshaping both the CX discipline and the leaders within it.”
Melissa Copeland, Founder and Principal, Blue Orbit Consulting, LLC
“Melissa Copeland demonstrates bold Thought Leadership by advancing how contact centers embrace AI-enabled service design and human-to-human interaction. Her Industry Impact is evident in her role at Blue Orbit Consulting LLC where she guides global CX operations to deliver measurable transformation. She excels at Knowledge Sharing & Mentorship through podcasts, articles and speaking engagements that educate senior executives and practitioners alike. Her tenure and achievements include a deep history in customer service operations, consulting leadership and recognition as “America’s Top Contact Centre Expert” in major media. She embodies all four criteria with distinction.”
Rob Dwyer, Sr. Technical Account Manager, Level AI & Host of the Next in Queue Podcast
"If you aren’t following Rob, what are you doing? Not only is he brilliant, but he’s also one of the kindest humans you’ll ever meet. He lights up everyone around him. His podcast is a joy but also super insightful. Rob knows contact centers inside and out and shares practical advice freely. He spoke in an ICMI session on QA and coaching that was incredible. I love that he doesn’t share theoretical advice like so many ‘influencers’ tend to do. He shares based on lived experience and his advice actually works.”
Zack Hamilton, Host of Unf*cking Your CX
"Zack Hamilton is a force in CX—equal parts truth-teller, educator, and change-maker. As the host of Unfcking Your CX, he asks the hard questions others avoid, offering unfiltered insights that spark real transformation. His work challenges the status quo, blending deep expertise with a relentless drive to make the industry better. Whether he’s writing, speaking, or mentoring, Zack doesn’t just talk about impact—he delivers it. He’s a bold leader."
Irina Mateeva Hollatz, RightWFM Founder
"Irina has been putting out WFM related content for a few years now and there are few who are as consistent in adding valuable and unfiltered feedback to the community and to the vendors. Her podcast, LinkedIn events, articles… she continues to add value in multiple ways. She has also uniquely focused on bringing in voices from the edges of our community, highlighting up and coming thought leaders. She’s the type of person I enjoy working with and I think more people need to know about her!"
Luke Jamieson, CX Evangelist at Operata
“Luke Jamieson sets the standard for thought leadership in customer experience—translating complex ideas into engaging, human-centered dialogue that changes how people think and lead. Through Twenty20ish and years of visible industry contributions, he’s elevated CX discourse with creativity, accessibility, and depth. His work has inspired countless professionals to rethink belonging, engagement, and purpose in contact centers worldwide. Luke’s mentorship and community involvement reflect his belief that leadership is collective, not competitive. His career blends measurable business transformation with emotional intelligence—proving that true impact happens when you make everyone around you feel like they belong.”
Afshan Kinder, President & CEO, elevate2Great
" Afshan Kinder is a proven industry thought leader whose insights continue to shape the future of contact center excellence. Her decades of leadership and co-authorship of three books—including Call Centers for Dummies, 2nd Edition—demonstrate deep expertise and lasting industry impact. Afshan consistently elevates the profession through knowledge-sharing, mentorship, and frequent contributions to ICMI, GTACC, Contact Center Pipeline, and major industry events. Her 35+ years of experience, commitment to innovation, and ability to translate emerging trends such as AI into practical strategies make her an outstanding choice for the ICMI Top 25 Thought Leaders list.”
Amber Krueger, Ultimus Fund Solutions/VP, Shareholder Services
“By sharing knowledge and experience through insightful and actionable articles published through ICMI, as well as by leading breakout sessions in past years and even being on the Keynote panel at this year's ICMI conference, Amber has shown a deep knowledge of the contact center industry and a desire to help fellow contact center professionals.”
Michael Mattson, co-founder, ei empowered
“The yin to Luke Jamieson’s yang, Michael is a gem. One of the smartest dudes you will meet, and also just a good human.Twenty20ish is so much fun, but beyond that Michael has his hand on a little bit of everything. He judges awards, sits on boards, and speaks at events. How does he do it all?! If you don’t know Michael, you need to. He is a thoughtful thought leader.”
Yemi Oluseun, Founder & Principal Strategist, The Change Hive
"Yemi Oluseun is a recognized authority in Retention-Led Growth (RLG) and Revenue Operations, transforming how B2B and Financial Services businesses protect revenue and build customer trust. As Founder of The Change Hive, she helps SaaS and FS firms grow sustainably through data-driven retention systems now used by customer-success and contact-center teams to improve first-response quality and time-to-value. A U.S. Department of State Innovation Fellow (YTILI) and Grenoble DBA candidate, Yemi blends academic rigor with real-world impact."
Bianca Price, HR Customer Experience Manager, Michigan State University
"Bianca is a rising HR thought leader whose work shapes frontline excellence and leadership practice. She designed a 52-page, research-based Service Excellence training now used university-wide to onboard and develop frontline teams. She also developed and promoted a temp employee into a full-time role, guiding her to complete probation five months early a testament to Bianca’s talent for mentorship and capability building. Through national conference presentations, published insights, and CUPA-HR engagement, she has advanced conversations on equitable leadership and employee experience. Her strategic vision, industry impact, and measurable results make her an exceptional candidate for ICMI Top 25."
Amanda Quinn, Founder & Principal, Quinn Growth Partners
“Amanda is saying the things that NO ONE else will say in BPO. And she says it from inside knowledge. It's not analysis, it's firsthand testimony. BPO's should embrace every word she says. She is waving warning signs and gives very insightful thought leadership. She is one of the only ones with a solid grasp on where the industry is heading.”
Doug Rabold, XLA Institute, Evangelist
" Doug is one of the leading minds in the practice of XLAs in North America. He was one of the first to ever design, implement and oversee XLAs in the USA, having consulted with a large global pharmaceutical company on this beginning in 2021. Doug willingly shares his knowledge with others in a variety of media - written articles, peer reviewed books and research papers, podcasts, workshops, and keynote speeches. He has spoken to audiences of all sizes across North America and Europe on the practice of XLAs. Although his background is in IT Service Desk, Doug has long been an ardent and outspoken advocate for the convergence of support centers to include both frontline customer and back-endemployee user support functions. With the rapid rise of technology and especially the impact of AI on support centers, this is increasingly a focus of his.”
Bryant Richardson, Founder & President, Real Blue Sky
“Bryant is a trusted CX leader who combines strategic thinking with practical tools that help organizations improve outcomes for both customers and employees. His thought leadership shows up in his articles, conference talks, and frameworks that give contact center leaders a clear path forward. He regularly shares what works, builds community, and challenges leaders to raise their standards. The results he drives and the way he invests in people make him very deserving of recognition as an ICMI Top 25 Thought Leader.”
Shmuel Saklad, Senior Manager, Customer Experience and B2B Contact Center, BH Photo
“I enjoyed attending the community meetup that Shmuel led about AI. He brought great energy to the conversation and cut through the hype that’s so common with contact center AI conversations. His authenticity makes him approachable. His passion and energy are palpable. You can tell how much he cares about the work he does, the people he leads, and the ICMI community. He’s a rising star who deserves more attention! Looking forward to seeing what he’ll do in 2026. He’s one to watch.”
Deepak Selvaratnam, Co-Founder: Snapshotz and RemotAbility
"Deepak Selvaratnam is known for helping customer service leaders turn big challenges into practical, lasting improvements. His work has supported more than 200 organizations and government teams worldwide, strengthening performance while improving the experience for frontline employees. Deepak is also a trusted mentor who invests deeply in developing senior leaders and bringing the industry together. As co-founder of Snapshotz, now used by thousands of contact centers, and creator of RemotAbility, he continues to influence how modern service teams grow and thrive.”
Jeff Sheehan, Managing Director of CX JS Consulting
“Jeff Sheehan exemplifies measurable thought leadership in the contact center industry. As a CX advisor and practitioner, Jeff translates complex operational challenges into actionable, ROI-driven solutions that reduce contact volume, improve agent retention, and elevate customer satisfaction. His frameworks—featured in ICMI’s Contact Center Insider—equip leaders to align CX with business performance. With over 30 years of global experience, Jeff advances the profession through mentoring, judging at CX awards, and publishing insights that guide transformation. His consistent record of measurable impact positions him among the most respected voices shaping modern contact center strategy.”
Dan Smitley, Founder, 2:Three Consulting
“Dan is one of the most thoughtful and grounded voices in modern workforce management. He challenges convention, demands evidence and real understanding, and ties every insight back to business outcomes. What makes him exceptional is his unwavering insistence on preserving human connection. In a field often consumed by numbers and efficiency, Dan finds, and defends, the balance between performance and people.”
Josh Streets, Founder, QX Now
“I knew of Josh, but really got to understand his passion for CX at the AI training I did in 2025. This guy blew our entire classes’ minds & got us certified in AI too. He knows his stuff, he can convey it simply, with examples, and he’s dedicated to consulting and teaching. He cared more about preparing us for AI results and choosing tools wisely than he did in discussing all the agentic bells & whistles I hear everywhere else. In an era where hype is everywhere, he’s the one I trust to advise my company on the truth.”
Neal Topf, Owner, Callzilla
“Neal is a 20+ year contact center veteran with a unique BPO owner's insight. I like how he looks at the big picture for the industry, balancing the goals of great service and bottom-line results. He doesn't just follow the crowd; he offers new perspectives. Isn't that the very definition of a thought leader?”
John Walter, President of the Contact Center AI Association
“John’s grounded approach to AI is a gift to our industry. He’s doing important work! He is an exceptional collaborator. He’s always brimming with ideas and embodies the spirit of a true entrepreneur. To top it all off, he’s a good person who genuinely cares about making contact centers better.”
Jeannie Walters, Founder & CEO, Experience Investigators
" Jeannie Walters exemplifies thought leadership through her innovative frameworks and actionable insights that elevate customer experience across industries. Her industry impact is evident through global speaking engagements, consulting with leading brands, and shaping CX best practices. As a mentor and educator, Jeannie shares her expertise generously through courses, podcasts, and mentorship programs, inspiring countless professionals. With over 20 years of proven success as a CX strategist, author, and founder of Experience Investigators, she consistently drives meaningful change and empowers organizations to create lasting customer loyalty. Jeannie’s vision, credibility, and influence make her a true leader in the CX community.”