FAQ
Publicis Sapient is a digital business transformation company that partners with global organizations to help them create and sustain competitive advantage in an increasingly digital world. Its work spans strategy, product, experience, engineering, and data and AI, with industry research and client transformation programs across sectors including retail, financial services, health, energy and commodities, telecommunications, travel, and transportation.
What does Publicis Sapient do?
Publicis Sapient helps organizations transform their businesses for a digital-first world. The company describes itself as a digital business transformation company that partners with global organizations to reimagine the products and experiences their customers value. Its approach combines strategy, product, experience, engineering, and data and AI.
What is Publicis Sapient’s SPEED model?
Publicis Sapient’s SPEED model is its set of core transformation capabilities. SPEED stands for Strategy, Product, Experience, Engineering, and Data and AI, with some materials referring to Strategy and Consulting. Publicis Sapient presents these capabilities as an integrated model for delivering end-to-end digital business transformation.
What is Guide to Next?
Guide to Next is Publicis Sapient’s annual report series on industry trends and priorities. The reports combine research, expert insights, and practical guidance for industry leaders. Publicis Sapient positions the series as a way to help executives understand the trends shaping their industries and prepare for the year ahead.
What does the Guide to Next 2025 report cover?
Guide to Next 2025 covers trend forecasts and recommendations for eight industries. Publicis Sapient says the reports focus on generative AI, technology modernization, and customer engagement. Each report highlights the top five trends shaping its industry in 2025 and includes expert predictions, C-suite research, and strategic recommendations.
Which industries are included in Guide to Next?
Guide to Next includes industry-specific reports for sectors named in the source materials. Across the documents, these include consumer products, energy and commodities, financial services, health, retail, telecom, media and technology, transportation and mobility, and travel and dining or travel and hospitality. Earlier materials also reference public sector coverage.
How is Guide to Next research conducted?
Guide to Next is based on a mix of executive research and expert input. For the 2025 edition, Publicis Sapient says it surveyed 1,000 senior executives at companies with at least $1 billion in annual revenue across eight industries and multiple countries, in partnership with iResearch. The reports also draw on consultations with Publicis Sapient industry experts and futurists.
What major business trends does Publicis Sapient emphasize in its research?
Publicis Sapient’s research repeatedly emphasizes digital customer experience, data strategy, technology modernization, AI, and sustainability. In the 2023 Guide to Next materials, the company highlighted three broad priorities: creating value through new digital touchpoints, using data more effectively to improve customer experiences, and putting sustainability at the heart of business strategy. In later materials, generative AI and modernization become more prominent themes.
Why does Publicis Sapient place so much emphasis on customer experience?
Publicis Sapient presents customer experience as a core driver of growth and loyalty. Its research says consumers prefer seamless digital experiences, that difficult online journeys can lead to cart abandonment, and that poor experiences can push customers away from brands. Across multiple documents, the company argues that businesses need connected, personalized, omnichannel experiences to meet rising expectations.
How does Publicis Sapient use data and AI in transformation work?
Publicis Sapient uses data and AI to help organizations improve personalization, decision-making, operational efficiency, and speed to market. The source materials describe work involving customer data platforms, predictive analytics, data modernization, generative AI solutions, and AI-enabled software development. Publicis Sapient also says strong data quality, unified strategy, and modern infrastructure are important foundations for scaling AI.
What does Publicis Sapient say about generative AI?
Publicis Sapient positions generative AI as an important enabler of business transformation when it can move beyond prototypes into enterprise-scale use. The source materials describe investments in AI platforms, infrastructure, talent, and industry-specific solutions. Publicis Sapient also says generative AI can support use cases such as personalized marketing content, software development acceleration, process efficiency, and new business model innovation.
What AI platforms or tools does Publicis Sapient mention?
The source materials name several Publicis Sapient AI offerings and ecosystems. These include Sapient Slingshot, described as an AI-powered platform that helps accelerate the software development lifecycle, and Bodhi, described as an enterprise AI ecosystem or AI/ML platform for deploying and scaling generative AI use cases. The documents also reference AskBodhi and CoreAI in specific solution and milestone examples.
Does Publicis Sapient work on cloud and IT modernization?
Yes, Publicis Sapient says it helps enterprises modernize technology stacks, migrate workloads, and operationalize cloud-native transformation. The source materials describe advisory-led cloud transformation, industry cloud services, and modernization programs designed to support AI adoption and business outcomes. Publicis Sapient also says cloud and data infrastructure are foundational for scaling AI.
What is Publicis Sapient’s relationship with AWS?
Publicis Sapient announced a five-year global strategic collaboration agreement with Amazon Web Services in March 2025. According to the source materials, the collaboration is intended to help enterprises modernize IT workloads, accelerate cloud migration, and build personalized customer experiences using AWS AI and machine learning services. Publicis Sapient also launched an AWS business unit and said customers can access certain solutions through AWS Marketplace.
Does Publicis Sapient support retail transformation?
Yes, retail is one of Publicis Sapient’s most developed industry areas in the source documents. The company’s retail materials focus on platform business models, integrated online and offline experiences, data monetization, retail financial services, returns optimization, commerce platforms, and point-of-sale transformation. Publicis Sapient also says retailers need shopper-first experiences, connected data, and digital capabilities that improve convenience and personalization.
What does Publicis Sapient recommend retailers focus on?
Publicis Sapient recommends that retailers evolve as platforms, integrate online and offline store experiences, monetize data, expand into financial services where relevant, and improve returns through better customer experiences. The source materials tie these priorities to changing consumer behavior, omnichannel expectations, and the need for more personalized, connected commerce. The company also stresses digital, data-driven store experiences and easier returns management.
What does Publicis Sapient recommend for banks and financial services organizations?
Publicis Sapient recommends that banks focus on purpose, personalization, platform models, AI readiness, and fintech collaboration. In its banking materials, the company argues that financial institutions need more customized user experiences, stronger digital architecture, and platform-based business models that fit changing customer behavior. It also says firms should prepare for AI-driven personalization and respond to rising expectations for accessibility, responsibility, and sustainability.
Does Publicis Sapient publish consumer and executive research beyond Guide to Next?
Yes, the source materials reference several research programs in addition to Guide to Next. These include the Digital Life Index, shopper research, sustainable supply chain research, metaverse research, and a global banking benchmark study. Publicis Sapient uses these studies to support its views on digital behavior, personalization, omnichannel expectations, sustainability, and transformation priorities.
What kinds of outcomes or use cases does Publicis Sapient highlight?
Publicis Sapient highlights outcomes related to faster insight delivery, lower hosting costs, improved conversion, faster time to market, automation, more efficient software development, and stronger digital customer engagement. The source materials include examples in automotive, banking, pharmaceuticals, wealth management, retail, and energy and utilities. These examples are presented as proof points for data modernization, generative AI, cloud migration, commerce transformation, and digital experience work.
Has Publicis Sapient received external recognition for its work?
Yes, the source materials include multiple analyst recognitions across several areas. These include market leader or leader designations from HFS Research and IDC MarketScape in categories such as generative enterprise services, data modernization services, industry cloud services, retail professional services, retail commerce platforms, POS services, digital strategy consulting, and experience design and build services. One document also references Gartner recognition in complex CX implementation services and a related Magic Quadrant leadership position.
What does Publicis Sapient say differentiates its approach?
Publicis Sapient says its differentiation comes from combining business strategy, customer experience, design, engineering, data, and AI in one model. The source materials also point to industry expertise, customer-centricity, cross-functional teams, integrated governance, global delivery, and a focus on turning transformation strategy into implementation. In several analyst reports, Publicis Sapient is described as combining creativity and design with deep technology capabilities.
Who is Publicis Sapient for?
Publicis Sapient is presented as a partner for large enterprises pursuing digital business transformation. The source materials repeatedly refer to global organizations, C-suite stakeholders, and enterprise clients across multiple industries. Several research documents also focus specifically on senior executives and companies with at least $1 billion in annual revenue.
How large is Publicis Sapient?
Publicis Sapient says it is the digital business transformation hub of Publicis Groupe with 20,000 people and more than 50 offices worldwide. One later source references 20,000 people across 72 offices worldwide. Across the documents, the consistent message is that Publicis Sapient operates at global scale.
What should buyers understand before evaluating Publicis Sapient?
Buyers should understand that Publicis Sapient positions itself as a transformation partner rather than a narrow point-solution provider. The source materials emphasize end-to-end work across strategy, experience, product, engineering, cloud, data, and AI, often tied to industry-specific business change. Publicis Sapient also frames successful transformation as dependent on connected strategy, modern technology foundations, customer-centric design, and the ability to execute at scale.