In this insightful episode of Navigating the Customer Experience, we welcome Victoria Mensch, Founder & CEO of the Silicon Valley Executive Academy, for a powerful conversation on leadership, innovation, and thriving in the age of AI.

With a PhD in Psychology, an MBA from UC Berkeley, and more than 25 years in Silicon Valley, Victoria has built her career at the intersection of human behavior, executive performance, and technological transformation. Arriving in Silicon Valley during the dot-com boom, she was inspired by its bold, world-changing mindset. That culture of innovation shaped her journey from working across semiconductor and software companies to launching her own executive academy, where she helps global leaders apply Silicon Valley’s innovation principles within their own organizations.

A central theme of the episode is how leadership must evolve in today’s fast-changing 2026 environment. Victoria emphasizes that leadership isn’t limited to job titles—it exists at every level. She outlines three essential qualities leaders must cultivate:

Self-Responsibility & Agency – Great leaders take ownership of their choices and focus on what they can control, even amid disruption.

Curiosity – With technological, political, and economic shifts happening constantly, leaders must stay open, adaptable, and willing to explore new perspectives.

Continuous Learning – In the age of AI, growth is non-negotiable. Leaders must embrace learning, develop new skills, and view change as an opportunity rather than a threat.

One of the most powerful discussions centers on reframing failure. Victoria explains that fear of failure is often driven by imagined future scenarios. The key practice is returning to the present moment and rationally assessing reality. She also offers a mindset shift: the probability of success is equal to the probability of failure—yet we tend to focus only on what could go wrong. By consciously balancing those possibilities, leaders can make decisions rooted in clarity instead of fear.

When asked for one word leaders should adopt for 2026, Victoria chooses humanity. As organizations increasingly integrate artificial intelligence, she believes leaders must keep the human element at the forefront. Technology should create space for deeper creativity and stronger connections—not replace them. The goal isn’t simply to be faster or more efficient, but to be better in how we serve and relate to others.

Victoria also shares her excitement about AI-driven automation and tools that eliminate time-draining tasks, freeing leaders to focus on high-value work. She recommends exploring Lovable, a platform that allows users to build applications and landing pages without coding skills. A book that influenced her thinking is Digital Darwinism: Surviving the New Age of Business Disruption by Tom Goodwin, which examines how companies navigate digital transformation.

Her personal guiding quote? “Faith over fear.”

This episode delivers practical leadership insights for executives, entrepreneurs, and professionals ready to embrace change, lead with intention, and remain human in a rapidly evolving digital world.

Connect with Victoria at www.svexecutive.academy and join the conversation on X @navigatingcx or in the Navigating the Customer Experience community.

In this episode of Navigating the Customer Experience, Gal Borenstein, Founder and CEO of The Borenstein Group, joins us for a powerful conversation on trust, branding, and customer experience in the digital and AI era. With nearly 30 years of experience advising growth-oriented organizations in complex and regulated industries, Gal shares how leaders can protect credibility and build sustainable brands when trust is on the line.

Gal’s journey is a true immigration success story. Born and raised in Israel, he served as a military journalist before moving to the United States at 21 to pursue his education. After completing his undergraduate degree at Temple University in just two and a half years and earning a master’s degree from George Mason University, he quickly recognized a major gap in the marketplace: highly technical companies struggled to communicate their value clearly.

Armed with a $2,000 loan and a vision, he launched The Borenstein Group in the Washington, DC area, focusing on helping B2B technology firms connect complex solutions to clear messaging. Over the past three decades, he has worked closely with CEOs and executive teams navigating cybersecurity, AI, advanced analytics, and government contracting—industries where trust, precision, and differentiation are critical.

In this episode, Gal discusses his latest book, Don’t Believe the Hype: When Trust Is On The Line in the Age of Digital and AI, and explores what’s driving the breakdown of trust between brands and customers today.

From his perspective, the erosion of trust accelerated with digital transformation and automation. As companies adopted CRM systems, AI tools, and scripted customer service processes, they unintentionally removed the human element that once anchored relationships. What used to be human-to-human trust has often become process-driven interaction—efficient, but emotionally disconnected. AI can execute tasks faster, but it cannot replace empathy, judgment, or values.

Gal emphasizes that customer experience failures are rarely external problems alone. They usually reflect internal disconnects. Leadership may believe they are communicating clearly, while employees feel unheard or misaligned. Without internal trust, external trust collapses. He challenges organizations to develop a measurable “trust index” that identifies strengths, weaknesses, and perception gaps across departments.

We also explore one of today’s biggest CX threats: fake reviews and AI-generated misinformation. In the past, companies largely controlled their narrative. Today, anonymous posts on review platforms and social media can shape perception overnight. Gal explains that reacting defensively is not enough. Brands must actively monitor conversations, engage in social listening, and integrate feedback into internal systems. Trust must become an ecosystem—shared by executives, middle management, and frontline employees alike.

When asked about tools he relies on, Gal highlights LinkedIn as an essential knowledge hub, connecting professionals across industries and geographies. He also leverages AI platforms like OpenAI, while cautioning leaders to “trust but verify” due to AI hallucinations and inaccuracies.

What excites him most right now is helping companies operationalize trust—turning it from an abstract value into a measurable, monetizable strategy that aligns culture, communication, and customer experience.

His guiding mindset, inspired by Seinfeld, is both humorous and profound: “It’s not a lie if you believe it.” For Gal, this reflects the power of vision. When leaders truly believe in their narrative—and back it with integrity and proof points—they inspire teams, partners, and customers alike.

This episode challenges CX leaders and business professionals to see trust as a cr

In this episode of Navigating the Customer Experience, we sit down with Mark Fithian and Jeff Rosenberg, cofounders of WideOpen, a strategic customer experience (CX) consulting firm, and authors of the book The CX Imperatives: Five Strategic Practices for Renewal of the Customer-Centered Enterprise. With more than 30 years of experience each, Mark and Jeff bring deep insight from working across industries including healthcare, technology, automotive, consumer goods, and professional services.

Mark and Jeff share their professional journeys and the “red thread” that has guided their careers: a commitment to understanding customers as humans, not just data points. From early roles in marketing, operations, and consulting, both authors describe moments when they realized organizations often make decisions without considering how customers truly experience them. That realization ultimately led to the founding of WideOpen and the development of the frameworks outlined in their book.

The conversation centers on The CX Imperatives and its purpose as a practitioner’s guide for CX leaders and professionals who already care about customer experience and want to embed customer centricity across the enterprise. Rather than focusing on one-off “wow moments,” the book emphasizes creating consistent, meaningful experiences across the entire customer journey that align with business strategy and drive growth and innovation. Importantly, the authors stress that the principles are industry-agnostic, applicable to both B2B and B2C organizations of all sizes.

Mark outlines the book’s five strategic CX practices:

1. Insights – deeply understanding customers as emotional, human beings, not just metrics;
2. CX Strategy – aligning customer insights with business objectives to focus effort where it matters most;
3. Blueprinting – translating strategy into operationally actionable designs;
4. Operating Model – enabling cross-functional collaboration through roles, processes, and shared accountability; and
5. Culture – ensuring employees understand, believe in, and are equipped to deliver the intended experience.

Through real-world examples, including healthcare, Mark and Jeff demonstrate how engaging frontline employees and embedding CX into culture can generate both tangible outcomes (cost savings, growth initiatives) and intangible benefits (employee ownership, sustainability, and trust).

The discussion also explores the connection between internal culture and external customer experience, with both guests agreeing that consistently poor CX is often a symptom of internal organizational challenges. They share practical advice for CX leaders navigating varying levels of leadership support, emphasizing the importance of meeting stakeholders where they are and addressing resistance with empathy and clarity.

To bring CX to life, Mark and Jeff each share standout customer experiences—from thoughtful airline journey improvements to an unexpectedly empowering healthcare onboarding experience—illustrating how intentional design can transform how customers feel.

The episode wraps with personal insights into the tools, books, and mindsets that inspire them today, reflections on why this is an exciting time for the CX discipline, and where listeners can connect with them and learn more about their work, workshops, and book.

This episode is a must-listen for leaders and practitioners looking to move beyond surface-level CX and build customer-centered enterprises that deliver sustainable value for both customers and the business.

In this episode of Navigating the Customer Experience, we sit down with Jeremie Kubicek, a powerful communicator, serial entrepreneur, and co-founder of GiANT, a global leadership development company. Jeremie is the author of several influential leadership books, including 5 Voices, 5 Gears, The 100X Leader, The Peace Index, and his newest release, The Voice-Driven Leader.

Jeremie shares his entrepreneurial journey and explains how years of building businesses taught him a critical lesson: while business plans and financial plans matter, it is the people plan that most often determines success or failure. Early in his career, he realized that people were often treated as liabilities rather than assets. This insight led him to dedicate his work to helping leaders understand, develop, and empower people so they can truly thrive.

At the heart of the conversation is Jeremie’s new book, The Voice-Driven Leader. He explains that the most important role in any organization is the team leader—the person who leads people day-to-day. Using the metaphor of a “Sherpa,” Jeremie emphasizes that when a leader is healthy and self-aware, the team they lead is far more likely to be healthy as well. The book helps leaders understand their own voice, personality, and wiring, as well as the voices of those they lead, so they can communicate more effectively and create meaningful development plans.

Jeremie outlines several core leadership principles, especially for those transitioning from peer to leader. These include learning to “speak the language” of others rather than forcing them to adapt to your style, clearly defining expectations and development paths, and guiding people through the discomfort of learning—what he calls the “pit of despair.” By understanding how people are wired and how they respond under stress, leaders can better support growth and avoid unnecessary breakdowns.

The conversation also explores how communication has evolved, particularly across generations, and how small misunderstandings—tone, emojis, or short messages—can unintentionally damage relationships if leaders are not intentional and aware.

Jeremie shares what excites him most right now: his focus on the idea that peace is power. He explains that leaders cannot give what they do not possess. If a leader is not at peace internally, their leadership and customer experience efforts will feel transactional rather than authentic. He introduces The Peace Index, a practical framework that helps individuals assess peace across five areas of life, reinforcing the idea that personal well-being directly impacts professional effectiveness.

Listeners also hear about the tool Jeremie uses daily—the 5 Voices App, an AI-powered resource designed to help people navigate communication, relationships, and leadership based on personality dynamics. He recommends Unreasonable Hospitality by Will Guidara as a book that deeply influenced his thinking on journeys, employee experience, and customer experience.

Jeremie closes by sharing simple yet powerful phrases he uses during challenging times, including “Choose joy” and “Call up, not out,” reminding us that leadership begins within. This episode is a compelling reminder that great customer experiences start with healthy, self-aware leaders who are alive, at peace, and intentional about how they show up every day.

Connect with Jeremie Kubicek

www.jeremiekubicek.com

In this episode of Navigating the Customer Experience, we sit down with Jean-Pierre LaCroix—President and Chief Strategy Officer of SLD, brand visionary, author, and creator of groundbreaking tools such as the Trust Ladder and the Ideal Omni Experience Model. With more than 46 years of experience helping global organizations transform their retail, brand, and customer experience ecosystems, Jean-Pierre brings deep insight into what it truly takes to build emotionally resonant brands.

Jean-Pierre begins by sharing his personal journey—from growing up on an Air Force base in Germany to working long days on his family’s farm, to discovering his passion for design at Sheridan College. Launching his first firm just two years after graduating, he eventually built SLD into a leading global strategic design agency.

He then dives into his latest book, ThinkBlink Manifesto, which distills decades of experience into seven core tenets for creating emotionally connected brands. Jean-Pierre explains why emotional equity—not features, benefits, or promotions—is what customers respond to most deeply. The seven tenets include:

1. Owning the Emotional Moment
2. Personifying the Emotional Value Through Design
3. Communicating a Compelling Brand Story
4. Understanding Target Personas Beyond Demographics
5. Creating Belonging Experiences
6. Measuring What Truly Matters (Emotional Metrics)
7. Future-Proofing the Brand

Jean-Pierre discusses how leaders can shift beyond pre-COVID thinking by embracing new metrics, strengthening community and belonging for employees and customers, and leveraging SLD’s newly launched ThinkBlink AI Assessment tool to evaluate emotional connection, differentiation, and future readiness.

He also highlights companies that exemplify these principles—such as Apple, Harley-Davidson, and Canadian innovator Cineplex—organizations that have built loyalty and community through purpose-driven experiences.

A voracious reader, Jean-Pierre shares the books that have shaped him most, including Blue Ocean Strategy, The Challenger Mindset, and Nudge. He also opens up about what he’s currently excited about: becoming a grandfather and being invited once again as a keynote speaker at the Financial Brand Forum.

To close the episode, he shares his personal mantra for challenging times:
 “Leadership is about seeing the opportunity in the challenges versus the challenges in the opportunity.”

Connect with Jean-Pierre on LinkedIn or visit www.sld.com
for tools, insights, and free resources.

In this episode of Navigating the Customer Experience, we sit down with Ty Givens, the dynamic Founder and CEO of CX Collective, a consultancy known for building customer experience programs that scale while still feeling human. With a career that began at just 18 years old, Ty walks us through her remarkable journey from her first customer service desk at Office Depot to leading global teams and eventually launching her own company nine years ago.

Ty shares how an early promotion into workforce management shaped her analytical mindset and laid the foundation for her future leadership roles. After years of being called in to “fix” support operations, she recognized that real transformation requires more than one person—it requires systems, collaboration, and a dedicated team. That realization became the catalyst for starting CX Collective.

One of her greatest rewards today is witnessing the tangible results of her team’s work—whether it's improving a help center’s searchability or strengthening an AI knowledge base. Ty describes herself as results-driven and energized by project-based outcomes that create long-term value for clients.

Ty also opens up about the emotional challenges of leading support teams. Early leadership training at Intuit, combined with her MBA in Organizational Leadership, helped her develop a grounded approach centered on emotional intelligence, inquiry, and humility. Recognizing her strengths as an operator rather than a novice-leader coach, she began developing CX playbooks—practical guides that help leaders navigate common challenges, from time management to launching AI programs. These playbooks have become both her most essential tool and a source of self-reflection.

Ty talks about the importance of community, staying curious about industry trends, and the advantage of having worked inside many different organizations. She also shares the fiction authors who shaped her love for storytelling—Eric Jerome Dickey and Carl Weber—and why their writing continues to resonate.

We also explore what Ty is most excited about these days: celebrating her niece’s freshman year at Tuskegee University and being stretched professionally as she leans into marketing her playbooks to a broader audience—an entirely new frontier after years of organic, word-of-mouth growth.

Ty closes the conversation with two powerful affirmations from her grandparents that guide her through adversity:

 “You can do anything you put your mind to,” and “Lace up your bootstraps.” These messages remind her to stay grounded, confident, and ready to face whatever comes.

Connect with us on X @navigatingcx and join our private Facebook community, Navigating the Customer Experience.

In this episode of Navigating the Customer Experience, we dive deep into the career and mindset of Jamie Homen, a seasoned customer experience (CX) leader with over 20 years in the industry. Now leading CX at Mural, an AI-powered visual collaboration platform, Jamie shares valuable perspectives on effective leadership, cross-functional alignment, and how customer-centric decisions drive business success.

🛤️ Jamie’s Journey into Customer Experience

Starting as a call center agent, Jamie never anticipated becoming a Chief Customer Officer. He has watched the field mature and is now thrilled to see customer experience earn a seat at the executive table. At Mural, he’s helping customers visualize collaborative work in a remote world, which he believes is central to modern CX strategies.

💡 Key Leadership Insights

To drive customer success in today’s dynamic environment, Jamie focuses on two major practices:

1. Cross-Functional Alignment: Ensuring teams like sales, marketing, product, and CX operate cohesively. He emphasizes co-creation to close gaps and build customer-centric processes.
2. Empowering Teams: Encouraging employees at all levels to make customer-first decisions, supported by ongoing development and understanding of individual skill sets—especially as AI reshapes roles.

🧠 Overcoming Challenges

Jamie shares a personal story: in high school, he was told he shouldn't pursue college. Refusing to let that define him, he pushed forward and earned three degrees. This experience now fuels his belief in perseverance and self-motivation—key traits he brings into his leadership.

🛠️ Can’t-Live-Without Tool

ChatGPT tops Jamie’s list for its ability to generate ideas, create personas, and gather insights. He predicts a growing shift from traditional search platforms to AI-powered tools across industries.

📚 Book Recommendation

Managing Up by Rosanne Badowski has had a lasting impact on Jamie’s leadership approach, especially in building effective relationships with managers—a skill he considers timeless despite changing workplace technology.

🤖 What’s Exciting Jamie Now

AI transformation. He’s focused on integrating AI across Mural to better understand customers and enhance internal workflows without losing the human element—AI as an enabler, not a replacement.

💬 Favorite Quote

“Adversity introduces a man to himself.” — Albert Einstein
Jamie uses this quote as a reminder to reflect, grow, and persist through obstacles.

🔗 Connect with Jamie

LinkedIn – Jamie Homen
Website – mural.co/blog

Thanks for tuning in! Be sure to follow us on X @navigatingcx and join our private Facebook community: Navigating the Customer Experience.

In this episode of Navigating the Customer Experience, we sit down with Evan Siegel, Vice President of AI at eGain, where he leads the development of next-generation AI-powered conversational guidance. With a rich background that includes 16 years at Wells Fargo leading customer experience and contact center innovation, Evan brings deep insight into how technology can drive better service outcomes without losing the human touch.

Evan’s career journey began in entrepreneurship — running a successful residential painting business that grew to 300 employees before he sold it and pursued an MBA at Stanford. His experience at Wells Fargo honed his expertise in solving large-scale customer pain points and improving first-contact resolution in massive contact centers. Those experiences led him to eGain, a company dedicated to providing “the right answer to the right person at the right time, in the right channel.”

Evan explains that eGain’s AI-powered knowledge management platform helps companies clean, update, and centralize information so agents can quickly find accurate answers. This not only improves customer satisfaction but also transforms efficiency—some clients have seen up to 37% improvement in first-contact resolution, a 30-point rise in Net Promoter Score, and 50% reduction in training time. For instance, eGain supports the U.S. Veterans Administration, the country’s largest healthcare provider, to deliver consistent, fast, and empathetic service across millions of interactions.

A key theme in the discussion is balancing technology and empathy. Evan emphasizes that AI doesn’t replace human connection—it enhances it by freeing up employees’ mental space to focus on emotional intelligence and rapport-building. By handling the “how” of issue resolution, AI lets people focus on the “who.”

He also shares how eGain builds knowledge bases for each company by analyzing customer inquiries, extracting top issues using AI, and rewriting existing materials to align with best practices for clarity and accessibility. This process—once lengthy and manual—can now be done in days or weeks.

When asked about tools he can’t live without, Evan points to AI assistants like ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity, which he uses daily as brainstorming and writing partners. His motto: “AI won’t replace me, but someone who knows how to use AI better than me will.”

Evan also discusses two books that shaped him: How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie, which taught him the power of genuine curiosity in relationships, and William Manchester’s three-part biography of Winston Churchill, which inspired lessons in conviction, communication, and strategic thinking.

Today, what excites Evan most is collaborative leadership—bringing teams together to brainstorm, check egos at the door, and make the best collective decisions. His guiding philosophy: “I don’t need to be the smartest person in the room. I need to make the best decision coming out of the room.”

He closes with another favorite quote: “You miss every shot you don’t take.” For Evan, this embodies the spirit of innovation at eGain—experiment fast, learn fast, and keep improving.

Listeners can connect with Evan on LinkedIn or email him at esiegel@egain.com
 to learn more about eGain’s new AI self-service agent for small businesses, featuring reasoning capabilities, a free trial, and no-contract flexibility.

Follow us on X @navigatingcx, and join our Navigating the Customer Experience Facebook community for more insights and resources.

Greg Logan: The Power of Storytelling – Turning Brands into Blockbusters

In this episode of Navigating the Customer Experience, we are joined by Greg Logan, a global leader in brand storytelling who has spent over 30 years helping the world’s biggest brands—from Adobe and Netflix to Virgin and Qantas—connect with audiences through stories that reach both the head and the heart. With award-winning experience in advertising, television, and film, Greg has built his company, Narrativity, on a powerful idea: brands can learn the secrets of Hollywood storytelling to become loved, not just known.

In this episode, Greg shares his remarkable journey from a 10-year-old fascinated by TV commercials to a top creative at Leo Burnett, where he spent 17 years shaping global campaigns. After a successful career in advertising, he transitioned to entertainment, selling reality show ideas to major U.S. networks. But when he realized that brands were being told why they should tell stories but not how, Greg combined his knowledge of advertising and entertainment to develop storytelling formulas that now help businesses worldwide emotionally engage customers.

Greg breaks down the three keys to connecting with audiences through storytelling. First, use structure—every story needs a clear beginning, middle, and end. Second, make the audience the hero, not the brand. Your business is the wise guide that helps them achieve their quest. Finally, start with the customer’s greatest tension—what keeps them up at night—and end with their greatest love—what they truly desire. By triggering emotion first, you capture attention and make your brand memorable. Greg illustrates this with a powerful case: a New Zealand water company that transformed its message from rational facts to emotional storytelling, landing products in Whole Foods and other major retailers.

He also shares a deeply moving example from his work with a palliative care organization. Using his “quest formula,” they defined their purpose as “giving people their best death possible”—a phrase that brought everyone in the room to tears and perfectly captured their true value. For Greg, these are the stories that matter most.

When it comes to technology, Greg has a balanced approach to AI. While he appreciates its efficiency, he cautions that AI-generated writing often sounds generic. His tip: use AI to edit, not replace your voice—and give it personality by prompting it to write like your favorite celebrity. He also recommends checking out his new tool, storytellingquiz.com, which helps businesses evaluate and strengthen their brand story.

Greg recently released his book, Creating a Blockbuster Brand: Hollywood’s Storytelling Secrets For Your Business, designed to give readers practical, page-by-page value. A book that has deeply influenced him is The Tao of Pooh by Benjamin Hoff—a beautifully simple blend of philosophy and wisdom through Winnie the Pooh.

Looking ahead, Greg is excited about his new collaboration with UK-based BoltAI and their product, Foretold, which uses storytelling principles to help companies innovate faster and smarter by testing new ideas directly with consumers. It’s storytelling not just for marketing—but for invention.

Greg’s guiding mantra during challenges? “Suck it up.” It’s a reminder that as entrepreneurs, we choose this path—and perspective turns frustration into fuel.

Connect with Greg:
Instagram: @gregloganofficial | LinkedIn: Greg Logan | Website: narrativity.com

Books Mentioned:
Creating a Blockbuster Brand by Greg Logan
The Tao of Pooh by Benjamin Hoff

In this episode of Navigating the Customer Experience, we welcome back Joseph Michelli, a certified customer experience professional, New York Times and Wall Street Journal #1 bestselling author, and internationally sought-after keynote speaker. Known for his books on iconic brands such as The Ritz-Carlton, Mercedes-Benz, Starbucks, Zappos, and Airbnb, Joseph brings decades of insight on how leaders and frontline teams can elevate human experiences.

We dive into his latest book, All Business Is Personal: One Medical’s Human-Centered, Technology-Powered Approach to Customer Engagement. Joseph highlights how One Medical—now part of Amazon—revolutionized healthcare delivery by combining AI and digital convenience with deeply personal human connections. He explains how technology can remove inefficiencies, like long waits and scheduling frustrations, while still keeping care human-centered. His insights underscore the importance of balancing automation with empathy—especially as industries increasingly adopt AI.

On the topic of patient comfort with digital healthcare, Joseph notes the learning curve. While technology can enhance convenience, it must never replace the human connection where it matters most. He shares examples of how One Medical redesigned workflows so patients were seen promptly, providers spent less time on charts, and the overall experience felt more personal, not less. The takeaway: technology should enable more meaningful human interactions, not eliminate them.

Looking ahead to 2026, Joseph outlines three key priorities for CX leaders:

1. AI-readiness – Organizations must understand how AI is influencing customer interactions and ensure their brand is positioned effectively in AI-driven recommendations.
2. Convenience and hyper-personalization – Customers expect seamless, tailored experiences; tone-deaf or generic messaging erodes loyalty.
3. Human-empowered service – Well-trained, emotionally intelligent employees remain essential for delivering authentic, personalized experiences.

Joseph also shares exciting news: the launch of a fully online Master’s Degree in Customer Experience at Campbellsville University. This program equips professionals with academic and practical tools—from persona-based journey mapping to ecosystem design—to advance CX as a business-driving discipline.

When discussing the core competencies for CX representatives, Joseph emphasizes emotional intelligence as the foundation. Empathy, self-awareness, managing emotions, and understanding what customers should feel in every interaction are crucial across all industries. Leaders, meanwhile, must also master influence, persistence, vision, and the ability to deliver measurable business outcomes.

Joseph closes with a guiding philosophy he leans on during challenges: “Service serves us.” By focusing on creating value for others, we in turn are enriched. Yet he also reminds us that service must be balanced with self-respect—serving up to the point where we are valued, not devalued.

This rich conversation covers Joseph’s career journey, the evolving role of AI, the future of CX leadership, and the enduring importance of empathy in business. Don’t miss this chance to learn from one of the leading voices in customer experience.

Links Mentioned:

• All Business Is Personal: One Medical’s Human-Centered, Technology-Powered Approach to Customer Engagement by Joseph A. Michelli
• Campbellsville University’s Master of Science in Customer Experience program
• Free guide: The ABC’s of a Fantastic Customer Experience

Connect with us on X @navigatingcx and join our private Facebook community, Navigating the Customer Experience.

In this episode of Navigating the Customer Experience, we are joined by Peter Ryan, President and Founder of Ryan Strategic Advisory, is recognized globally as one of the foremost experts in customer experience (CX) and business process outsourcing (BPO). For over two decades, Peter has advised CX outsourcers, enterprises, governments, and associations on strategic issues like technology deployment, offshore positioning, and service delivery. He is also the publisher of the annual CX Technology and Global Services Survey, considered the most comprehensive look into the minds of enterprise CX leaders across North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific.

Peter’s journey into CX began in London more than 20 years ago at Data Monitor, a market analysis firm. Though unfamiliar with CRM at the time, his curiosity and willingness to learn launched a career that has since evolved into running his own advisory business for nearly a decade. Today, he is a trusted voice in the industry, helping organizations align technology, outsourcing, and strategy to elevate customer experience.

A highlight of Peter’s work is his CX Technology and Global Services Survey. Now in its 8th year, the study benchmarks enterprise priorities, investment areas, and challenges. The 2025 survey, with over 800 decision-makers, revealed three major themes:

1. Data security, compliance, and regulation remain top concerns, with leaders prioritizing fraud prevention, cybersecurity, and privacy compliance.
2. BPO partnerships continue to grow, proving outsourcing is now integral to CX delivery.
3. AI fatigue is rising. While organizations remain interested, fewer leaders expect demand for AI tools to increase, instead seeking real, proven use cases.

Peter also co-founded the CX Outsourcers Conference with Tracy Freeman and Mark Angus. Since 2018, it has become a global gathering of CX and outsourcing leaders, offering unfiltered dialogue and cross-industry perspectives. After stops in Las Vegas, Atlanta, and Munich, the next conference will take place in Ottawa in 2026—their first outside the U.S.

Looking ahead to 2026 and beyond, Peter identifies two priorities for CX leaders:

1. Fix declining service levels. Consumer satisfaction is hitting historic lows, with indexes in the U.S. and U.K. “plumbing new depths.” Leaders must ask why customers feel underserved and address the gaps.
2. Fight for CX investment. Leaders must secure budgets to evolve people, processes, and technology. Relying on outdated methods won’t work—organizations need continual recalibration to retain customers cost-effectively.

Beyond strategy, Peter shares his personal inspirations. Two books shaped his outlook: What Does This Button Do? by Bruce Dickinson, which illustrates the power of lifelong learning and reinvention, and The Hawke Memoirs by Australian Prime Minister Bob Hawke, highlighting resilience and decisive leadership.

For daily productivity, Peter relies on WhatsApp, which has become his go-to professional communication tool, far more effective than overloaded email inboxes.

Currently, Peter is most excited about growing the CX Outsourcers community, creating safe spaces for executives to collaborate, share best practices, and elevate the industry without the pressure of sales.

When it comes to adversity, Peter lives by the philosophy that “things can only get better” and emphasizes personal responsibility: while external factors may be uncontrollable, we remain masters of our own destiny.

This episode offers a rich perspective on CX strategy, outsourcing trends, and the leadership mindset required for the years ahead.

Recommended Books:

• What Does This

In this episode of Navigating the Customer Experience, we are joined John McCahan who is a Customer Experience and Service Executive Leader who has transformed CX across industries including automotive, banking, logistics, manufacturing, retail, and most recently at FTD, where he led its post-bankruptcy customer experience transformation. Currently a Board Member of FullCircle and Advisory Board Member for Execs in the Know, John’s career spans leadership roles at Avon, Milacron, Fifth Third Bank, Target, and Equifax, as well as eight years of service as a U.S. Army Captain. He was recently named one of the “100 Leaders Transforming Customer Experience.”

In this conversation, John shares how his journey into CX began unexpectedly after his military career, when he was asked to lead an underperforming contact center. He discovered his passion for helping people help others and driving organizations to improve execution in service delivery. He emphasizes that customer issues often stem not from frontline staff but from organizational execution failures.

Top Competencies for Exceptional Service Delivery
John identifies three critical behaviors that cut across all industries:

1. Meet customers where they want to be met—via phone, chat, AI, or digital channels, adapting to customer preferences across demographics and cultures.
2. Leverage frontline insights—agents hear customer issues daily and provide the most accurate view of recurring problems. Fixing root causes reduces unnecessary contacts and strengthens customer trust.
3. Embed CX into company culture—true transformation happens when CX is embraced across the entire organization, not just by service teams.

Convincing Leadership of CX Value
John shares strategies for professionals struggling to gain executive buy-in: (1) identify and track metrics that matter, (2) ensure CX leaders have a voice where decisions are made, and (3) live customer centricity through action. He highlights loyalty and lifetime value (LTV) as vital measures, citing FTD’s success in more than doubling its LTV by shifting from transactional interactions to long-term relationships. He also stresses patience—cultural change takes years, not months, to take hold.

Vendor and Partner Alignment
John’s credo, “Find vendors and partners that fit your business,” underscores his belief that success requires alignment in vision, culture, and technology. He shares examples where misaligned outsourcing relationships caused friction, while true partnerships created collaboration, transparency, and innovation. He draws on military principles such as “Fail fast, fail early, fail small” and occasionally “Ask forgiveness, not permission” to illustrate how decisive leadership can accelerate progress.

AI and the Future of CX
For John, AI is not about replacing people but enhancing effectiveness. He uses Microsoft Copilot daily and is especially excited about the potential of Agentic AI—intelligent systems that anticipate and personalize experiences. He imagines applications like concerts or restaurants where AI tailors interactions to individual preferences, turning ordinary transactions into memorable moments.

Books and Inspirations
Two books deeply influenced his leadership: Who Moved My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson, which taught him to embrace change, and Would You Do That to Your Mother? by Jeanne Bliss, which reinforced empathetic, customer-first leadership. He illustrates this philosophy with a powerful story of a loyal 91-year-old customer sending monthly flowers to his wife, showing how empowered, compassionate agents can turn service failures into loyalty-building experiences.

Listeners can connect with John on LinkedIn. Follow us

In this compelling episode of Navigating the Customer Experience, we are joined by global hospitality executive, author, and social entrepreneur Carmen Vlasceanu. With over 25 years of experience in hospitality, aviation, catering, and cruise industries, Carmen shares her remarkable journey from growing up in communist Romania to becoming a transformative leader in customer experience and organizational growth. She holds advanced degrees in Revenue Management, International Business, and Marketing, and is also the founder of Angels-Wings.org, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting underprivileged children with food, clothing, and education.

Carmen’s latest endeavor is her book, Dare to C.A.R.E: Unlock Your Potential to Transform Your Life, Well-Being and Customer Experience. The book presents the C.A.R.E. Model, which stands for Connection, Authenticity, Reengineering, and Evolution. It offers a humanistic framework that empowers individuals and organizations to align purpose with service delivery—moving beyond transactional interactions to deeply meaningful customer engagement.

The conversation explores the multi-layered value of the book—both as inspirational reading and a practical workbook. Carmen explains how Dare to C.A.R.E is filled with bullet-point strategies that help individuals rediscover purpose, boost mental wellness, and reconnect with their natural strengths. For leaders and managers, it provides applicable tools to enhance team cohesion, foster authentic communication, and build a purpose-driven work culture. The goal is simple yet profound: when individuals thrive, organizations—and by extension, customers—thrive too.

While the book draws heavily from Carmen’s hospitality background, it transcends industries. Whether you're in banking, retail, pharma, or any customer-facing sector, the lessons in Dare to C.A.R.E are universal. Carmen emphasizes that customer experience today is everyone's business, not just that of the hospitality sector

When asked about a single word that organizations should focus on for the latter half of 2025, Carmen shares three: Resilience, Purpose, and Legacy. These values are the backbone of not just business success, but meaningful human impact. She quotes, “The day you plant the seed is not the day you eat the fruit,” encouraging listeners to invest long-term in values that matter.

A deeply spiritual person, Carmen credits the Bible as her most indispensable daily tool, using it for both personal inspiration and professional grounding. She believes that every act of kindness, however small, can ignite lasting change—be it for a colleague, customer, or community member.

As for books that shaped her worldview, she highlights "Soar!: Building Your Vision from the Ground Up" by T.D. Jakes, a guide that emphasizes perseverance, vision, and service to others. She believes that in a world increasingly marked by division, it's crucial to focus on shared humanity and collective growth.

Carmen also shares her excitement about her ongoing projects, including the Global Hospitality and Maritime Leaders platform—offering mentoring, coaching, and personalized training for professionals seeking growth or career pivots. In tandem, her nonprofit Angels-Wings continues to expand its impact, giving hope and practical support to vulnerable children and families.

She closes with a powerful reminder that “Daring to care” isn’t just a slogan—it’s a call to action. When we align who we are with what we do, and when organizations operate from a place of purpose, transformation happens—not just in metrics, but in lives.

Connect with Carmen:

• Website:

In this compelling episode of Navigating the Customer Experience Podcast, we speak with Jay Sapovits, a dynamic and resilient entrepreneur with a flair for reinvention. Jay’s journey began with a bold move across the country at age 18, setting the tone for a life rich in unconventional choices and high-profile experiences. With a knack for spotting opportunity in adversity, Jay has built a career rooted in innovation, grit, and human connection.

From Retail to Revolutionary: The Ink Stores Story

Jay is currently leading Ink Stores, a full-service promotional company specializing in on-demand webstores. Originally a traditional storefront business, the pandemic forced a dramatic pivot. In response, Jay transformed the company into an online powerhouse that builds, hosts, and fulfills custom merchandise stores for businesses—with no inventory, minimums, or upfront costs. This reinvention not only helped Ink Stores survive but thrive in a competitive, post-COVID market.

Real-World Impact: Swag Without the Hassle

Jay shares a powerful client use case involving a holiday employee gift initiative. Rather than requiring HR to manage sizing, style, and distribution of branded jackets, Ink Stores created a custom online portal. Employees could independently select sizes, styles, and colors, and orders were shipped directly to them—eliminating friction, protecting employee dignity, and freeing HR from uncomfortable sizing conversations. It's a prime example of how Ink’s model prioritizes autonomy, convenience, and a seamless experience.

Jay’s Must-Have Business Tools & Books

When asked about a tool he can’t live without, Jay simply answers: Email. He's responsive to a fault—often replying within seconds—and views this real-time communication style as a core operational strength.

Two books stand out in shaping Jay’s business philosophy:

• Dig Your Well Before You’re Thirsty by Harvey Mackay – A classic on proactive networking.
• How to Become a Rainmaker by Jeffrey Fox – Jay's all-time favorite sales book, packed with short, punchy insights on winning and keeping clients. He frequently recommends it to job candidates and young professionals.

Strategic Priorities in Uncertain Times

As 2025 unfolds amid economic pressure and political shifts, Jay remains grounded. His three focus areas:

1. Stay connected with customers
2. Follow industry trends
3. Prioritize team culture and employee well-being

Notably, Jay refuses to raise prices despite rising supplier costs. He views opportunistic pricing as short-sighted and is committed to rewarding loyal customers with price stability—or even reductions. His values stand in contrast to what he calls “price gouging” across many industries.

What’s Next? A Leap Into Tech

Jay is currently expanding his capabilities through tech and AI by interviewing candidates for data science and development roles—areas outside his comfort zone but essential for scaling customer experience. His willingness to push into unfamiliar territory speaks volumes about his growth mindset.

Words to Live By

Jay shares a simple but profound quote taped to his computer:
 “If you promise someone something, keep it.”

He explains that success is a series of doing simple things right—choosing the next right action, over and over again. In Jay’s eyes, life isn’t about making mistakes unknowingly; it’s about consciously choosing right versus wrong. Stacking up the right choices, he believes, leads to a meaningful, impactful life.

Connect with Jay Sapovits:
🌐 Website: www.inkdstores.com
💼 LinkedIn: Jay Sap

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In this episode of Navigating the Customer Experience, we sit down with Fran Brzyski, CEO and Co-Founder of Hark, the leader in video and audio-driven customer feedback. With over a decade of experience in CX and Voice of Customer roles spanning startups to Fortune 50s, Fran brings a wealth of insight into transforming how brands listen and respond to customers in the modern age.

Fran’s journey to entrepreneurship wasn’t linear. He began in finance at a major bank but quickly realized the corporate world wasn’t for him. Driven by a desire to innovate and execute quickly, he pivoted into the startup world, embracing the highs and lows along the way. After working across sectors including biotech, risk and compliance, and e-commerce, he found his calling in software — drawn by the rapid feedback loops and opportunity for fast-paced innovation. Inspired by his supportive wife and parents, Fran took a leap of faith, second-mortgaged his home, and founded Hark.

So, what is Hark? Fran explains that Hark was born from a realization that customer communication was evolving rapidly. While people freely share stories on social media, brand interactions remained stuck in outdated forms and text-based surveys. Hark changes that by enabling customers to share feedback via audio, video, screen share, and text — creating a multimodal, emotionally rich experience that makes people feel truly heard.

Hark not only captures more meaningful customer stories, but also analyzes them to extract trends and insights across departments. The platform facilitates faster feedback loops and deeper cross-functional collaboration — turning traditional customer feedback into an engaging, action-driven experience that transforms how teams operate.

Fran shares powerful use cases where Hark has driven real change. In one example, a beauty brand identified a pump issue that was initially thought to be a product defect. Through Hark’s insights, they discovered it was actually a fulfillment problem — saving time, money, and improving the customer experience. Another eyewear company revamped its NPS strategy, using Hark to elevate promoters into champions, fostering brand loyalty in ways they’d never seen before.

When asked about tools he can't live without, Fran points to ChatGPT, noting its versatility in helping him brainstorm, optimize operations, and make strategic decisions — effectively serving as his go-to AI business partner.

Books that have influenced him? "The Four Agreements" by Don Miguel Ruiz stands out for helping him tune into what truly drives personal happiness and freedom, a mindset he carries into both life and leadership.

What’s Fran excited about right now? Both professionally and personally, a lot. He’s energized by the accelerating pace of AI innovation, especially how it’s reshaping product development and testing. Personally, raising three young kids under six keeps him grounded and present, giving him fresh perspective every day.

On staying motivated, Fran emphasizes self-awareness, structure, and support. He prioritizes sleep, exercise, and quality time with his family. He also works with a coach and practices meditation to stay mentally clear and present — knowing that founder life is a marathon, not a sprint.

His favorite quote? One from his mom: “This isn’t a dress rehearsal, this life.” It’s a reminder to be bold, stay grounded, and live intentionally — a philosophy he carries with him into every business decision.

Connect with Fran:

• Fran Brzyski on LinkedIn
• Hark on LinkedIn

Tune in to learn how Fran is disrupting customer feedback wi

In this episode of Navigating the Customer Experience, we’re joined by Eric Karofsky, an award-winning expert in customer experience (CX), user experience (UX), and employee engagement, and the founder of VectorHX, a human experience agency. Eric shares his professional journey—from decades in agency and consultancy work with major brands like Michelin and Royal Caribbean, to leading UX at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, and now building his own company focused on creating seamless customer interactions across digital and physical touchpoints.

Eric discusses how AI is rapidly reshaping the customer experience landscape, emphasizing that it’s a powerful tool—not a solution on its own. He shares both the promise and the current limitations of AI, particularly in customer support scenarios, likening poorly designed chatbots to frustrating call center loops from the 1980s.

A major theme in the episode is understanding customer behavior through cultural, situational, and demographic lenses. Eric cautions against forcing users into preferred communication channels and instead advises companies to map the ideal journey for different personas and optimize each channel for a frictionless experience.

He offers a powerful case study from the pharmaceutical industry, where AI is being used to transform labor-intensive literature reviews—cutting timelines from six months to potentially two weeks. This not only boosts business efficiency but also accelerates drug development, delivering life-saving treatments to patients faster.

Eric also touches on:

• AI leadership and how it should drive business strategy by identifying areas for efficiency and innovation.
• Tools he can't live without, like Claude AI and Notion, which he uses to manage his business and ideas.
• His excitement about no-code tools like Bolt.new and Lovable, which allow rapid prototyping of full-stack apps without technical skills.
• The enduring value of classic books like Getting to Yes and The Design of Everyday Things, which shaped his thinking around negotiation and customer-centric design.
• The importance of motivation and resilience, fueled by the exciting pace of innovation and meaningful human connections with clients and team members.

He closes with a favorite quote by Benjamin Franklin:

"Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn."
A reminder of the value of active learning and mentorship in building strong, collaborative teams.

You’ll leave this episode with fresh insights on CX, AI strategy, and how to build human-centered experiences in a rapidly evolving digital world.

🔗 Connect with Eric Karofsky:
🌐 Website: www.vectorhx.com
🔗 LinkedIn: Eric Karofsky

In this powerful episode of Navigating the Customer Experience, we sit down with Dave Garrison, leadership strategist, former CEO, and author of The Buy-In Advantage: Why Employees Don’t Care – and What Great Leaders Do to Inspire Them to Give Their All. With over 25 years of experience leading and advising public and private companies—including Ameritrade—Dave shares his journey from CEO to co-founder of Garrison Growth, where he helps leaders transform workplace culture and team engagement.

Dave’s Journey from CEO to Culture Champion

Dave opens up about his personal transformation—from leading multinational corporations to discovering his passion for helping people reach their full potential. Encouraged by close friends who questioned whether being a high-profile CEO was truly bringing him joy, Dave embarked on a path that led to founding Garrison Growth. Today, his mission is to help leaders create workplace environments where employees thrive—and where customers feel that impact.

Why Engagement is Dropping (And How to Reverse It)

Dave discusses startling insights from Gallup’s latest data showing that global employee engagement has dropped again. He explains that no leader wants a disengaged workforce, and no employee chooses to disengage—but without intentional focus, engagement simply won’t happen. Because it's not commonly reinforced by investors or executive dashboards, many leaders unknowingly neglect it.

The “Gas Factor” and What Really Drives Engagement

Leaders often default to surface-level perks like bonuses, free food, or ping-pong tables to boost morale. While appreciated, these don’t move the needle. Dave reveals that employees today—especially Gen Z—are more motivated by meaningful impact, alignment with purpose, and strong team relationships. When employees feel heard, valued, and connected to a bigger mission, that’s when true engagement happens.

From Micromanaging to Empowerment

Micromanaging often comes from good intentions but can stifle team growth. Dave challenges leaders to identify the one or two areas where their close involvement truly adds value and let go of control in other areas. Referencing Steve Jobs’ hyper-focus on design, he urges leaders to trust the “collective genius” of their teams and foster an environment of trust and autonomy.

The Three Pillars: Inspired People, Smart Outcomes, Empowered Teams

In The Buy-In Advantage, Dave outlines three key pillars of high-performing organizations. The biggest challenge he sees? Prioritization. Many leaders overwhelm teams with long lists of goals. He stresses the importance of narrowing focus to just three core priorities and engaging the team in bringing them to life. The secret? Creating alignment through conversations, not commands—what Dave calls a “done with” not “done to” mindset.

Making Values Stick Through Storytelling

Company values can’t just live on a poster. Dave champions storytelling as a powerful way to reinforce culture. He shares practical examples like executives spending time in customer service centers or calling clients directly—not to promote products, but to deeply understand their needs. These experiences yield stories that inspire teams and reinforce the company’s purpose in meaningful, memorable ways.

AI as a Game-Changer

When asked about a tool he can’t live without, Dave points to AI—specifically tools like Claude and ChatGPT. He emphasizes the importance of input quality, recommending leaders use detailed, emotionally contextual prompts (about 400 words) to get the most powerful results from AI, especially for brainstorming and problem-solving.

Books That Shaped Dave’s Thinking

Two books had a significant influence on Dave’s approach to lea

In this episode of Navigating the Customer Experience, we talk with Justin Baer, an entrepreneur passionate about blending comfort and style into professional wear. Justin shares his journey from a tech-focused entrepreneur to founding Collars & Co., known for their innovative Dress Collar Polo — the perfect hybrid of dress shirt style with polo shirt comfort.

Originally a side project launched during the pandemic, Justin’s brand has grown exponentially, boasting over 300 SKUs, a 20,000 sq ft warehouse, and 20+ employees. Featured on Shark Tank, The Wall Street Journal, and Men’s Health, Collars & Co. is more than just apparel — it’s a community dedicated to excellence, integrity, and creativity.

Highlights Include:

• Entrepreneurial Journey: Justin always had a knack for business, growing up in a family where Wall Street Journals replaced Sports Illustrated. After years in tech and software, the discomfort of daily dress shirts in NYC inspired him to create a new kind of apparel.
• The Launch Story: Using a Shopify store, DIY photoshoots, and a TikTok video filmed by his daughter, Justin’s first shirts sold out almost immediately — proof of demand for stylish comfort.
• Customer Experience Focus: Transitioning from B2B to direct-to-consumer, Justin emphasizes constant learning, using data-driven A/B testing to refine online shopping experiences. They prioritize customer support, treating every customer "like a celebrity."
• Key Skills Sharpened:
  • Video editing and social media marketing (vital for brand building),
  • Accounting and financial acumen (essential for growth),
  • Customer service excellence (building a brand voice and culture internally and externally).
• Essential Tools: Shopify and Triple Whale (for e-commerce attribution) are vital to their daily operations.
• Book Recommendations: The Ultimate Sales Machine by Chet Holmes, highlighting the power of letting data sell for you.
• Customer Perspective: As a shopper himself, Justin values social proof, return policies, and responsive support — factors Collars & Co. strives to excel at.
• Expanding the Line: While Collars & Co. began with menswear, a women’s collection is underway, recognizing the significant demand and opportunity in women's fashion.
• What’s Next: Justin is excited about launching a performance dress shirt line in partnership with Arrow McLaren IndyCar Team, offering high-tech, cool-to-the-touch fabrics for modern professionals.
• Mindset on Challenges: Justin embraces adversity, viewing problems as opportunities to improve — a philosophy that has fueled Collars & Co.’s rapid success.

Find Justin Online:

• Website: www.collarsandco.com
• LinkedIn: Justin Baer
• Instagram/TikTok: @collarsandcoclothing

Closing Thought:
Justin’s story is a reminder that true innovation often comes from solving personal problems — with grit, creativity, and a commitment to excellence. Whether you’re looking for entrepreneurial insights, fashion industry tips, or inspiration to chase your own ideas, this conversation offers invaluable lessons.

In today’s episode of Navigating the Customer Experience with Eitan Koter. Eitan Koter, Co-founder and Co-CEO of Vimmi, has a rich background in the tech sector, particularly in video commerce, digital marketing, and social commerce. With over two decades of experience, including managing a public company and leading startups, Koter has established himself as a thought leader in the industry. His company, Vimmi, is a video commerce SaaS platform that has been operational for 11 years, focusing on immersive shopping experiences through video.

Eitan's Journey

Koter's career began in the tech sector, specifically in video compression technology. His extensive experience spans various sectors like eCommerce and media. He emphasizes the evolution of video marketing and commerce, noting the significant shift towards immersive experiences that enhance online shopping. Vimmi's unique approach integrates video and augmented reality to create interactive purchasing experiences, moving beyond traditional static product pages.

About Vimmi

Vimmi initially catered to large content providers and enterprises looking to launch video services similar to Netflix. The company serves a B2B2C model, where they provide solutions for enterprises that ultimately serve consumers. Koter highlights the growing trend of live shopping, inspired by practices in China, where brands engage audiences through live streams that incorporate direct purchasing options. This interactive format fosters emotional connections with consumers and enhances brand loyalty.

Recommended Skills and Tools for Video Commerce

Koter advises newcomers to focus on short-form videos (around 30 seconds), starting with a compelling hook rather than a sales pitch. He suggests creating content that addresses customer pain points and building personal connections through storytelling. The structure of these videos should include:

1. Hook: Capture attention with a question or intriguing statement.
2. Connection: Share personal stories or experiences related to the topic.
3. Showcase: Provide visual evidence of success or transformation.
4. Insight: End with a powerful takeaway for viewers.

Koter emphasizes authenticity and consistency in content creation, recommending that brands post regularly to build community engagement.

Importance of Social Commerce

Koter asserts that social commerce is crucial for future brand success. It enables brands to connect directly with consumers through engaging content across multiple platforms. The integration of shoppable videos allows for seamless transactions during live events or short-form content, enhancing the shopping experience.

Conclusion

Eitan Koter's insights into video commerce highlight its transformative potential in eCommerce. By leveraging immersive experiences and social engagement, brands can foster deeper connections with their audiences while driving sales. His expertise serves as a guide for businesses seeking to navigate the evolving landscape of digital marketing and commerce effectively.

In today's episode of Navigating the Customer Experience with Josh Seiden. Josh’s insights emphasize that customer-centricity is a journey requiring both leadership and employees to adopt new ways of thinking and working. By focusing on customer needs and empowering teams through OKRs, organizations can create greater value and drive meaningful change.

Josh’s Journey

Josh began his career in Silicon Valley during the pre-internet days, working in technology. Fascinated by what makes great products and services, he spent many years as a designer and later a product manager. Today, he helps teams collaborate more effectively, fostering customer-centric approaches to deliver exceptional value to the world.

About Josh’s New Book: Who Does What By How Much? A Practical Guide to Customer-Centric OKRs

Josh’s book is inspired by his passion for integrating a customer-focused perspective into product and service development. He emphasizes that while creating good products is challenging, it’s essential to keep the customer at the core of decision-making. His book introduces OKRs (Objectives and Key Results), a goal-setting framework that helps organizations align their objectives with customer needs.

OKRs prompt teams to define clear objectives—what they want to achieve—and measurable key results based on customer outcomes. For example, the Cleveland Clinic uses OKRs with objectives like "Be the best place in the world to receive healthcare" and key results such as reducing serious safety events. This approach ensures customer-centric thinking while empowering teams to solve problems creatively.

Overcoming Challenges with OKRs

A common pain point in organizations is micromanagement, where leaders dictate tasks rather than allowing teams to leverage their expertise. OKRs address this by shifting leadership’s focus from controlling tasks to setting strategic goals and creating an environment where employees can solve problems independently. This requires mutual trust and encourages employees to think critically about delivering customer value.

However, resistance to change is a hurdle. Employees may feel overwhelmed by new processes. Josh emphasizes the importance of leadership in clearly articulating why OKRs are being adopted, addressing organizational pain points, and explaining how OKRs will benefit both the company and individual employees. This alignment fosters motivation and helps overcome resistance.

Aligning OKRs with Employee Needs

Josh highlights the need to connect OKRs to the employees’ sense of purpose. Everyone within an organization has customers—whether they’re external consumers or internal stakeholders. For example, an HR professional’s customers might be employees seeking benefits or managers hiring talent. By adopting a customer-centric mindset, employees at all levels can see how their roles contribute to organizational success, making them more engaged and motivated.

Key Behaviors for Customer-Centric Organizations

To become truly customer-centric, organizations must:

1. Understand Customers Deeply: Organizations should invest in customer discovery, understanding who their customers are, their motivations, and what challenges they face.
2. Prioritize Value Creation Over Sales: Beyond generating revenue, focus on how customers use products and whether those products are delivering real value.
3. Foster a Problem-Solving Culture: Empower employees to solve problems rather than prescribing solutions.
4. Enhance Communication and Transparency: Ensure alignment and clarity in how OKRs connect to customer and employee goals.

In this episode, we dive deep into the insights of Laura Richard, a Principal at Level5 Strategy and a leader committed to enhancing customer experiences. With a background in health sciences, Laura transitioned into management consulting, driven by her curiosity and passion for problem-solving. Over her 15-plus-year career, she has worked across various sectors, including public, private, and not-for-profit, focusing on building effective strategies that yield tangible results for her clients.

Laura emphasizes the importance of understanding customer motivations, which she identifies as a mix of rational benefits and emotional responses. She believes that successful businesses must grasp these motivators to craft compelling customer promises and enhance their customer journeys. By identifying critical touchpoints—moments of truth in customer interactions—she helps organizations differentiate themselves and create impactful experiences.

Navigating Customer Experiences

When asked about navigating customer experiences, Laura discusses the necessity of addressing both rational and emotional aspects of customer interactions. She points out that different customer segments require unique approaches, and emphasizes active listening as a universal skill for frontline teams. Demonstrating empathy and understanding is crucial in resolving customer pain points effectively.

The Role of Personalization

Personalization is another key topic. Laura highlights its growing importance in creating customer-centric organizations, where customers feel valued and understood. However, she warns against overextending resources in an attempt to personalize too much, advocating for a balanced approach that aligns with an organization's maturity and capabilities.

Future Trends to Watch

Looking ahead, Laura identifies two critical trends for organizations to focus on in the next 6 to 12 months. First, she stresses the need for businesses to deeply understand customer journeys, pinpointing pain points and identifying suitable solutions before adopting new technologies. Second, she emphasizes the importance of connecting customer experience improvements to business outcomes, urging customer experience professionals to work closely with finance teams to demonstrate the value of their initiatives.

Essential Tools and Resources

When it comes to tools, Laura shares her reliance on TheyDo, a journey mapping and management tool that enables her team to visualize customer interactions and prioritize improvements effectively.

Influential Reads

Laura also reflects on the impact of Simon Sinek’s book, Start with Why, which underscores the significance of purpose in driving engagement and motivation within organizations. This concept has influenced how she advises clients on articulating their core missions.

Current Excitement

Currently, Laura is excited about the repositioning of Level5 Strategy. The firm aims to communicate its focus on creating data-driven strategies that stick, aligning closely with client feedback and needs.

Connecting with Laura

Listeners can connect with Laura on LinkedIn and through the Level5 Strategy website, where they can explore more about their customer experience offerings.

Inspiration During Challenges

To wrap up the episode, Laura shares her mantra during tough times: “Just keep moving forward.” This simple yet powerful reminder encourages incremental progress and continuous value creation.

This conversation with Laura Richard offers valuable insights into enhancing customer experiences, the importance of personalization, and strategies for organizational growth. Tune in to gain a deeper understanding of how to drive impactful change in your business

In today's digital landscape, the exponential growth of data presents unique challenges and opportunities for organizations. Keith Goode, a leader in human capital management and business intelligence, emphasizes the significance of leveraging data to enhance decision-making around an organization’s most valuable asset: its people. As a member of ZeroedIn Technologies, Keith is dedicated to turning HR and business data into actionable workforce intelligence.

Keith's Journey

With a background in information management systems, Keith combines technical expertise with deep knowledge of HR practices, including benefits, payroll, and core HR functions. His experience allows him to create comprehensive reporting solutions that empower organizations to make informed decisions using historical data.

About ZeroedIn Technologies

Founded by a visionary who Keith has collaborated with since the early 90s, ZeroedIn aims to address the issue of siloed HR solutions. These systems often offer a wealth of data but lack the insights needed for effective workforce management. ZeroedIn integrates data from various HR functions—such as learning, benefits, and payroll—into a unified platform that provides a single point of truth regarding employee interactions and performance.

Success Stories

Keith highlights several success stories from his work with clients. For instance, in organizations with outdoor workers, ZeroedIn correlated core HR information with weather data. This analysis helped clients understand how environmental factors affected performance and efficiency.

In the retail sector, ZeroedIn assisted clients in correlating employee performance data with sales figures. This integration enabled store managers to identify top performers and allocate coaching resources effectively, thereby enhancing overall sales output.

Trends for 2025: Merging Human and Data Intelligence

As organizations move toward 2025, Keith identifies two key trends: collective listening and the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI). Collective listening involves combining quantitative data from various systems with qualitative insights gathered from employee surveys and communications. This approach provides a comprehensive view of organizational health.

In the realm of AI, Keith discusses the potential of machine learning and large language models. These technologies can analyze historical data, generate predictions, and even interpret complex datasets in user-friendly formats. For example, managers can leverage AI to gain insights from dashboards, enabling them to understand trends and identify actionable strategies without needing advanced technical skills.

The Role of Critical Thinking

A key question arises: as AI becomes more integrated into decision-making, will critical thinking diminish? Keith addresses this concern by encouraging a balanced approach. He believes AI should enhance human capabilities rather than replace them. By using AI-generated insights as a starting point, professionals can apply their expertise and intuition to delve deeper into the data, ultimately leading to more informed and innovative decisions.

Conclusion

Keith Goode’s insights reveal the immense potential of data in transforming HR practices. Through platforms like ZeroedIn, organizations can harness their data to make better, faster decisions that positively impact their workforce. As technology evolves, the fusion of human insight and data intelligence will be crucial in navigating the future of work.

In this solo episode of "Navigating the Customer Experience," host Yanique Grant reflects on her podcasting journey and offers encouragement to those considering starting their own. With 245 episodes under her belt and a recent transition to video podcasting, Yanique shares insights on overcoming fears and embracing new challenges.

Yanique begins by discussing her mission through her company, Professional Training & Occupational Services, which aims to create a more caring world. Inspired by the cartoon "Care Bears," she emphasizes that customer experience is a vital part of life and encourages listeners to view their interactions as opportunities to serve others.

As she dives into her podcasting experience, Yanique reveals her initial apprehensions about switching to video format. However, through research and conversations with fellow podcasters, she has begun to embrace this new medium, finding it a rewarding way to connect and share knowledge.

She believes that customer experience is not just a professional focus but a lifestyle that requires commitment and passion. Yanique encourages those feeling timid about starting a podcast or business to take action, reminding them that success comes from trying, even in the face of fear and anxiety. She acknowledges that even successful individuals face challenges, but overcoming these obstacles can lead to personal growth.

Yanique also emphasizes the importance of sharing knowledge and skills. With numerous platforms available today, everyone has the opportunity to showcase their unique talents—whether it’s baking, crafting, or any other skill. She reassures listeners that they possess unique value that cannot be replicated, and encourages them to embrace their individuality.

Continuing her message of empowerment, Yanique highlights the vast resources available online for learning and growth. She believes that anyone can learn new skills with a little effort and encourages listeners to leverage online platforms to their advantage.

In closing, Yanique expresses her gratitude for the support of her audience, inviting them to share feedback and suggestions for future episodes. She hopes that listeners find the same passion in their pursuits as she does in teaching customer service. By surrounding themselves with positive influences and focusing on their goals, Yanique believes that anyone can achieve their dreams.

Tune in to this inspiring episode for valuable insights on embracing your journey, whether in podcasting, business, or personal growth!

Andrew Carothers is a Senior Customer Experience Leader and a CCXP who has significantly shaped the field of customer experience (CX). His career began in public relations, where he worked both in agencies and in-house. He transitioned into the technology sector at Autodesk and even worked for the Electric Vehicle Association of America before the concept of electric vehicles became popular.

Over the years, Andrew expanded his expertise beyond public relations into various marketing communications roles. His pivotal move came when he joined Cisco Systems, where he transitioned from marketing to the newly established customer experience function. At that time, Cisco primarily sold hardware with long sales cycles and minimal customer interaction. However, the company's shift towards a recurring revenue model and the rise of software as a service (SaaS) transformed customer engagement.

As part of a small team at Cisco tasked with redefining customer interactions, Andrew gained extensive experience in digital CX, voice of the customer initiatives, and journey mapping. This journey laid the foundation for his later successes in customer experience, where he has won multiple international awards and contributed to thought leadership in the field.

Evolving Customer Expectations

Andrew identifies two major trends currently shaping customer expectations:

1. Consistency Across Experiences: Customers now expect seamless and consistent interactions across all channels. This shift has been heavily influenced by leading companies like Amazon and Apple, which have set high standards for user experience. The ease of searching for, purchasing, and returning products has raised customer expectations across all industries, including B2B environments.
2. Digital-First Interactions: The demand for digital experiences has surged, particularly accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Customers now expect to engage with companies through digital channels first, regardless of their size. This expectation includes easy access to information and services, marking a significant change in customer interaction dynamics.

The Importance of Self-Service

Research indicates that up to 80% of customers seek information independently before contacting a company. This trend highlights the necessity for robust self-service options. Companies should invest in knowledge bases that feature diverse content formats—text, video, infographics—to cater to different customer learning preferences. By enabling customers to resolve issues on their own, organizations can enhance overall satisfaction and engagement.

Harnessing Data for Enhanced CX

As Andrew looks ahead to 2025, he emphasizes the critical role of data in shaping customer experience strategies. He advocates for organizations, regardless of size, to consolidate data from various sources to create a holistic view of customer interactions. Understanding customer needs through predictive analytics will be essential for delivering personalized and effective experiences.

In conclusion, Andrew Carothers’ journey reflects the evolution of customer experience driven by changing expectations, the rise of digital engagement, and the strategic importance of data. His insights and experiences position him as a leader in the field, guiding organizations toward more customer-centric practices and enhanced satisfaction.

In this episode of Navigating the Customer Experience, host Yanique Grant interviews Rusty Rueff, a seasoned leader with a diverse career in entertainment, talent management, and philanthropy. Rusty shares insights from his journey, which includes significant roles at PepsiCo and Electronic Arts (EA), where he was instrumental in global human resources and talent management.

Rusty discusses the core concepts from his latest book, The Faith Code, emphasizing the importance of building a life platform based on enduring values and relationships rather than transient interests. He highlights the need for balance among mind, body, and spirit to achieve personal fulfillment and professional success.

The conversation also explores the relationship between personal wellness and delivering exceptional customer experiences, with both Rusty and Yanique stressing the significance of self-care. Rusty shares his mantra: "Fearlessly be yourself," underscoring authenticity as a key element of effective leadership.

Additionally, Rusty addresses the impact of technology on society and encourages embracing innovations like generative AI to enhance productivity. He expresses excitement about future projects, including recording an audiobook version of The Faith Code and engaging in new ventures that foster meaningful connections among people.

This episode is rich with practical advice and reflections on navigating life with purpose and intention, making it a valuable listen for anyone looking to improve their customer experience skills or integrate holistic wellness into their daily routine.

Marybeth Alexander has been the Knowledge Goddess and Chief Executive Owl at KnowledgeOwl since she co-founded the company with Pete in 2015. As KnowledgeOwl’s CEO, she's responsible for embodying KnowledgeOwl's mission and values, which include using business as a force for good, cultivating a people-first company, giving excellent service to everyone, and creating awesome knowledge based software.

Questions 

· We always like to give our guests an opportunity to share in their own words, a little bit about their journey. So, if you could share with our listeners just a little bit about how you got from where you were to where you are today.

Bob Carrothers has 29 years of experience, he facilitates peer-to-peer boards of CEOs and executives, creating environments conducive to skill enhancement, informed decision-making and superior results. Bob is certified as an Emergenetics advisor and Predictive Index practitioner, equipping him with a profound understanding of human behaviour and cognition. 

Questions

· So, we always like to ask our guests, in your own words, could you share a little bit about your journey? How you got from where you were to where you are today?

· What would you say maybe if you could pick three overarching tenets or competencies that you believe CEOs need to practice or embrace in order to really achieve the three areas that just mentioned.

Barbara Wardell and Ernesto Cullari run an agency that focuses on geofencing. This embraces a growth hacker mindset that strategically focuses on identifying and amplifying their clients’ strengths while pinpointing weaknesses in the competition, utilizing GPS location data. This approach results in a significant and measurable impact on foot traffic and online engagement, making their efforts truly game changing and successful. 

Questions

· Now, we always like to ask our guests in their own words, if you could share a little bit about your journeys, how you got from where you were to where you are today.

· Can you share with our listeners in the most simplest layman terms, what exactly is geofencing?

Alan Versteeg, an engineer turned sales management expert, initially approached the sales world with skepticism, but soon turned it into a thriving career by applying the engineering principles of cause and effect to sales and sales management. This success led him to co-founding Growth Matters, where Alan and his team have developed over 2,000 sales managers across 45+ countries and diverse industries. 

Known for his candid and light-hearted approach, Alan's passion for the sales profession shines through in his insightful talks, leaving audiences engaged with his wisdom, expertise, and memorable one liners. 

Questions

· Now, could you start by sharing with our listeners a little bit about your journey, how it is that you got from where you were to where you are today.

·

Neil Leyland is a Chief Contact Center Strategist at InterVision, and he is an exceptional PMP and six Sigma black belt certified senior-level program leader and a proven problem-solver. A highly motivated achiever with a career history in sales and operations management for international multi-unit retail operations. 

Possessing excellent interpersonal, presentation, written and verbal communication skills, which are used to solve problems, consult on technology projects and develop long-term collaborative relationships. 

Questions

Dr. Eric Recker is a dentist, husband, father, keynote speaker, Elite Success Coach, author, pilot, mountain climber and recovering triathlete. In his second half of life, he is committed to helping people shorten the distance to becoming their best version and learning to #WINtheNOW. 

Questions

·      We'd love for you to share in your own words a little bit about how you got from where you were to where you are today.

·      Could you share maybe two or three overarching themes that you believe have been the core values that have driven you to get to where you are today, and if other people were to embrace or embody those same core values, you believe they would achieve the same success.

Daniel Ruby is a VP of Marketing at Nobl9. Ruby is a dynamic marketing executive with a focus on B2B marketing, and has significant experience building teams and driving successful, data-driven programs for a range of startups and mid-sized organizations. As the Director of Online Marketing for Localytics, Ruby was the first marketing hire and scaled his team to a full-fledged marketing department with domain specialists focused on mobile apps.  

Ruby also has a background in journalism and spent several years guest lecturing marketing courses at Bentley University, bringing this dynamic skill set to his current role at Nobl9. Ruby holds a BA in Broadcast Journalism from the University of Missouri-Columbia and an MBA in International Business from Brandeis University. 

Questions

·     

Irina Vatafu has nearly a decade of experience in customer-facing roles, she is deeply passionate about working with people, and dedicated to ensuring every customer feels valued and respected. Currently serving as the Head of Customer Success at Custify, Irina thrives in roles that require effective communication, problem-solving and empathetic engagement. 

Her commitment to continuous improvement and staying current with industry trends ensures that her approach remains innovative and impactful. One of her key strengths is creating a collaborative and supportive environment that consistently delivers exceptional experiences and fosters strong customer loyalty. At the heart of her work is a dedication to championing the needs and voices of customers, which continues to inspire and drive her every single day. 

Richard Weylman was orphaned at age 6 and he lived in 19 foster homes and attended 11 different schools. Rather than becoming the victim of those circumstances, he overcame them and he has had remarkable business success, including as an award-winning General Sales Manager of Rolls Royce to Head Sales and Marketing for the Robb Report, a Magazine for the Luxury Lifestyle from its inception until its record liquidity event. 

A Hall of Fame inducted Keynote Speaker, Richard has also been inducted into the Customer Experience Hall of Fame for his legendary work helping brands engage with their customers and retain them.  

He is the author of two international bestsellers, the latest of which, The Power of Why: Breaking Out in a Competitive Marketplace is in seven languages and is also a CEO Reads best seller. 

His next book

Debbie Miglaw is Head of Digital Solutioning & Business Development at Broadridge. She and her team of digital sales specialists, solutions architects and business analysts are responsible for consulting with clients to define the digital solutions that support their digital transformation and customer experience goals. 

The team of experts work with clients’ business and technology stakeholders to map the solution from ideation to implementation. Debbie has extensive experience in helping clients with their print-to-digital transformations. Prior to her current role, Debbie was responsible for designing and executing the product vision and strategy of Broadridge Customer Communications omni-channel solutions.  

Questions

· Now, could you start off by sharing with our listeners a little bit about your journey, how it is that you got from where you were to where you are today?

Joel Passen is a proven technology entrepreneur and leader with 20+ years of success creating value and driving measurable results at the intersections of sales, business development, product strategy, operations and customer experience.  

Before co-founding Sturdy, a next-gen customer experience solution that helps companies improve customer satisfaction. Joel co-founded Newton Software, a B2B SaaS company headquartered in San Francisco that was acquired by Paycor (2016). Prior to that, Joel co-founded Gravity Technologies, Inc., a company that owned and operated businesses in the talent acquisition industry, including the first recruitment processing outsourcing company focused on technical talent.

Questions

Alan Williams is the founder of SERVICEBRAND GLOBAL and advises business leaders internationally to deliver value driven service. 

Dave Stubberfield is the director of Carter Consultancy and specializes in enabling cultural transformation to help businesses achieve greatness. They are the authors of Supercharging the Customer Experience: How Organizational Alignment Drives Performance.  

Vaishali Dialani is a multi-award-winning Customer Experience professional in the Middle East, has been recognized as a CXPA Emerging Leader, a finalist for CX Leader of the Year 2023, and has been ranked among the top CXMStars worldwide in both 2023 and 2024. She is a firm believer in the power of knowledge sharing to foster growth and awareness within the CX community. 

With over eight years of experience as a data-savvy experienced designer, research specialists, and strategic change-maker, Vaishali passionately advocates for the integration of emotions and efficiency through customer experience research, product insights and communication. She currently serves as a Senior CX Strategist at Konabos, a consulting firm specializing in digital transformation.  

Her commitment to knowledge sharing is evident through her involvement in podcasts, blogs, guest lectures, speaking engagements, and training programs. Additionally, she conducts leadership training workshops for professionals with low literacy levels, making a positive impact through collaborative efforts across diverse spheres.

Robert Scarperi, Bob has been a leader in professional services, SaaS, financial services, ad tech mar tech, and management consulting for 32 years. His company, Revenue Vision Partners is the industry's leading data-driven revenue growth consulting firm.

Questions

· Could you share with our listeners, just a little bit about how you got from where you were to where you are today?

· You wrote a book called Data and Diagnosis-Driven Selling

Rachel Stanley came to Banzai in 2019 with over 10 years of SaaS onboarding, training, implementation, consulting, e-Learning, customer success, adoption and support experience. When Rachel joined Banzai, Customer Success was the only customer-facing job function. 

Since then, Rachel has added Onboarding, Support and Customer Marketing successfully creating a Customer Experience organization that has driven best-in-industry customer satisfaction and grown Banzai’s Net Retention Rate (NRR) significantly. Rachel is passionate about building high functioning teams that consistently hit their objectives. Previously, Rachel has held roles at Amazon and ACS Technologies. Rachel lives in the Seattle area.

Questions

Jason Feifer is the editor in chief of Entrepreneur Magazine, a nonstop optimism machine, and a widely recognized authority on business and how people navigate change. He is the author of the best-selling book Build For Tomorrow, a startup advisor, and host of the podcast Help Wanted and Problem Solvers. LinkedIn name him a “Top Voice in Entrepreneurship”. 

Jason has also had decades-long career in national media, which included working as an editor at Men’s Health, Fast Company, Maxim, and Boston magazine, and writing about business and technology for the Washington Post, Slate, New York Magazine, and others. 

Questions

• We always like to give our guests an opportunity to just share in their own words, a little bit about their journey, and how they got from wherever they were to where they are today. So, could you share that with us?
• So, Build For Tomorrow, a book that focuses on startup advisory, and I just kind of want you to take a little time to share with our listeners, what the book is about? Who is the book targeted towards? And how do you believe the book has been helping others in their different careers and businesses?
• Now the book focuses on four phases of this change. The first is the panic, then you have the adaptation and the new normal and then that phase where we're never going back. So, could you just elaborate just a little bit, maybe give an example of each just to kind of cement that information across to our listeners.
• What are three-character traits that you found has to really be intrinsic to organizations or persons who lead organizations to help them really be customer centric?
• Now, could you share with our listeners, what's the one online resource, tool, website or app that you absolutely can't live without in your business?
• Can you also share with us what's the one thing that's going on in your life right now that you're really excited about? Either something you're working on to develop yourself or your people.
• Where can listeners find you online?
• Now, before we wrap our episodes up, we always like to ask our guests, do you have a quote or a saying that during times of adversity or challenge, you will tend to revert to this quote if for any reason you get derailed or you get off track, the quote kind of helps to get you back on track. Do you have one of those?

Highlights 

Jason’s Journey

Me: We always like to give our guests an opportunity to just share in their own words, a little bit about their journey, and how they got from where they were to where they are today. So, could you share that with us?

Jason shared that in brief, he started in media, he was a community newspaper reporter fresh out of college. Eventually, he got into magazines, he move

Steve Cockram is an inspirational communicator, serial entrepreneur, confidant to elite leaders around the world and co-creator of the world's premier “Leadership Toolkit”.

He has co-authored The 100X Leader, 5 Voices and

Darby Vannier, with over 20 years of experience, is a seasoned leader adept at building and growing organizations. As President & CEO of Indispensable Leadership Group, he excels as an executive coach, consultant, speaker, and fractional COO, focusing on strategic and leadership development. He has led effective teams of more than a 100 employees, coached others into their own leadership positions, and created stability during challenging organizational transitions. Darby built his career on the philosophy that developing the right people is the key to success. 

Learn more at www.beindispensable.com.

Barry Klein is Vice president of Success and Enablement at Austin-Based Talroo, the data driven job and hiring event advertising platform that helps businesses reach the candidates they need to build their essential workforce. Barry provides leadership to Talroo’s team of Customer Success Analysts who have both revenue and customer service responsibilities for multiple verticals. 

Passionate about establishing “customers” as “partners”, he focuses on long-term relationships, lifetime value and establishing raving fans. With more than 30 years of experience in customer-facing and executive roles, including Vice President of Sales Engineering for Vignette Corp, Barry also spent several years running his own small business and consultancy. Barry holds a BS in Computer Science from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Questions

·    We always like to hear from our guests in their own words, how did you get from where you were to where you are today?

Cynthia Kay founded Cynthia Kay and Company media production which produces high-quality communications for organizations from Fortune Global 100 to small business. A graduate of Michigan State University, Kay holds a master's in communications from Western Michigan University. 

Cynthia Kay is a passionate spokesperson for small business. For more than 35 years, she has spent significant time speaking to, teaching and coaching small-business owners while running her own award-winning company. She is the Past Board Chair of the National Small Business Association (NSBA). 

Cynthia and the company have been honoured with many awards including many Tellys and Woman Owned Small Business Supplier of the Year from Siemens in 2018. She has been named one of West Michigan's 50 Most Influential Women five times, and is the recipient of over 30 broadcast awards from UPI, AP, and other news organizations. 

CK & CO Cynthia has authored several books. Her newest book, Small Business, Big Success: How to Beat the Odds and Grow a Great Business (Career Press 2024) is available for pre-order and will be on May 6, 2024. She writes for Entrepreneur.com, has been featured in Time Magazine, Entrepreneur Magazine's Ask the Expert and on NPR.

Serena Chan is a Research Advocate at Dovetail with a background in exploratory and UX research. She plays a pivotal role in crafting memorable experiences for customers, advocating for them within the company and partnering with people who do research to build a community and best practices at Dovetail. 

Before joining Dovetail, Serena held UX design research and product roles across various industries, including health tech, entertainment and social enterprises. Passionate about democratizing research, she champions the importance of prioritizing insights from customer-facing teams to drive the development of truly customer-centric products. 

Serena holds an MBA in Design Strategy from California College of the Arts, though her academic journey started with a Bachelor of Science in Public Health. Her early career spanned roles in public health, during with which she was inspired by the intersection of design thinking and global health at a transformative conference.

A poet and community gatherer, Serena leverages storytelling at work and leisure to facilitate a more deeply connected, equitable, and regenerative future for all. 

Len Covello, Chief Technology Officer (CTO) at Engage People, leading the long-term technology vision of the company and is responsible for driving continued innovation in the loyalty sector. He is an innovator in the technology space and a thought leader in loyalty. 

Len started his first technology company at the age of 18 and most recently was the Director and Chief Technology Officer with Access (formerly LRG Rewards). His passion is web-based application design and development across a wide variety of business applications, particularly in user interfaces and process automation. 

He's an active member of Forbes Technology Council, a cornerstone of the Engage People executive team and member of the board of directors.

Questions

Pete Kusiak is the franchise guru who knows how to bring the fun into business. With a track record of success owning and coaching franchises for over 20 years, Pete's innovative strategies have transformed businesses, boosting revenue and workplace happiness. His passion lies in creating organisations that are not only exciting, but also irresistible. By using his Fun First Strategy, Pete motivates teams, improves company culture, and drive sales and operations to new heights. 

When he's not busy making work lively, you can find Pete enjoying quality time with his amazing wife and four kids in Charlotte, North Carolina. Oh, and did I forget to mention he's a seasoned marathon runner and a connoisseur of Rum Punch and Mai Tais! Pete has certification in Happiness Coaching and Human Resources Consulting, making him your go-to-guy for all things fun and business.

Questions

Ali Cudby, CEO of Alignmint Growth Strategies, which is a dynamic force in business transformation through intentional customer experiences. With a mission to drive growth by architecting superior customer interactions, Ali's expertise aligns strategy and implementation. She is the author of the bestselling book, Keep Your Customers, she offers fresh insights from real-world stories, best practices and CEO-led case studies. 

Her MINT Method, outlined in the book, fuels transformational customer loyalty. With 20+ years in corporate planning and strategic marketing, Ali founded Alignmint in 2014, focusing on small to mid-size companies. As a Purdue University entrepreneurship instructor, she shapes the next generation of business leaders. Ali's podcast appearances showcase her wealth of knowledge in customer experience, growth strategies and intentional business success.

Questions

 Eric Williamson is the Chief Marketing Officer at CallMiner. As CallMiner’s Chief Marketing Officer, Eric oversees all global marketing functions from brand and events to demand generation. Eric's marketing team works very closely with channel and sales to drive pipeline and CallMiner’s explosive growth. Eric has over 20 years of experience in both technology and consumer products marketing from both the vendor and agency side. 

Before joining CallMiner, Eric was VP Brand & Digital Marketing at Acquia - an open DXP platform built around Drupal - where he led brand, creative services, webops, editorial, and demand generation. Prior to Acquia, Eric was on the agency side of marketing working as SVP Digital & Social Media at MullenLowe, and before that as VP Digital Strategy at The Martin Agency. 

During his career, Eric has worked with a variety of B2C and B2B brands including Google, Microsoft, Intel, GEICO, Walmart, P&G, Pizza Hut, Acura, Royal Caribbean, and Hyatt. He earned his undergraduate degree from Texas A&M University, and an MBA from The University of Texas at Dallas. 

Jim Kraus is the President of Buyer Persona Institute (BPI) and a leading authority on buyer personas and buying insights. BPI’s buyer persona research and workshop methodologies have become a gold standard for thousands of marketers in hundreds of companies worldwide that rely on these studies to reveal everything a prospective buyer needs to know and experience to have confidence in their solution. Marketers use these insights to develop strategies and messaging that drive more leads, improve conversion rates, and help sales hit their numbers. 

In addition to his work at BPI, Jim is an avid blogger, author of the Buyer Persona Buzz newsletter, and is currently working on a second edition of the book Buyer Personas with BPI’s founder, Adele Revella. He also frequently speaks at events and podcasts to advanced thinking around buyer personas and buyer insights more broadly. 

Outside of work, Jim enjoys travel, reading, sports, and spending time with his family. 

Questions 

Dave Singer is Verint’s Global Vice President, Go-To-Market Strategy. Singer is responsible for driving the GTM strategy for Verint’s Workforce Engagement solutions, and the Verint industry leading Open CCaaS Platform. The strategy is based on developing innovative messaging and offerings both partner and direct that drive customer centric differentiation and aligned value with both customer needs and expectations.  

Singer joined Verint in 2002 and has held a variety of roles in Verint including Director of Solution Consultants, RVP of Solution Principles, and most recently RVP, Presales, focusing on Solution Consulting and Innovation. Prior to Verint, Dave was a Principal at eLoyalty and a Software Architect at IBM.

Questions

• We always like to give our guests an opportunity to share in their own words a little bit about your journey, how it is that you got from where you w

Matt Abrahams is a leading expert in communication with decades of experience as an educator, author, podcast host and coach. As a Lecturer in Organisational Behaviour at Stanford University's Graduate School of Business, he teaches popular classes in strategic communication and effective virtual presenting. He received Stanford GSB’s Alumni Teaching Award in recognition of his teaching students around the world. 

When he isn’t teaching, Matt is a sought-after keynote speaker and communication consultant. He has helped countless presenters improve and hone their communication, including some who have delivered IPO road shows as well as TED, World Economic Forum, and Nobel Prize presentations. 

His online talks garner millions of views and he hosts the popular award-winning podcast Think Fast, Talk Smart: The Podcast. He is the author of Think Faster, Talk Smarter: How to Speak Successfully When You're Put on the Spot

Michelle Pascoe (CSP) is an international speaker, accredited trainer, researcher, author, podcaster and experienced businesswoman. She has an undeniable passion for customer service, mystery shopping and team motivation, and is a specialist in every aspect of service operations and processes and their impact on the customer experience.  

In 1994, she founded one of Australia's most respected training companies, Optimum Operating Procedures and Services Pty Ltd (OOPS). Serving the hospitality industry for almost 30 years, OOPS is still a thriving provider of mystery shopping, service benchmarking, surveys and focus groups, competitor audits, team training and leadership development - including the highly successful Middle Management Movement program. 

Michelle’s key focus on passion pertain to service delivery and the expectations of the 21st century customer, through mapping their journey, and she firmly believes that a feeling of belonging created throughout the experience is a key point of difference in creating the essential human connection.

Questions

Joanna Hagelberger is currently the Vice President of Customer Success at Rhoads Online, a technology provider of compliance solutions to the insurance industry. Her entire professional career has been in the insurance industry with the last 20 years in insurtech. Joanna is passionate about the customer experience, particularly the benefit a strong account management program can bring to an organization and its customers. 

In her current role, Joanna is responsible for ensuring customers and prospects are having the best possible experience with Rhoads. Joanna received her BS and MS in Communication from Florida State University, she is a licenced insurance agent in the state of Michigan and she is a certified Executive Coach. 

Questions

•

Lija Hogan is a principal on the Experience Research Strategy team at UserTesting. When she's not helping UserTesting customers understand the wide variety of topic areas they can cover using the platform, she teaches user research methods classes at the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor. 

Questions

• Could you share with our listeners just a little bit about your journey?

Jason S. Bradshaw, at 14 years of age started his first business by 21. He had started and successfully exited 3 separate businesses. In every instance, he disrupted the marketplace and won by delivering great customer experiences. He has worked for some of the world's most recognizable brands like Target and Volkswagen, helping them transform the experience they deliver and grow profits.  

Today he works with businesses of all sizes to super charge their growth, all still with a focus on the experience they deliver.

Questions

Maggie Peña is the Chief Experience Officer at Interlace Health (the next generation of FormFast), a 30 year old privately held healthcare IT firm that delivers scalable and cost-effective forms automation and eSignature solutions for healthcare organisations. She brings 22 years of experience in IT to her role and leads one third of Interlaces Health’s employees. 

With a fierce focus on customer satisfaction and retention, Maggie created and built Interlace Health's customer support team and its customer implementation strategy, she built out the company's fully Spanish-speaking team for project implementation, and ongoing customer support, and she has managed the company's managed services program to create efficiencies for customers. She believes in a proactive approach to customer service, and it shows with happy and successful customers. Under Maggie's leadership, Interlace Health currently has a 97.4% customer retention rate. 

Maggie serves as a co-leader for the HIMSS Clinician Burden Reduction Task Force and was recently named Becker’s 2023 Women in Health IT to Know list.

Herb Cogliano leads his own advisory practice leveraging the Scaling of Performance Platform, described in Verne Harnish’s award-winning book, Mastering the Rockefeller Habits-Scaling Up. As a Business Coach, experience CEO Scaling Up Practitioner, and Professor of the Scaling Up Masters Business Course, he has learned first-hand what it takes to overcome many business challenges.

Herb is pursuing his passion of working with leaders of growth companies to achieve more freedom by helping them create industry leading strategies, a culture of accountability, flawless execution, along with a healthy cash flow within their organizations.

Herb was formerly CEO of Sullivan and Cogliano Designers, a 53 year privately held family owned Technology Staffing and Workforce Solutions firm who joined a select group of companies that have appeared on the Inc. 5000 Fastest Growing Company list multiple times. His firm was a Multiyear recipient of the Boston and South Florida Business Journal Best Places to Work Award. This honour recognizes Sullivan and Cogliano achievements for changing the business landscape in creating a positive work environment that attracts and retains employees through a combination of employee satisfaction, working conditions and company culture.

Questions

Peter C. Yesawich is Chairman of Hospitable Healthcare Partners, LLC - a marketing consultancy serving hospitality and the healthcare industry clients - and Vice Chairman Emeritus of MMGY Global, one of the country's leading marketing communications companies renowned for its strategic thinking, breakthrough creativity, and innovation in marketing practice. 

Yesawich has contributed to the development of marketing programs for some of the industry's most popular brands, destinations and organizations including: Fairmont Hotel & Resorts, Hilton International, Disney Parks & Resorts, Universal Studios, Atlantis, The Broadmoor, Sandals Resorts, Wynn Las Vegas, Marriott Vacation Club International, the Mexico Tourism Board, and the U.S. Olympic Committee, to name a few. 

He is co-author of Marketing Leadership in Hospitality and Tourism, and the new book, Hospitable Healthcare: Just What the Patient Ordered!  

Peter C. Yesawich is Chairman of Hospitable Healthcare Partners, LLC - a marketing consultancy serving hospitality and the healthcare industry clients - and Vice Chairman Emeritus of MMGY Global, one of the country's leading marketing communications companies renowned for its strategic thinking, breakthrough creativity, and innovation in marketing practice. 

Yesawich has contributed to the development of marketing programs for some of the industry's most popular brands, destinations and organizations including: Fairmont Hotel & Resorts, Hilton International, Disney Parks & Resorts, Universal Studios, Atlantis, The Broadmoor, Sandals Resorts, Wynn Las Vegas, Marriott Vacation Club International, the Mexico Tourism Board, and the U.S. Olympic Committee, to name a few. 

He is co-author of Marketing Leadership in Hospitality and Tourism, and the new book, Hospitable Healthcare: Just What the Patient Ordered!

Questions

•  Could you share a little bit about your journey?

•  Have you seen any common themes as it relates to customer service delivery on the part of the service provider that you think is universal to both areas?

Michelle MacCarthy is Global Vice President of Customer Experience at Unit4. In her role, Michelle leads a talented team of professionals, is responsible for ensuring the maximum adoption of and customer satisfaction with Unit4’s offerings and is accountable for leading the transformation of Unit4’s customer experience strategy that enables the customer success evolution. 

Michelle earned her B.S in Marketing from Miami University in Ohio, and her Executive MBA in Global Management from Fordham University in New York.

Questions

Adam Bryant is a Senior Managing Director and Partner at the ExCo Group, where he works with hundreds of senior leaders and high-potential executives. As the creator and former author of the iconic “Corner Office” column in The New York Times, Bryant has mastered the art of distilling real-world lessons from his hundreds of interviews and turning them into practical tools, presentations and exercises to help companies deepen their leadership benches and strengthen their teams. 

He also works with executive leadership teams to help drive their transformation strategies based on a best practices framework he developed for his widely praised book, THE CEO TEST: Master the Challenges That Make or Break All Leaders.

Questions 

CJ Stratte is a highly accomplished female entrepreneur, currently serving as a CEO and President of On The Move Trucks, a successful turn-key truck rental company catering to self-storage and real estate professionals. With substantial experience in the industry, CJ has been instrumental in driving the company's growth and expansion over the years. 

As a sought-after speaker at various self-storage events, CJ has shared her extensive knowledge and expertise on topics such as business strategy, marketing and customer service, offering valuable insights to industry professionals.  

CJ is a true marketing enthusiast and firmly believes in the power of effective marketing to drive business success. Throughout her career, she has demonstrated a deep commitment to excellence, innovation and providing exceptional value to clients, helping On The Move Trucks establish a strong reputation as a leader in the truck rental industry.  

Questions

 Kat Kennan is the founder and CEO of Radical Customer Experience™️, a ground-breaking consulting firm that encourages brands to establish genuine connections with their customers by embracing strengths-based, trauma-informed, and inclusive marketing services. 

With a passion for empowering individuals and driving positive change, her mission is to help brands speak up, speak out, and foster diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in their customer interactions. As a certified trauma-informed professional, Kat brings a crucial perspective to her work, infusing every aspect of her business ventures with a deep understanding of the human experience.  

Josefine Campbell is a founder of Campbell Company, a top leadership consulting firm for multinational companies. Campbell inspires and coaches leaders, teams, and talents in large organisations such as McDonald's, Deloitte, Maersk, Novo Nordisk, and Carlsberg Group.

Her approach combines the practical and the pragmatic. A four-time jiu-jitsu champion, she is particularly interested in developing personal leadership in difficult circumstances, such as is often the case in modern work life.  

Questions

•  Now Josefine, even though we read a short description about our guests, we always like to give our guests an opportunity to share a little bit about their journey. So, could you share with our listeners a little bit about your journey, how you got from where you were to where you are today?

Anatoliy Labinskiy is an entrepreneur, eCommerce expert, salesman, holder of 4-time Two Comma Club awards. His story is a perfect example of life when everything goes against us to become successful. In less than 5 years, he went from a simple waiter to a successful businessman and an owner of an 8 figure winner awards in the ecommerce space.

Anatoliy is the founder of GSM Growth agency that helps ecom entrepreneurs grow to 6-7 figures in revenue. He is included in the Forbes Business Council and featured as one of the Top 10 eCommerce Entrepreneurs helping people during the COVID-19 recession. 

Questions 

•  So, we always like to start off by finding out from our guests a lit

Leslie Pagel is the Chief Evangelist of Authenticx - a conversation analytics company dedicated to improving the way healthcare companies engage with patients. In this role, she creates awareness across the healthcare industry of more efficient and effective ways for healthcare organizations to deliver on their customer objectives.

With over two decades of working with customer experience teams, Leslie helps clients actualize the voice of the patient to show how these voices prompt meaningful action.  

Questions 

Tom Martin is the CEO at Glance, a CX and contact center strategist, product lifecycle expert, and partnership builder. Tom has led Glance through a successful “pivot,” transitioning from a small business screen share tool to a provider of omnichannel visual engagement solutions for some of the largest enterprises in the world. 

Since that pivot, Glance has experienced multiple years of 70% year on year growth. Prior to joining Glance in 2013, Tom spent over a decade at Verizon building and managing strategic partnerships. Outside of the office, Tom is an avid backcountry skier, mountaineer and competitive cyclist.

Questions 

Joey Coleman helps companies keep their customers and employees. As an award-winning speaker, he shares his first 100 Days® methodology for improving customer and employee retention with organizations around the world, for example, Whirlpool, Volkswagen Australia and Zappos.  

His Wall Street Journal #2 best-selling book, Never Lose a Customer Again: Turn Any Sale into Lifelong Loyalty in 100 Days, shows how to turn any sale into a lifelong customer. And his upcoming book,

Randy Mercer is an omnichannel product content expert with over 15 years of industry experience. He leads 1WorldSync’s global product management and solution architecture teams, aligning the company's portfolio with current customer needs and emerging market trends.

A frequent commentator for national and trade media outlets covering retail and e-commerce news, Randy leverages his extensive background in item and data content alignment, e-commerce application development and solution designed to guide 1WorldSync’s strategic product roadmap and vision. 

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•  Now, could you share with our listeners a little bit about your journey? How it is that you got from where you're coming from, to where you are today?

Peter Mullen brings more than two decades of marketing leadership to his role as Interactions’ CMO. Previously, he was Senior Vice President of Marketing at Payactiv, where he led customer success marketing, lead-gen programming, customer acquisition, product marketing and more. 

Prior, he held prominent marketing and communications roles at VXI Global Solutions, Comcast and Netflix.

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Eric Melchor is a mediocre tennis player, Texas, expat living in Romania and Partnerships & Evangelists for OptiMonk. With over 600 5-star review and powering more than 30,000 brands, our mission is to empower the average online business with Amazon-like personalization superpowers. How? 

By giving brands the power to use AI to create better headlines, product descriptions and run A/B tests to tailor the product page and shopping experience - on autopilot. Thus, saving you hundreds of manual hours while your conversions increase in the process.  

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•  Could you share with our listeners a little bit about your journey, we always like to hear from our guests in their own words a littl

Declan Ivory Intercom’s Vice President of Customer Support is an experienced senior leader with a passion for building and developing high-performing teams and applying digital technologies to support organizations through major business transformation.  

Prior to sharing his operational expertise and strong leadership to support the growth of Intercom’s customer support team, over the last 10 years, Declan has held senior support leadership roles with Amazon Web Services, Tableau Software and Google Cloud.  

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Nathan Yeung is an experienced marketing strategist with over 10 plus years of expertise in advising B2B businesses. Throughout his career, Nathan has helped numerous companies build their marketing teams from scratch, delivering successful go-to-market deployments and launching new products into the market.  

Nathan's diverse background brings a unique perspective to the marketing world. Trained in marketing, he has also worked in finance and management consulting, providing him with a comprehensive understanding of business operations and strategy. Nathan's ability to think outside the box has helped his clients to stand out in their industries, and his expertise has been recognized by numerous organizations over the years. 

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Rich Edwards is the CEO of Mindspan Systems, helping community financial institutions transform themselves with data driven strategies and technologies. Community banks and credit unions have incredibly strong connections with their local customers when they're in the branch, Rich's expertise is crafting customer experiences to strengthen these relationships outside the branches walls. 

After serving as a captain in the US Army, Rich went on to IBM spending over 20 years working with financial institutions on Wall Street and across the world. As the Product Management Lead overseeing the launch of the IBM Watson Developer Cloud, he helped financial service firms leverage market leading analytics, AI, and machine learning approaches, which is so relevant in this time that we're operating in.

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John Livesay, aka The Pitch Whisperer, is an incredible keynote speaker. His TEDx talk: “Be The Lifeguard of Your Own Life” has over 1,000,000 views and was featured in Larry King’s Show. He has an innate ability to motivate company's sales teams to turn mundane case studies into compelling case stories so they win more new business. From John's award-winning career at Conde Nast, he shares the lessons he learned.

Best-selling author and creator of the online course “Revenue Rockstar Mastery.”

Saira Taneja is Chief Experience Officer at Cover Whale, a leading commercial trucking insurance provider and fast-growing insurtech.  

Taneja brings over a decade of experience in the health insurance sector across various functional areas where she held multiple leadership roles. Her passion for innovative market offerings led her to Cover Whale. Leveraging her expertise in scaling businesses, while also achieving customer-centricity has been instrumental in the company's success. She currently oversees the Growth, Marketing and Customer Success organisations. 

She holds a BA in International Business from Bentley University, and an MBA from Bentley's McCallum Graduate School of Business.

Zack Wenthe is the Customer Data Platform Evangelists for Treasure Data. He often speaks about the marketing and customer data industry at industry events, webinars, and virtual conferences. Having spent a majority of his career in marketing and marketing consulting working with large enterprise brands like Walmart, Nationwide Insurance, FedEx, and many more, Zack now gets to tell the CDP story to help marketing teams eliminate the friction caused by silos, inefficiencies, and lack of understanding of their true customers. 

Zack lives with his amazing wife and two kids on the bluffs of the Mississippi River and has one more who is away at college. Outside of work, Zack enjoys cooking, spending time with his kids, writing comedy, and maybe someday a screenplay.

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