The Kindness GAP: Differentiation by Practicing Civility in Uncivil Times
In addition to highly conflictual political discourse (which may have sunk to an all-time low in the US), I’ve recently observed a number of people making obscene gestures at one another, swearing, and ranting in stores as well as during miscellaneous business transactions. American activist Rachel Corrie once noted, “We should be inspired by people…who show that human beings…
Will it Fly? How to Leverage Quantitative and Qualitative Customer Listening
I’ve been doing customer experience design for a long, long time. In the old days, I would have read about some intriguing customer innovation and assumed that the attempted breakthrough was crafted on a firm foundation of customer listening and data analysis. For example, had I read about something like Indian airline, IndiGo’s, recent effort to create a…
We Are All In The Perception Business!
Recently, I’ve been suggesting that “perceptions” are a key economic driver. In the course of my work as an experience designer and consultant, I have been defining customer experience strategy as a disciplined approach to brand differentiation achieved by elevating the perception of those you serve based on their interactions with you. Obviously, in today’s…
Make a Mouse: The Power of a Culture of Customer Experience Excellence
I’ve often said anyone can create a mouse. All you have to do is put a copious quantity of food and cloth scraps on your floor and, over time, a mouse will appear. The same can be said for great service cultures. Leaders are responsible for “creating the right environment” for world-class customer experiences to…
You Want Engaged Employees? Ignite Mastery
Thought leaders like Daniel Pink have provided insightful analysis of research showing three key drivers of human behavior: Purpose Autonomy, and Mastery In essence, ample research shows that people will give maximal effort when they believe their effort will make a purposeful difference when they are given some level of control over the task or timeline for completing a…
Grateful Business – Human Experience Creation At Its Best
In 1998 (in my book Humor, Play, and Laughter), I began talking and writing about the importance of “gratitude” for business and personal life. In fact, gratitude has long been one of 5 core values for my business (right alongside – “personalization, respect, humility, and succeeding together”). That said, I took notice when the esteemed Harvard Business Review (HBR) recommended the…