Tech People

In this episode of Tech People, we explore the age-old question of whether to buy, build, or lease software and technology. This week’s guest, Declan Sheehy, who has held COO and CTO roles at firms such as HSBC, Onyx Commodities & Kavi Holdings is an experienced professional in the financial sector. He shares his expertise and insights on this crucial decision-making process.

With over 25 years of experience in operations, sales, and technology, Declan guides us through the factors that should be considered when making software choices. He highlights the importance of aligning software decisions with business goals and explores the benefits and risks associated with each option. 

This episode provides practical advice for navigating the complex landscape of software decision-making in the finance industry, from cost considerations to scalability and vendor management. Join us as we unravel the mysteries of software choices and learn how to leverage technology for success and growth.

This week's guest, Bernie Leas, Vice President of Operations at Balsam Brands, a company renowned for its high-end artificial Christmas trees and seasonal decor, shares his expertise in overcoming the unique challenges of seasonal business.

Listen all about the holiday rush that sends customer inquiries soaring and the innovative tech that keeps Balsam Brands ahead of the curve. Learn how Bernie's 17 years of experience in strategic direction and scalable systems have helped the company to succeed. From navigating the surge in customer inquiries during the holiday season to leveraging technology like AI for enhanced customer support.

Tune in as we discuss Balsam Brands' personalized shopping experience and their vision for the future!

Discover the world of open banking on the Tech People podcast, as we welcome Daniel Klevit, a Sales Director at Trovata, for an in-depth discussion on the game-changing impact of open banking APIs and their role in driving fintech innovation. From streamlining productivity to enhancing customer success and security, Daniel shares insights into how AI and open banking are revolutionising the industry.

Learn how open banking paves the way for collaboration between fintech and traditional banks, fostering a thriving ecosystem of innovation. Daniel sheds light on how third-party apps and fintech can leverage open banking data to build user-friendly applications, liberating users from the confines of traditional banking portals.

Be part of the fintech revolution and tune in now! Subscribe to the Tech People podcast and join the community to stay ahead.

In this week's episode of Tech People, we delve into the world of payments with our guest, Gideon Fourie. As the Group Chief Commercial Officer at RS2 Software, Gideon brings valuable insights into the evolving payments landscape and the challenges faced by companies in this industry.

Throughout the episode, we explore the impact of digital transformation, the pivotal role of technology in driving innovation, and the significant influence of regulation on the payments sector. Additionally, we dive into the future of payments, examining emerging trends such as embedded payments, the potential of AI and biometrics, and the importance of adaptation to stay ahead. 

Join us for Gideon’s expert perspective and uncover the current state and future prospects of the payments industry!

This week’s episode of Tech People features Jeff DeVerter, the Chief Technology Evangelist at Rackspace Technology. This conversation is all about AI and machine learning. Jeff will let us in on the history of AI and the significant impact it has on various industries, from healthcare to finance, and how it is being used. From chatbots and virtual assistants to recommendation systems and sentiment analysis, AI has become an indispensable tool for companies seeking to understand and cater to their customers' needs.

Join us to understand the role of AI in enhancing customer experiences and decision-making processes, as well as the ethical considerations that come with this rapidly advancing technology!

We delve into an enlightening conversation about the possibilities and potential risks tied to AI. This week’s guest is Srikant Chellappa, the CEO, and co-founder of Engagedly, a company dedicated to aligning people strategies with organizational goals. With a diverse background in engineering, business, and a passion for the arts, Srikant also runs a production company that creates movies and music.

During our discussion, we explore the undeniable impact AI will have on the job market. While acknowledging that AI will indeed replace many jobs, Sri believes that it will also create new roles and opportunities, balancing the situation.

As we delve deeper, Srikant expresses his concerns about the potential misuse and challenges associated with AI. Drawing a parallel, he compares AI to a powerful but potentially dangerous tool, much like a nuclear bomb that can be harmful in the wrong hands. To mitigate these risks, Sri emphasizes the importance of implementing regulations to ensure responsible AI usage.

Join us for this thought-provoking episode as we navigate the advancements of AI while keeping in mind the necessity of responsible and ethical implementation.

Join us for an insightful episode of Tech People recorded during Customer Contact Week in Las Vegas. Our guest, Brandon Bird, a renowned Customer Experience Industry Leader, dives into the exciting world of technology trends discussed at the event. Brandon sheds light on the growing significance of Chat GPT and the utilization of AI in Customer Contact Centers. He emphasizes the importance of balancing innovation with security considerations and advises against blindly adopting trends.
Tune in to discover how technology is shaping the customer service industry and helps to ensure customer satisfaction.

During this week's episode of Tech People, I speak to Ty Givens, the founder, and CEO of CX Collective. Drawing from her extensive background in customer experience management, including remarkable feats like scaling a team from 7 to 130 members in just nine months, Ty empowers companies to revolutionize their approach to customer satisfaction.

With a passion for helping startups thrive, Ty shares her invaluable insights on shifting from reactive customer service to proactive customer experience. She will also go over what she focuses on while working with start-ups, and what is important to understand during the process of implementing CX into your company.

Get ready to learn how to create exceptional experiences for your customers as we dive into this captivating conversation with Ty Givens.

Did you ever realize that our mental well-being is connected to the banking industry? On this week's episode of Tech People, we dive into this often overlooked connection. Join me as I welcome Remco Veenenberg, an expert with a diverse background, who will shed light on this unobvious combination. 

In recent years, the occurrence of burnout has increased. Remco highlights the constant connectivity and the pressure to always be available and online as major culprits. Struggling to strike a balance, individuals often impose unnecessary pressure on themselves. Learning the art of saying no and setting boundaries becomes crucial in managing workloads and prioritizing well-being.

Furthermore, Remco highlights the shifting landscape of fintech, where the focus has evolved from disruption to complementing existing services. Rather than introducing entirely new concepts, fintech companies are now dedicated to improving and enhancing traditional banking services.

Tune in and discover how our financial stability and mental health intertwine, and learn about the evolving banking industry!

Join me on this week's episode of Tech People, where I sit down with Philip Jonitz, the co-founder of Klink Finance, a prize-linked crypto platform. 

Philip shares his background in the startup ecosystem and his decision to focus on the crypto space. We discuss the challenges of building a crypto company in a volatile market and navigating negative headlines. But amidst it all, Philip remains optimistic about crypto's future, highlighting increased transparency and institutional adoption as positive developments.

If you're seeking an insider's perspective on the potential of crypto, get ready to listen to Philip's compelling vision!

A lot of great takeaways this week on how to build a CS function in your company. I speak with Jenna Chau, a Head of Customer Success at Invelo, a cutting-edge software company catering to real estate investors.

Jenna's journey is a testament to the power of resilience and strategic career moves. After facing the challenge of being laid off during the pandemic, she embraced the opportunity to reimagine her path and ultimately secured a customer success position. With her diverse background spanning sales, marketing, management, and event management, Jenna brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to her role.

She discusses the challenges and strategies she employs to maintain a high standard of support. From building playbooks to developing clear guidelines and procedures, Jenna unveils her methods for navigating diverse customer interactions effectively.

Jenna's passion for creating unique customer experiences is contagious. Join us for this eye-opening conversation and learn how she leaves a lasting impression on her customers.

Are you looking to build a successful customer success team? In this episode of the Tech People podcast, I talk with Antti Nevalainen, a Customer Success Coach at Catalyst Software, about his views on the subject.

Nevalainen highlights the importance of analyzing the customer journey to determine whether a human touchpoint is necessary. He shares tips on building a strong CSM team, such as identifying skill gaps, developing training programs, and prioritizing workload management to prevent burnout.

He also emphasizes the significance of remote team building and creating moments for social interaction to build trust and solidarity among team members. In addition, we discuss the importance of measuring success and proving the team's value to stakeholders.

Don't miss out on this episode on building a successful customer success team. Subscribe to the Tech People podcast right now and learn from the best.

On this week's episode of Tech People, I'm thrilled to welcome back Ben Rosenberg, Senior Director of Customer Support, Enablement, and Community at ChurnZero, as our guest. During the discussion, he sheds light on the challenges that businesses face with customer retention and emphasizes the importance of approaching these challenges strategically. As he explains, the key to retaining customers is to provide an outstanding customer experience.

Ben also shares his insights on AI, pointing out that although it can play a vital role in customer retention, it must be integrated seamlessly with human operators. As technology continues to advance, businesses have more opportunities to promote customer retention.

This episode presents a fascinating discussion on client retention and success strategies that any business can benefit from. To learn how to keep your clients and grow your business, be sure to tune in for valuable insights from industry expert Ben Rosenberg.

In this week's Tech People podcast, we explore the latest in CX technology and strategy. In this exciting episode, we have the pleasure of welcoming back Amy Behbehani, now a senior consultant at InflowCX, a leading consulting firm for contact center technology, unified communications, and quality analytics.
Amy shares her expertise on how to enhance your CX journey with the latest automation, AI, and cloud-based solutions. She also provides valuable insights on how to overcome process challenges and select the best BPO for your company.
At InflowCX, they take a data-driven approach to evaluate potential solutions for their clients, using scorecards to make informed decisions. They also offer an 8-week approach to manage the change management process and help ease clients into the transition process.

Whether you're a small startup or a large enterprise, InflowCX provides technology solutions, operational consulting, and BPO consulting for companies of all sizes. Tune in to our latest episode to learn more about how Amy helps companies improve their CX journey and deliver efficient and effective customer service solutions.

Are you looking to scale customer success in your organization? Join Ken Coyne on the latest Tech People episode featuring Jomilsa Souza, a senior customer success manager at Swiftly, who shares her insights on how to scale customer success in different types of organizations successfully.

In this episode, Jo discusses the challenges of scaling customer success and how to approach them based on the size and segmentation of the customer base. She emphasizes the importance of prioritizing short-term goals and projects to create value for customers, and effective communication to retain talent. She also provides valuable insights into metrics and their importance, along with future trends in customer success.

Whether you are a startup or a large organization, customizing your strategies to your unique needs is essential to scaling your customer success. Learn from Jo's extensive experience and valuable advice on the Dos and Don'ts of Scaling your customer success. Tune in and gain valuable insights to help you drive customer success and growth!

This episode of Tech People features Ken Coyne interviewing Colton Chorpenning, a digital nomad and senior interactive producer at Google, discussing his book: "What the F Is Next?".

The book, co-written by Colton and his father, is a practical guide for anyone going through a transition period. It provides a clear and concrete plan for accomplishing both short- and long-term objectives. Colton's method includes determining your priorities and passions, as well as creating goals to achieve them. Colton emphasises the necessity of getting to the heart of what you desire and periodically checking in on your progress. He also stresses the significance of enjoying the path leading up to the goal.

The book is already available on Amazon and will soon be available as an audiobook.

Don't miss out on this episode of Tech People with Colton Chorpenning, where you'll learn practical tips on how to figure out what's next for you.

In this episode, I’m joined by Marc Taverner to explore the current state of the crypto market and its regulation. We also discuss the progress made with the approval of the Markets in Crypto Assets (MICA) framework while still emphasising the importance of striking a balance between KYC, AML, and privacy rights. 

Marc works for Xerof, a Swiss-based firm that provides an on-ramp and off-ramp for high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth individuals, as well as companies looking to convert large amounts of cryptocurrency into fiat currencies. The company has established business relationships with liquidity providers and private banks to facilitate transactions in a non-disruptive manner. Through transactional business and supporting web3 businesses, Marc hopes to grow Xerof into a multibillion-dollar enterprise over the next five years.

In the latest episode of the Tech People podcast, Ken Coyne welcomes Growth Engineering's Head of Customer Success, Minna Vaisanen. Minna sheds light on the importance of customer success within organisations. She challenges the traditional view of customer success as a mere support function and emphasises its potential to drive commercial value and revenue growth. 

With her extensive experience in the field, Minna shares valuable insights on understanding customer use cases, providing quantifiable results, and implementing milestone mapping exercises to ensure customers see value. She also highlights the crucial role of customer success in organisations and predicts how data and automation will continue to shape the industry. 

This episode is a must-listen for anyone interested in unlocking the power of customer success to drive growth and increase revenue.

This week I’m joined by Jason Noble, the VP of Global Customer Success at Vinli. With over 20 years of executive-level experience leading post-sales organisations, Jason highlights the challenge of defining customer value. Metrics like time to value, NPS, customer satisfaction, and revenue retention rates help track value. Identifying value moments in the customer journey and conducting periodic reviews can ensure customer satisfaction. It's crucial to be selective in surveys and ensure customer comprehension to avoid fatigue. Internally, value propositions that translate to customer value are essential. Jason warns against exceeding expectations at the cost of the business and neglecting external factors affecting customer needs. He also predicts there will be a growing emphasis on value delivery, especially in light of current economic challenges.

Today we focus particularly on the initiatives launched at Lasership which ultimately lead to improved communication and an impressive, positive impact on attrition. I’m delighted to be joined by Carle Henry, Vice President of Customer Service at Lasership. With more than 35 years of experience in customer service, he has lots of invaluable insights to share.

Carle set about creating a virtual recognition program. A new team of 8-10 like-minded associates from different levels and different teams were brought together to create and improve culture during challenging times. Surveys were carried out to learn what really mattered. The result? There were daily to annual recognitions, including High Fives and Year End Oscars. They even included a spin off from Some Good News which was a turning point, as  associates began sharing on a personal level, fostering loyalty, commitment and positive relationships. Cooking clubs and photography clubs have been born out of these initiatives. This has been a tremendously successful initiative which Carle discusses at length. Tune in for a truly inspirational story for any CX leader.

Have you ever wondered why somebody gets a Harley-Davidson tattoo? Well on this week's episode of Tech People, I talk with Ken Hughes a CX strategist and consumer behavior analyst whose work focuses on these kinds of questions and the importance of understanding life through the lens of the consumer. 

We look at how CX needs to move away from a transactional view and towards creating an emotional connection with customers. Digital technology has pushed society into a more immersive space, which has led to transactions becoming commodities instead of experiences. AI and chatbots can assist with customer service, but the depth of connection is missing. 

Ken Hughes feels that companies should strive to deepen their connection with customers by instilling values in employees that emphasize making a difference and bringing back the human aspect and increasing channels and touchpoints by outsourcing customer service and finding good partners who are invested in the technology and the future. Whether it's using humor to diffuse difficult situations or an employee going above and beyond to “save” a small child's goldfish, authenticity is essential to consumers. 

Ken Hughes is also a motivational speaker and will be back on tour in 2023, traveling the world and enjoying interactions with live audiences, so be on the lookout for his appearances.  Enjoy the show.

This week Gordan Hempton shares his success and failures on how to build a startup. Gordon is currently the CEO and co-founder of Spot, his 4th Startup, which is a flexible virtual workspace application tailored to companies with remote employees.

He gives valuable insights into his journey to create a successful virtual workspace. As well as the importance of generating revenue early and how important it is to reach out and nurture each customer that signs up.

Gordon also uses his three previous startups as examples on the importance of determining when it's the right time to pivot or shut down a business. Ken and Gordon also focus on Spot's future, which is to continue developing their platform and make it more immersive and connected. This is a fantastic insight into how cutting-edge technology is connecting people and helping us achieve even more, enjoy the show!

In this week's podcast, my guest Karim Marucchi who is the CEO of Crowd Favorite, discusses Industry 4.0, the advanced digitalization of manufacturing companies, and the integration of technologies in all aspects of production.

He shares a fascinating case study of how Industry 4.0 can be used to improve efficiency and CX in the construction industry by developing a cataloging system for a construction equipment manufacturer that allows clients to get pricing for projects online, while still maintaining a human connection with clients. This is an engaging look at how new technology is impacting every industry, enjoy the show!

In this episode, Ken discusses all these topics and more with Jaap Wilms, a thought leader in CX with over 22 years of experience. Jaap is the founder and owner of Wilms & Co., which offers master classes on CX, NPS, and business storytelling. He also serves as a sparring partner for corporate companies implementing CX initiatives, providing advice and assistance with strategy and road mapping. Today Jaap discusses some of the pitfalls in the field of CX, including a lack of alignment with company strategy, a failure to stay up-to-date on trends, the damage of poor internal communication, and how focusing only on the customer journey is just not enough. Check out our conversion to learn more…

This week I’m delighted to welcome Ben Gardner, VP of Customer Support at Drift. Previously, Ben shared his experience of implementing an effective ticketing tool in CX, and today he takes a closer look at why data can be an instrumental tool to enhance productivity and performance. Ben discusses the importance of ingesting every piece of data which contributes to a greater knowledge of the customer experience and how best to react when a red flag has been raised. Fantastic ideas for anyone operating in this space! Enjoy the show!

I’m delighted to be joined by Kevin French, senior director of customer support at Bizzabo. Kevin explains how team metrics can sometimes be excellent but missing SLAs can remain an issue. An unproductive team or a staffing issue is usually behind such a scenario and these need to be addressed accordingly. How then did Kevin turn things around and drive CSAT levels to an all-time high? Right size the team and keep a close eye on global, regional, and individual metrics. This a fascinating insight into the value of looking at customer metrics under the microscope. Enjoy the show!

To answer these questions and more, Francois Chaubard, Focal Systems CEO, gives a fascinating insight into this sector. Focal Systems is an AI company, specializing in retail automation. Francois believes their AI capabilities will enable grocery retail giants to become self-driven stores in the future. Focal Systems cameras and AI software scan the store shelves providing the retailer with 100% accurate inventory results. Resources can therefore be invested into better customer services for example and improved technology elsewhere. Ultimately, a self-driven store creates its’ own planogram, reacting in real-time to changes in demand, and supply, adapting pricing, and adjusting promotions. It can drive profitability and reduce food waste and global warming caused by over-ordering. Focal Systems is central to this revolution. This an incredible insight for anyone interested in AI and how the future looks for retail. Enjoy the show.

This week I’m delighted to welcome Anieke Lamers, founder of Peekabond to the show. Peekabond is an interactive app that allows separated family members living all over the world to connect and sustain meaningful relationships with younger family members in particular. 

Anieke gives a very in-depth insight into the startup journey so far with lots of valuable advice. From the challenges presented by new technologies like blockchain and metaverse to being cost-effective and using existing technologies instead of building, Anieke has lots to share for anyone tinkering with the idea of a new startup. 

With a venture capitalist background, she discusses the reality of working with investors today post-pandemic, their goals, and concerns. As always finding the right talent to align with the company mission, communicate remotely, be transparent, and have dynamic outcomes features in our conversation. Crucially, the all-important user, their role, and achieving the right product-market fit is up for discussion here too. This is a bumper-packed episode providing a behind-the-scenes insight into a startup that operates in one of the most relevant spaces for the world we live in today. Enjoy the show.

To discuss much of this topic and more, I am delighted to be joined by Ahva Sadeghi to discuss inclusion in the workplace. Ahva is the Co-founder and CEO of Symba, which provides an all-in-one platform to manage and scale company internship programs. Ahva recalls how remote internships in 2017 were considered an impossibility but this is no longer the case. Companies are now realising the value of early career investment. 

Remote recruitment practices provide companies with a stronger reach, tapping into diverse schools and community colleges. Ahva gives a fascinating insight into how companies with an inclusive environment are improving retention and supporting the mental health of their workforce. She suggests some means of measuring inclusion and also provides us with some reasons why the HR community is becoming more aligned. A bumper episode for anyone seeking to foster and reap the benefits of a truly inclusive workplace environment. Enjoy the show!

This week we turn our attention to the success story behind the 1440 Newsletter which boasts almost two million subscribers at a time when fewer and fewer Americans trust News outlets. Busy professionals require unbiased news without motive. Tim Huelskamp, co-founder, and CEO of 1440 Media outlines some of the essential criteria which have led to 1440’s success. He states the importance of knowing, understanding, and delivering for the user and the importance of achieving a 40% retention rate before scaling and monetisation can take place. If this all-important open and retention rate is not reached, the business model is ultimately doomed to fail. Tim discusses the challenges he is confronted with and stresses the importance of being laser-focused on creating and delivering the best product in the world. This a fascinating insight for any budding entrepreneurs in this space or indeed in any industry. Enjoy the show!

I’m delighted to be joined by Courtney Rambo, one of the Co-founders and Directors of Intellitonic, an SEO and digital marketing agency. Courtney provides a thorough insight into the background of creating an effective digital marketing tool. 

She outlines the importance of understanding where the company is currently positioned and where the competitors are. She examines several elements such as the strengths and weaknesses, the particular industry, how the website appears, and the use of keyword research to serve as a backbone of the overall strategy. Courtney outlines how keywords determine content and she takes a look at budgeting and results when using a paid platform. Finally and importantly what were the challenges they faced on the journey to establishing Intellitonic and how does the future look. This is a bumper show that provides a fascinating insight into digital marketing as an invaluable asset in any company’s success. Enjoy the show!

This week I’m delighted to discuss company culture with Wren Cotrone, Director of Customer Support at Agiloft. Wren believes that culture is the most important aspect of running a department. Over his career, Wren has seen the good, the bad and the ugly, including toxic red flags, so he’s got plenty of wisdom and advice to share. Treating people with respect and dignity, providing the best tools, and procedures can empower a workforce leading to personal success. Ultimately, this trickles down to, and manifests itself as an amazing customer experience. Wren points out how research such as the Forrester 2020 Report are playing their part, highlighting why companies can no longer neglect to invest in culture. A fascinating insight, where the stakes have never been so great. Enjoy the show.

To discuss this topic in greater detail, I’m delighted to be joined by Alex Parmar-Yee. Alex is responsible for Strategy at Awin UK and is also the author of the article “Embracing the LGBTQIA+ online community as part of your advertising strategy”. Alex is an advocate for a more inclusive society with the mantra that diverse teams produce better results. Publications have begun to disappear, creators are failing to monetise, and there is a diminishing level of online content. Brand safety lists have been instrumental in bringing this about. However, Alex believes that working with a partnership approach and engaging with more creators can lead to more brands embracing the community on a day-to-day business level. If brand safety moves towards understanding content as opposed to using lists of words such as gay, lesbian, etc will also bring about a positive change. A fascinating insight, enjoy the show.

It’s never an easy decision to move from one technology system to another in CX. Harvesting critical information to ensure customers are better served is of paramount importance but when the data isn’t always accurate, alarm bells begin to ring and the need to change becomes a lot clearer. To throw some light on the subject, I was delighted to have a conversation with Ben Gardner, Senior Director of Support at Drift who has first-hand knowledge when it comes to overseeing such a system transition. The move involved leaving Zendesk for Salesforce.

Ben gives a thorough overview of the entire process from start to finish. From why hiring somebody with the sole purpose to manage the service cloud implementation and manage the system thereafter was the best option, to the challenging bumps, and lessons along the way. Communication and sincere dialogue became key when addressing the concerns of internal users and Ben learned this the hard way. A fascinating insight with much wisdom and advice on offer. Enjoy the show!

To discuss this fascinating and critical topic in greater detail, I am delighted to be joined by Ben Rosenberg, Co-Founder of Rosencall Consulting. With over 12 years of experience in CX, Ben highlights the importance of measuring and understanding how the customer interacts with every facet of a company. He discusses the importance of communication channels and using the correct tools and mechanisms to understand the data. Feedback is at the heart of everything you do as a support organisation and providing feedback via the correct support mechanisms is crucial. 

We discuss some of the common pain points and how the future looks in a more automated but human-driven customer experience. Enjoy the show!

To discuss this phenomenon in greater detail, I’m delighted to be joined by Gary O'Connell, Vice President of Support Services at EMEA Sophos. Gary highlights the ever-shifting landscape of recruitment post covid pandemic. The candidate pool has been transformed given remote working possibilities from around the world. 

However, establishing meaningful engagement between the company and its employees is challenging. Employees can feel isolated and disconnected and when constantly faced with such an array of new career opportunities, attrition is on the rise. Gary is dealing with these challenges head-on with a variety of creative initiatives. Introducing a new role known as an Employee Success Manager and The Buddy System are two critical strategies that are helping to combat attrition rates. With full-time remote working more popular than hybrid models, it is the new working norm. Companies now face the difficulty of trying to establish meaningful engagement with employees as they are consistently approached for new roles, never has the competition been greater or more intense. Tune in to discover the best survival skills.

To discuss this in greater detail I'm delighted to be joined by Karla Kannan, Senior Vice President of Customer Success at BirchStreet Systems. Having successfully transitioned from the hospitality industry to the world of technology, Karla is in an ideal position to highlight the benefits of transferring skills from diverse industries in order to connect strongly and build meaningful customer relationships. 

Karla believes passionately in the value of connecting different professional backgrounds with new roles to enhance customer service. When correctly directed, an organisation can move from being the customer’s vendor to a customer’s partner and truly make a difference. This is an excellent insight for everyone in the CX space.

To examine this in greater detail, I am delighted to be joined by Manuel Harnisch - Vice President, of Customer Service at People Data Labs. Manuel outlines precisely what a process is, its uses, high/low impact, frequency scenarios, and when is the right time to scale. We look at the pitfalls of scaling too soon and how human psychology plays a role. Finally, the million-dollar question, Build vs Buy, a future with human-assisted automation and millennials' contributions. It’s a bumper episode and a must for anyone in the customer services space.

This week Alan Rich, CEO of Y Meadows offers a fascinating insight into some of the most up-to-date technology which offers real value in customer support. Alan provides an overview of Natural Language Processing and Robotic Automation Systems. This technology determines the intent, performs entity extraction and determines the sentiment of tickets, and ultimately routes their journey. Natural Language Processing is constantly improving, delivering new functionality, helping agents to become more productive and build real relationships with customers. A must-listen for anyone in the customer support field.

How Do We Establish A Workplace Environment Where Employees Feel And Believe They Can Thrive? One where daily routines are engineered so that less confident, feel happy to contribute? I’m joined today to discuss this topic with Hans Donckers. Hans is CEO and Co-founder of two companies JiGSO and Beanmachine. The latter being a consultancy firm in Organisational Development and HR. He states that when addressing diversity and inclusion in the workplace today, we must look beyond more traditional issues of gender equality for example. When shy people feel safe and comfortable in the workplace the personal risk associated with speaking up becomes lower, therefore the richness and contributions of everyone are captivated. More sharing leads to a collective team win which is a company win! Excellent ideas for anyone seeking to nurture a fair and safe place by prioritising diversity and inclusion. Check out our conversion to learn more....

In any consumer-focused business, you’re asked to deal with more requests, more expectations, and faster conversion, every single day. To meet this staggering challenge, chatbots are rapidly becoming a must-have to drive efficiency, and truly multichannel with the power of conversational AI. To discuss more about this, I’m delighted to be joined by Amy Behbehani - Senior Director, Customer Service, and Operations at Uplift. With years of experience in building call center strategies and initiatives across different platforms Amy has experienced and seen it all in the fascinating world of chatbots. Check out Podcast to learn how Amy is using chatbots to interact with customers up to 500 times a day...

I’m delighted to be joined by Rory O’Brien, Director of Customer Experience at Tonkean.  Together we look at the specific areas where leveraging technology boosts a company’s CX efforts. From data collection and interpretation to tracking and adjusting CX action, to chatbots in real-time. Let’s get straight to it then, enjoy the show!

How can we build a highly proactive Customer Experience? One which reduces and potentially eliminates tickets or issues on the customer support side of the business? This is exactly what my guest speaker today discusses. Niloy Chakravarty is the Director of Global Customer Support at Parsable. Since joining Parsable Niloy has identified the right model to secure future success. Creating a proactive customer experience has become his key goal, capturing and acting upon the customer's voice to avoid any later difficulties. Niloy shares this journey of moving from a reactive to a proactive model, what obstacles he met along the way, and the crucial role of data in setting any company on the road to customer experience excellence. Enjoy the show!

I'm joined by the Head of Customer Success at Avatour, Parul Vij Chopra. She describes how they built the customer journey for their new product segment, a 360° view experience, a platform, which enables remote collaboration designed for site meetings. 

Parul highlights two key features which enhance the customer journey. How the customer deploys the product and the value add it delivers. Capturing and analysing this information effectively has become the secret sauce for not only enhancing the customer experience but also developing a superior product. It wasn't all plain sailing and Parul shares with me some difficult challenges such as understanding the deployment process across many industries and just how they achieved success here. Check out our podcast to hear more fascinating insights on building a customer journey.

Parul's team is happy to answer any queries you might here via this link.

I speak to Franklin Bruscianelli, Director of Sales Operations and Customer Service at IPwe, a platform for blockchain-enabled IP transactions. Franklin explains how working in this fascinating and innovative environment has enabled him to utilise the best technologies and solutions to address his customer’s needs.

Tune in to discover his winning strategies :-).

In this week's podcast, I welcome back Tomas Sallies, Head of Customer Experience, PagoNxt. In our previous episode, Tomas shared his experience on how to achieve a better online CX in B2C. Now he returns to discuss his latest challenge in building a B2B CX from scratch with a new Fintech company. We look more closely at the challenges Tomas is facing, how he is overcoming them, and finally, how he strives to change the B2B experience. Tune in, enjoy!

In this week's podcast, I speak to Jennifer Castillo aka JC, director of customer support at DocNetwork.org. JC successfully supports more than 450,000 customers with a very small team and a little help from technology 🙂. This is no mean feat, how exactly is she doing it? Tune in to learn more!

In this week's podcast, I interview Seth Johnson, Head of Customer Experience at LearnUpon. Seth has a wealth of experience in this sector, and he outlines the critical importance of understanding the one thing that matters to customers.

Seth describes how everybody in every function across the organisation contributes to the customer experience, he outlines some interesting challenges he has encountered and how he overcame such difficulties. Finally realising that the customer’s needs and expectations are constantly evolving and actively discovering these needs are key to the holistic CX.

Check out the podcast for this fascinating insight into the value of a Holistic CX as Seth shares some of the strategies he has deployed and how technology has helped in supporting this.