02 Jan

Empathy is the new black

And by black I mean the color of the souls of everyone who are glued to their device (myself included).  In order to continue the evolution in our relationship with technology, organizations will need to deeply and holistically embrace empathy as the North Star for their business models, not just their marketing. It’s incredible to observe as society moves in two seemingly opposite directions, simultaneously: first is being alone with ones devices and gadgets. The second, is using those gadgets to ‘be together’ with other people – ironically, the people that one is avoiding by being on one’s device. As a […]

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22 Nov

The Employee Experience: the secret sauce to change, evolution & success in CX

Companies are ignoring a challenge that is much earlier in the value chain than identifying their customer experience.  The desire of senior leaders to mandate a cultural shift from product or service to experience has left a void which is the foundation of its success: Employee Experience. Brands are relentlessly interested in experience.  Digital, customer, virtual, physical to name a few.  Technology is now the blood line whether the appropriate training or configuration is happening or not.  Naturally then, digital tools and applications become the interface for employee and customer alike.  Marketing technology is promising a future that is just […]

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25 Oct

Customer Experience (CX) is just Customer Service (duh)

I would have posted this on my other blog, SHAPING THE GAME, however it ended up becoming a bit colorful and not as prescriptive as STG editorial guidelines would like me to be. (So thanks ‘structure’ and ‘rules’ for ruining my good time). I get pretty excited about Customer Experience. I believe in it. The brands I am a customer of, they believe in it. I enjoy solving business problems through the lens of CX. I like teaching people about CX (though it is pretty straight forward). I like helping people understand how to define it, plan it, execute it, realize it and…. […]

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22 Jul

Leadership is earned trust, and it can be lost

I suppose I have been in leader in my organization for several years now.  It feels odd to write that down and read it. My first reaction to statements like that from others is usually rolling eyes and disengagement.  From time to time I struggle with the balance between confidence and humility in my professional life.  Confidence can come across as arrogance or closed mindedness, while humility can be interpreted as weakness.  The awareness of both and, for lack of a better analogy, the RPM’s of each, is a tight rope. In my current role as Senior Vice President in my […]

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21 Jul

Instant Gratification is Leading to Stupider Decisions

Now, now, now isn’t really working for me very well. Truth be told anyone in my immediate circle of friends and family will tell you I like planning stuff out – I get some enjoyment in it, it’s like foreplay for life.  Something I learned about myself early in life was that I can get anxious about ‘what’s happening next.’  When I was a kid, when I woke up early on Saturday mornings to go surfing with my dad, I would get antsy and nervous.  There was no Google or Surfline or Weather.com to give me access to the surf report. […]

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29 Jun

Give me the gift of your attention.

I sit here writing these thoughts, sparked by a tweet from a Ted Talk.  My iPad is playing an episode of something.  My mobile and tablet both have hundreds of notification bubbles on apps across the board. My watch has only stopped buzzing because the east coast went to bed (or was it cause I put it on Do Not Disturb…)

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26 Jun

Reasons Agency / Client Relationships Suffer

The relationship between an agency and their client is much like that of two people dating with the intent of being married. Corny perhaps. Not my most thought provoking analogy for sure, but nevertheless, true. There is not a sales or account person (agency side) who can’t find similar the emotions of dealing with a client to that of dealing with a significant other. As rationale and pragmatic as business should be, it never is. Ego, mood, pressures and personal life all account for how professionals deal with one another. And it couldn’t be more true when it comes to […]

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20 May

Jerry McGuire Rant

For the past decade companies in general, and consumer brands particularly, have been aware of a shift in how the customer engages its marketing. Initially when analog gave way to digital channels, technically oriented departments owned systems to manage code, data, rules and processes. Experiencing bottlenecks, many businesses moved the responsibility to CMO’s; who, out of necessity, invented conduits between their own resources and technical staff who created the tools. What resulted was a realization that no single department capable of owning the customer experience; this remains largely the case today. What many companies are facing is various divisions working […]

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16 May

Top Takeaways from the Leaked New York Times Digital Strategy

Leaked New York Times Digital Strategy is a Wake Up Call Much to the chagrin of my billing department @AgencyOasis (Agency Oasis) I spent most of this morning reading the entire 90+ page report leaked on Buzz Feed a few days ago written about and within the NY Times about their (lack of) Digital Strategy. This report is worth a read by anyone who feels their organization is falling behind in the pursuit of a true digital goal and orienting strategy. And of course, anybody agency side.

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what i am reading

NY Times Leaked Strategy Doc

what i am reading

NY Times Leaked Strategy Doc