CX Obsession – for Process and Experience Professionals

In today’s competitive business landscape, companies constantly seek ways to lower costs, increase revenues, and improve service to remain relevant and profitable. One proven approach to achieving these goals is by adopting the Customer Experience Management Method (CEMMethod), which includes the Triple Crown approach; this focuses on delivering Successful Customer Outcomes (SCOs) through North Star Alignment and Outside-In thinking.

This article will discuss how the CEMMethod, combined with innovative technologies such as AI, Digitization, and Machine Learning (ML), can lead to significant cost reductions and overall business improvement.

The Triple Crown Philosophy

The Triple Crown management philosophy focuses on achieving three key outcomes: lower costs, higher revenues, and improved service. This is accomplished by shifting from an Industrial Age mindset, which emphasizes internal processes and efficiency, to an Outside-In perspective that prioritizes customer needs and experiences.

The Outside-In approach, championed by thought leaders like Steve Jobs, Jeff Bezos, Tony Hsieh, Richard Branson, and others, involves understanding the Key Customer Outcomes (KCOs) and aligning all aspects of the organization to deliver these outcomes. This North Star Alignment ensures that every decision and action contributes to customer success, ultimately leading to Triple Crown Benefits.

Successful Customer Outcome Canvas

A crucial tool in the Triple Crown methodology is the Successful Customer Outcome Canvas (SCOC). This framework helps organizations identify and prioritize the most critical KCOs, the foundation for all business activities. By focusing on these KCOs, companies can eliminate unnecessary work, streamline operations, and reduce costs.

Outside-In Strategic Matrix

The Outside-In Strategic Matrix (OISM) is another essential component of the Triple Crown approach. This OISM provides a comprehensive view of the organization’s current approach to CX improvement and the actual Customer’s real experience. It is often initially reported that organizations have an incorrect definition of Customer Experience in seeing things from their perspective rather than the customers.

Through the OISM, companies can create a roadmap for achieving SCOs and transforming their businesses.

Six-Step Innovation

The Six Step Innovation process (6Si) supports the Triple Crown approach, which guides organizations through adopting Outside-In thinking and delivering SCOs. These steps involve:

1. Defining the target area: Identify the process or area that needs improvement.
2. Identifying Customer Interactions: Determine the obstacles and challenges that hinder the delivery of SCOs.
3. Describing Actions: Develop strategies and solutions to eliminate Customer Interactions and achieve SCOs.
4. Conducting Cost and Benefits Assessments: Analyze the potential impact of each action on costs, revenues, and service quality.
5. Implementing the Innovation improvements
6. Migrating the Cutomer Experiences to the new way
   Prioritize the most effective actions based on their potential for achieving Triple Crown Benefits.

Customer Experience Management Method (CEMMethod)

The Customer Experience Management Method (CEMMethod) is a comprehensive framework developed by the BP Group and Steve Towers that combines the principles of Outside-In thinking, North Star Alignment, and Triple Crown Benefits. Initially identified in the ’90s by then SVP of Research at Gartner, Jim Sinur, the Triple Crown approach helps organizations adopt a customer-centric approach, leading to significant cost reductions and improved business performance.

Customer Performance Landscape

The customer performance landscape is a term used to describe the overall environment in which customers interact with businesses. It includes factors such as the customer’s needs, expectations, and preferences, as well as the business’s products, services, and overall customer experience.

The customer performance landscape constantly evolves as customers become more demanding and businesses strive to provide better experiences. As a result, it is essential for companies to continually monitor and adapt to the changing landscape to remain competitive.

There are several factors that businesses can consider when assessing the customer performance landscape. These include:

• The customer’s needs and expectations: What are the customer’s needs and wants? What do they expect from the business?
• The business’s products and services: How do the business’s products and services meet the customer’s needs and expectations?
• The overall customer experience: What is the customer’s overall experience with the business? Is it positive, negative, or somewhere in between?

By understanding the customer performance landscape, businesses can make informed decisions about improving their products, services, and overall customer experience. This can lead to increased customer satisfaction, loyalty, and revenue.

Examples of Cost Reduction Through the CEMMethod

Here are three examples of how adopting the CEMMethod and Triple Crown philosophy can lead to significant cost reductions:

1. Insurance claims processing: An automotive insurance company significantly reduced costs by streamlining its processing system, focusing on delivering the Successful Customer Outcome of a quick and hassle-free claims experience. The company achieved cost savings and improved customer satisfaction by eliminating unnecessary work and adopting AI and ML technologies.
   
   
2. Global B2B supply chain: A global B2B company rationalized its supply chain and shifted its focus toward the Successful Customer Outcome for its clients, resulting in significant cost reductions. By aligning all aspects of the organization toward customer success, the company was able to eliminate inefficiencies and optimize resources.
   
   
3. Pharmaceutical technology: A pharmaceutical company reduced costs by 66% by updating its technology infrastructure and introducing AI to handle labor-intensive tasks. This shift allowed the company to focus on delivering the Successful Customer Outcome of providing high-quality medications to patients more efficiently and cost-effectively.
   
   
4. Global Utility company: In an extensive digitization program, a Customer Performance Landscape was built to demonstrate the connection between IT systems and the delivery of the Successful Customer Outcome. Within a month, it was identified that seventeen of the existing systems no longer contributed to the newly articulated SCO and, after analysis, could be removed. The resulting benefits included the Triple Crown with similar efficiency, effectiveness, and productivity improvements.

Embracing AI, Digitization, and Machine Learning (ML)

Adopting innovative technologies such as AI, Digitization, and ML is crucial for organizations looking to achieve Triple Crown Benefits. By automating repetitive tasks, optimizing resources, and uncovering valuable insights from data, these technologies can help companies reduce costs and improve customer experiences.

AI and ML in Customer Service

One effective way to reduce costs and enhance service quality is by implementing AI and ML technologies in customer service operations. Smart Chatbots, for example, can handle routine inquiries and resolve issues quickly, freeing up human agents to focus on more complex tasks. This approach reduces operational costs and improves customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Digitization in Supply Chain Management

Digitization can lead to significant cost reductions in supply chain management by streamlining operations and increasing visibility across the entire supply chain. Companies can optimize inventory levels, reduce lead times, and minimize waste by adopting digital solutions such as IoT devices, predictive analytics, and real-time data sharing.

Conclusion

The CEMMethod hooked to the Triple Crown philosophy, focusing on delivering Successful Customer Outcomes through North Star Alignment and Outside-In thinking, offers a proven approach to reducing costs, increasing revenues, and improving the service quality. Organizations can transform their businesses, achieve Triple Crown Benefits, and thrive in today’s competitive market by adopting this methodology, along with innovative technologies like AI, Digitization, and ML.

References:

BPGroup.org website: https://www.bpgroup.org

CEMMethod: https://www.cemmethod.com

CXObsession Blog: https://www.cxobsession.com

CEMMethod Classroom Training (US): https://experienceprofessional.com/acxm_invite

CEMMethod Online Training (Global):
https://bit.ly/GCCACXP

Author’s website: https://stevetowers.com

Social media links: Steve Towers: ​https://linktr.ee/stevetowers

LinkedIn: Jim Sinur: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jimsinur/

Steve Towers, an expert in customer experience, enjoys spreading his enthusiasm for this field through coaching, keynote speeches, books, and social media content.

He helps companies win the triple crown – the simultaneous ability to increase revenues, decrease costs, and enhance service – through the CEMMethod, which is now in version 15.

With over three decades of experience working with large enterprises worldwide, Steve has distilled the successful strategies of top-performing organizations into a proprietary methodology that can be easily imparted to CX teams and executives.

His forte lies in envisioning the future of customer-centricity, customer experience, process management and realizing long-term benefits from business transformation. Steve’s approach combines customer-focused thinking, cutting-edge technologies, and a human touch.

Steve is also an entrepreneur and an early-stage investor in software companies like Parallel.

Subscribe to this channel and reach out and connect with Steve via https://linktr.ee/stevetowers

🌎 A common theme in our change-oriented world is an increasing focus on the Customer. 🔎
Review the BEST CX books based on Sales, Ranking and Reviews.

This list is impartial and not influenced by pushing software, promoting a particular product or bigging up any one author.

If you have any comments, suggestions or corrections, feel free to email me.

1. Invent and Wander: The Collected Writings of Jeff Bezos
   by Walter Isaacson and Jeff Bezos:
   
   This is a collection of Jeff Bezos’ letters to shareholders over the years. It provides insights into how Amazon became one of the most successful companies in the world by focusing on customer experience.
   
   The shareholder letters cover topics such as innovation, risk-taking, and long-term thinking. It also includes Bezos’ thoughts on artificial intelligence, space exploration, and climate change.
   
   
2. The Four: The Hidden DNA of Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google 
   by Scott Galloway:
   
   This book explores the business models of four of the most successful companies in the world: Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google. It argues that these companies have become so dominant because they have mastered the art of customer experience.
   
   Scott provides us with insights into how these companies operate and what makes them so successful. It also explores these companies’ impact on society and what the future might hold for them.
   
   
3. Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose 
   by Tony Hsieh:
   
   This is a memoir by Tony Hsieh, the former CEO of Zappos. It provides insights into how he built one of the world’s most successful online shoe retailers by focusing on customer experience.
   
   The memoir covers topics such as company culture, employee happiness, and customer service. It also includes Hsieh’s thoughts on entrepreneurship and what it takes to build a successful business.
   
   
   
4. This is Marketing: You Can’t Be Seen Until You Learn to See 
   by Seth Godin:
   
   This is a guide to modern marketing. It argues that marketing is not about advertising or selling products but about creating valuable connections with customers.
   
   Seth provides insights into building a brand that people love and creating products that people need to buy. ‘This is Marketing’ explores technology’s impact on marketing and marketers’ future.
   
   
   
5. The Customer of the Future: 10 Guiding Principles for Winning Tomorrow’s Business 
   by Blake Morgan:
   
   Morgan Blake provides insights into how companies can create a customer-centric culture that will help them succeed in the future.
   
   It covers topics such as customer experience design, data analytics, and employee engagement. The book also includes case studies from companies such as Starbucks, Airbnb, and Uber successfully implementing customer-centric strategies.

Connect with Steve: https://linktr.ee/SteveTowers

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🌎 ChatGPT has the potential to significantly enhance your CX.
This can be seen in five key trends. Smart chatbots, Augmented Intelligence, Enhanced communication, Innovation, and application programming.

Steve Towers, an expert in customer experience, enjoys spreading his enthusiasm for this field through coaching, keynote speeches, books, and social media content.

He helps companies win the triple crown – the simultaneous ability to increase revenues, decrease costs, and enhance service – through the CEMMethod, which is now in version 15.

With over three decades of experience working with large enterprises worldwide, Steve has distilled the successful strategies of top-performing organizations into a proprietary methodology that can be easily imparted to CX teams and executives.

His forte lies in envisioning the future of customer-centricity, customer experience, process management and realizing long-term benefits from business transformation. Steve’s approach combines customer-focused thinking, cutting-edge technologies, and a human touch.

Steve is also an entrepreneur and an early-stage investor in software companies like Parallel.

Subscribe to this channel and reach out and connect with Steve via https://linktr.ee/stevetowers

Now, let’s talk about the benefits of ChatGPT in customer experience.
How can ChatGPT improve customer experience? I see five emerging trends. 

If you prefer to consume your information via video, here it is (approx 4 minutes). https://youtu.be/aetJ_nAhrZo

1. Smart Chatbots
   
   There is a new generation of chat Bots. The old chat Bots were scripted. The new ones are more conversational, and the old ones feel inhuman and frustrate customers. 
   
   The new ones are like you’re having a conversation with another human. The quality of the feedback you get is much higher. You can continue a conversation, so it’s like you’re talking to a live person. 
   
   Once we have the quality of ChatGPT in customer service Bots, it will be a whole new world of automation of customer experiences.
   
    
2. Augmented Intelligence
   
   It’s finally happening. The AI system can help humans speed up their work and reactions towards customers. They can ask the chatbot to give a first idea of a reaction towards an email. 
   
   Then they can fine-tune it a little bit, or if you have to send an email to, like, let’s say, thousands of customers, and you have to tell them that maybe a shipment is going to be late or that you’re out of stock of specific products you can ask the chatbot to write an email for you and then you can fine-tune it. 
   
   The productivity of the humans working in and around the customer experiences will increase dramatically because of AI. 
   
3. Conversation Management
   
   On social media today, many organisations have people just reacting to people on Twitter or Facebook. When they write a review on TripAdvisor or open table now, you can ask ChatGPT to write a first reaction towards a customer’s post. 
   
   Again you get a first reaction. You reach a specific style; you can fine-tune it. Now you can react to reviews on TripAdvisor, for instance, at five times the speed compared to when you have to type in everything, so it speeds up conversation management. 
   
   Again, it’s an increase in efficiency and effectiveness.
   
    
4. Rapid Innovation
   
   Sometimes we’re like stuck. We always repeatedly think about the same concepts to make our customers happy. 
   
   Now you can ask your AI assistant to come up with some ideas and say how can I wow my customers when something like this happens? When something goes wrong? 
   
   You can ask AI about your company’s style and culture. Ask which Innovations and customer experience would bring value to our customers. Instead of getting together ten people for half a day, you now type in a question! 
   
   Some have tried it with some surprising results and generated new good ideas. 
   
   After that first session of ideas, you can build on that as a human team, inspiring the team to develop innovation in CX.
   
    
5. Application coding
   
   Code interfaces for customers may not be up to speed, or they’re not convenient enough, and then the CX team wants the IT team to work on that. 
   
   However, there’s often a long queue of technology priorities, and you have to wait three months to change a simple thing for the customer. 
   
   If you could outsource this now to a machine, what if you could ask chatgpt to improve the code or change the code to improve your user interfaces much faster than in the past, which creates a new benefit for customers they give feedback then you can react more quickly.
   
   If you prefer to consume your information via video, here it is (approx 4 minutes). https://youtu.be/aetJ_nAhrZo
   
   Let’s summarize:
   The use of chat GPT can significantly improve customer experience in various ways. 
   
   The emergence of smart chatbots allows for more conversational interactions with customers, increasing the quality of feedback received. 
   
   Augmented intelligence also speeds up work processes and help humans react faster to customer inquiries. 
   
   Additionally, conversation management is made more efficient through ChatGPT in reacting to customer reviews and posts on social media platforms. 
   
   Rapid innovation is also possible through AI assistants who can assist in coming up with new ideas for customer experience improvements. 
   
   Finally, application coding can be outsourced to machines, allowing for faster improvements to user interfaces, resulting in better customer feedback and quicker reactions to their needs. Overall, the benefits of  ChatGPT in customer experience are numerous and can greatly enhance the quality of customer interactions and satisfaction.
   
   
   As these interesting developments evolve I will bring additional developments to your attention. Thanks for reading!
   
   Please subscribe to the channel, and like this article.

🌎 A common theme in our change-oriented world is an increasing focus on the Customer. 🔎
Review three of the best courses for CX and Process Transformation. In fact, the BPGs best selling programs.

Three programs focused on helping YOU and your organisation become more customer-centric, efficient and effective.

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Ready to take your customer experience strategy to the next level? Visit Three of the best BPG Programs – Make Your Choice! to learn more about our offerings. 🚀

“This course provided a terrific holistic framework for how I can more richly think about how MOTs connect to Customer Experience and Customer Journey Management. It’s a terrific program that I’d recommend and encourage Professionals to strongly consider.”

Jim Lecinski, Professor, Kellogg School of Management

(Jim is the creator of ZMOTs and Micro MOTs as a VP at Google 2006-2018)

L.G. Lavengood Outstanding Professor of the Year Award (2022)

Connect with Steve: https://linktr.ee/SteveTowers

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🌎 Customer experience is a billion-dollar global opportunity – but almost every single experience is broken 🤔 How to make money while solving for it is where Customer Journey Management+ comes in.

But what exactly is Customer Journey Management?
It’s the process of optimizing the interactions that consumers have in an experience across all touchpoints and channels.

This involves connecting the dots between customer interactions and the supporting systems and people that operate the internal processes.

Effectively you can’t be successful if you do one without the other.

By understanding the customer journey, businesses can identify pain points and areas for improvement, ultimately leading to increased customer satisfaction, lower costs and growing revenue (the triple crown).

At CJM Plus, we offer comprehensive solutions for businesses looking to improve their customer journey. From mapping out touchpoints to implementing analytics and automation tools, we help companies seize the billion-dollar opportunity that is customer experience.

Ready to take your customer experience strategy to the next level? Visit https://cjmplus.com to learn more about our offerings. 🚀

“This course provided a terrific holistic framework for how I can more richly think about how MOTs connect to Customer Experience and Customer Journey Management. It’s a terrific program that I’d recommend and encourage Professionals to strongly consider.”

Jim Lecinski, Professor, Kellogg School of Management

(Jim is the creator of ZMOTs and Micro MOTs as a VP at Google 2006-2018)

L.G. Lavengood Outstanding Professor of the Year Award (2022)

Connect with Steve: https://linktr.ee/SteveTowers

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