Successful Customer Outcomes (SCOs) are more than a slogan — they’re a philosophy. They remind us that the ultimate measure of success isn’t what we deliver, but what the customer achieves because of us. This is the essence of Outside‑In thinking: shifting the lens from internal efficiency to external value.
When organizations anchor themselves to SCOs, they create a compass that guides every decision. Strategy, operations, and culture align around one question: “Did the customer succeed?” That clarity cuts through complexity and prevents teams from getting lost in vanity metrics or internal politics.
Example: Think of Apple’s iPhone launch in 2007. The SCO wasn’t “sell a phone with apps.” It was “help people carry the internet in their pocket.” That outcome reshaped industries and customer expectations worldwide.
What is an SCO?
An SCO is the result the customer values, not the activity you perform. It’s defined in their language, not in corporate jargon. Customers don’t care about your process maps or internal milestones — they care about whether their problem is solved, their need is met, or their aspiration is fulfilled.
This distinction is critical because it forces organizations to listen differently. Instead of asking, “How do we improve our process?” the question becomes, “What does success look like for the customer?” That subtle shift changes everything.
Example: A bank might think its SCO is “approve loans quickly.” But for the customer, the SCO is “move into my new home without stress.” The bank that recognizes this designs experiences that go beyond paperwork speed — like proactive updates, moving‑day support, or flexible payment options.
Outputs ≠ Outcomes
Outputs are the things we produce; outcomes are the value customers experience. Confusing the two is one of the most common traps in business. Shipping a product, closing a ticket, or completing a transaction are outputs. They’re necessary, but they’re not sufficient.
Outcomes are about transformation. Did the customer’s life improve? Did they feel more confident, more capable, more connected? That’s the real test. Organizations that obsess over outputs risk becoming efficient at irrelevance.
Example: A fitness app might celebrate “10,000 downloads” (output). But the SCO is “users feel healthier and more energized.” If downloads are high but retention is low, the company has outputs without outcomes.
Flip the Lens
Outside‑In thinking requires flipping the lens: start with the customer’s desired outcome, then map backwards to what you must enable. This is the opposite of the traditional “inside‑out” approach, where companies design processes for their own convenience and hope customers adapt.
When you flip the lens, you uncover hidden friction. You see where policies, silos, or legacy systems block the customer’s path. And you create alignment across teams, because everyone rallies around the same external goal.
Example: Amazon’s obsession with “customer convenience” is a flipped lens in action. One‑click ordering, predictive shipping, and frictionless returns weren’t designed to make Amazon’s operations easier — they were designed to make customers’ lives easier.
Why Outcomes Win
SCOs drive loyalty and advocacy because customers remember how you made them feel, not just what you sold them. When they achieve their goals with your help, they become your best marketers.
They also reduce cost‑to‑serve. When outcomes are consistently achieved, complaints, rework, and escalations drop. That frees resources to focus on innovation rather than firefighting.
Example: Tesla doesn’t just sell cars; it delivers the outcome of “seamless electric mobility.” Owners advocate passionately because they feel part of a movement, not just a transaction. That advocacy reduces Tesla’s need for traditional advertising.
Find the Real Outcomes
Discovering SCOs requires listening differently. Surveys and metrics are useful, but they often capture what customers say. True insight comes from observing what they do and asking open questions like, “What does success look like for you?”
Co‑creation is powerful here. When customers help define outcomes, they feel ownership. They also reveal needs you might never have considered. This is where empathy meets strategy.
Example: Airbnb discovered that guests didn’t just want “a place to stay.” Their SCO was “belong anywhere.” That insight, uncovered through observation and dialogue, became the company’s brand promise and competitive edge.
Design Around Outcomes
Designing for SCOs means simplifying journeys, removing friction, and empowering frontline teams to act in the customer’s best interest. It’s about engineering experiences that feel effortless and human.
This requires cross‑functional collaboration. Marketing, operations, IT, and HR must all align around the same outcome. Otherwise, customers experience the cracks between departments.
Example: Disney theme parks design everything around the SCO of “creating magical memories.” From queue management to cast member training, every detail is engineered to support that outcome — not just to run a park efficiently.
New Metrics for Success
Traditional KPIs like Average Handle Time or Net Promoter Score are lagging indicators. They measure activity or sentiment, but not whether the customer actually achieved their goal. SCO metrics are different: they track success in the customer’s terms.
This shift requires courage, because SCO metrics often expose uncomfortable truths. But they also unlock growth, because they show you where to focus improvement.
Example: A software company might measure “% of customers who achieved first‑time setup without support.” That’s a true SCO metric — it reflects whether the customer succeeded, not just whether the company closed a ticket.
When Customers Succeed…
The ripple effect of SCOs is profound. When customers succeed, employees feel a stronger sense of purpose. They see the impact of their work, which boosts engagement and retention.
Organizations also grow more sustainably. Instead of chasing short‑term wins, they build long‑term trust. SCOs become the foundation for resilience in volatile markets.
Example: Patagonia’s SCO isn’t “sell outdoor gear.” It’s “help people connect with and protect the planet.” That outcome inspires customers, employees, and communities — creating a virtuous cycle of loyalty and advocacy.
Obsess Over Outcomes
Obsessing over SCOs means making them the heartbeat of your strategy. It’s not a project or a department — it’s a mindset. Every decision, from product design to HR policy, is filtered through the question: “Does this help customers succeed?”
Organizations that embrace this obsession don’t just serve customers; they transform markets. They redefine expectations and set new standards for what “good” looks like.
Example: Netflix didn’t obsess over “renting DVDs.” Its SCO was “entertainment anytime, anywhere.” That obsession led to streaming, personalization, and original content — reshaping the entire media industry.
Businesses must actively engineer and continuously innovate this experience to drive success. Further, we define success as winning the triple crown: simultaneously growing revenues, Reducing Costs, and Improving Service.
Steve has also published many articles and conference keynotes (see the MOT primer below) reviewing the continued evolution of this fascinating concept.
Join us at a coaching session and become qualified in Customer Centric and Process Transformation https://www.bpgroup.org or visit https://www.stevetowers.com
Definitions
What is a Moment of Truth?
A Moment of Truth is any interaction with the customer within the Customer Experience, first discussed in my 1993 book ‘Business Process Reengineering – A Senior Executive’s Guide‘
Moments of Truth are the cause of all work.
This understanding underpins the CEMMethod, first launched in 2006 and now in version 15. It is the idea that all work an organisation undertakes is, at a fundamental level, caused by Moments of Truth. In principle, everything a company does can and should be linked to a Moment of Truth.
Managing Moments of Truth
Enlightened ‘Outside-In’ organisations actively embrace Moment of Truth Management as an essential strategic and operational necessity to deliver engineered Customer Experiences. How so?
a. Designing for Moments of Truth – The Design-Implementation Gap
Early efforts were geared towards designing optimal Moments of Truth; however, simply mapping customer journeys has never been enough. It is one thing to agree on what a future state customer journey should be; it is entirely another to implement it. This Design-Implementation gap is precisely what kills the majority of Customer Experience initiatives.
b. Implementing optimised Moments of Truth
Successful deployment of innovated Moments of Truth is key to delivering optimal Customer Experiences. The most practical immediate results focus on a rapid rollout across a key experience, using the success of that rollout to validate the smooth rollout across the organisation. Establishing ownership, accountability, metrics, controls and improvement paths are part of this discipline.
c. Operationalising Moments of Truth
Once Moments of Truth have been designed, innovated and implemented into recrafted customer experiences, they need to be actively managed ‘in the moment’ and shared. Every Moment of Truth should feed to a corporate dashboard, with real-time data showing the performance of that MOT and its associated experiences. If things go wrong, the owner should be able to ‘course correct’ and real-time monitor the customer experience delivery.
Imagine a world without customer satisfaction surveys, no need for Net Promoter Scores, no focus groups, and no mystery shopping because you will know how 100% of interactions are performing 100% of the time.
Control and Action combined
The C-suite and leaders will now have a clear line of sight into every corner of the organisation and across the enterprise landscape, in real-time. One version of the data truth (and not all those departmental/divisional versions of reality).
The need for retrospective action evaporates. Immediate and laser-focused control can be maintained, delivering simultaneously enhanced service, lower costs, higher revenues, improved compliance and uber motivated employees.
MOT primer…
Steve Towers
https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevetowers/
Richard Normann – creator of the Moments of Truth concept:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Normann
Jan Carlzon – author of ‘Moments of Truth’
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jan_Carlzon
Moments of Truth 2025 (VIDEO)
https://youtu.be/3mzz_LdgmFY
That Kodak Moment of Truth
https://www.processexcellencenetwork.com/innovation/columns/4-lessons-from-the-kodak-moment-of-truth
Mitch Belsley – Get Scientific about Managing Moments of Truth
http://customerthink.com/get-scientific-about-managing-moments-of-truth/
Accreditation & Certification in CX and Process
https://www.bpgroup.org
FAQs
What exactly is a Successful Customer Outcome and why should I care if I’m a business pro?
A Successful Customer Outcome (SCO) is the result your customer values, not just the activity you perform. It’s about their needs, goals, and aspirations, viewed in their language, not corporate jargon. As a business professional, caring about SCOs ensures you’re focusing on what truly matters to your customers, driving loyalty, advocacy, and long-term success.
How is an SCO different from just shipping a product or completing a transaction?
An SCO is about the transformation your customer experiences, like feeling more confident or fulfilled, rather than just the outputs such as shipping a product or closing a ticket. Outcomes measure the value and impact on the customer’s life, which is the true measure of your success in business.
Why should I flip the lens and start with the customer’s outcome instead of my internal processes?
Flipping the lens to focus on the customer’s desired outcome helps you identify hidden friction in the customer journey. It aligns your entire organization around a single external goal, ensuring that policies, silos, or legacy systems don’t block the customer’s path and that your efforts truly meet their needs.
Why do outcomes matter more than traditional business metrics like NPS or average handle time?
Traditional KPIs often lag behind actual customer success and can miss whether the customer achieved their goals. Focusing on outcomes provides a clear measure of customer success, reveals genuine improvement areas, and drives growth by ensuring your efforts translate into real customer value.
How can I make sure I continuously deliver customer success in my organization?
You must actively manage Moments of Truth in real-time, designing experiences that connect directly with customer outcomes. Implementing dashboards, ownership, controls, and ongoing improvements ensures every interaction contributes to customer success, making your organization more resilient and trusted.