Why CX Leadership Advice Fails

Jeannie Walters 0:00

Most leadership advice doesn't really account for the reality of the customer experience leader. Let's talk about it. Most leadership advice assumes that you already have the mandate, you have the resources, you have the buy-in, you have the seat at the table. But let's face it, a lot of us in CX are kind of shoved in between maybe marketing and ops, not given that seat at the table that is so incredibly important. We're being told to react instead of be the proactive, intentional leaders that actually drive bottom line results. And then we're held accountable when we don't get those results. So here's what I want you to do.

Build Authority Through Momentum

Jeannie Walters 0:45

I want you to think about yourself in a different way. I want you to think about yourself as the business leader walking into the room. Momentum is what builds authority. People see you in a different way. They see you walking into the room differently. They see you delivering on results again and again and again. And they see you making their lives easier. Most humans are driven by what we need, what we want. And so if you are helping me as a fellow leader, then I'm going to appreciate that. I'm going to see you differently. So as you think about momentum, I want you to start reframing how you build influence. Influence is something we talk about a lot with customer experience because we don't often have the accountability or the authority to actually make changes that need to be made. So we have to influence leaders. We have to ask nicely and say please. So think about starting with influence, building on the moments that already exist, the things that already matter, and building that throughout the organization, not just in your own function. So this is where when we actually construct a strong foundation, we can build upon it. But if we're spending our time reacting to not only what customers tell us through their feedback, reacting to what leaders are asking us to do, reacting to whichever dotted line boss we have that day, whether it's our CMO or COO, then we're never going to build a strong foundation. We're just building on top of Jenga blocks essentially. So as you look to your own role, as you build that influence, really get that momentum moving and start using the moments that matter, you can translate that into the ideas I have in the book and our framework around mindset, strategy, and discipline.

Create A Win Win CX Mission

Jeannie Walters 2:54

If you can start with the mindset that you are going to build a CX mission that is a win-win for everyone, every leader you encounter, I want you to think about what we can bring to them? How can improving the customer experience improve their world? That means understanding what is it that motivates them? What numbers do they care about? What are their goals? What are they worried about? If we can address that with them, that's a win. That will help them have the right mindset when you walk into the room. And then when you apply that strategy, when you say to them, I hear you. I hear you, Chief Operating Officer, you want more efficiency. I am totally there with you. In fact, I think if we can decrease the number of service calls we have, that's a great way to build efficiency, wouldn't you agree? So let's look at the top reasons that customers call our service line. Can we do anything about that together? Can we get the other leaders on board that we need to get? It's a reframing of the conversation. So instead of strategy being about things like improving net promoter score, strategy is about improving the world your leaders live in. I

Lead In Uncertainty By Adding Value

Jeannie Walters 4:17

don't think I am going to surprise anyone when I say that there is a lot of uncertainty out there right now. So if you are listening to this or watching this and worried a little bit about your position in the organization, let me assure you, you are not alone. We are talking to a lot of leaders right now who have that anxiety. And one of the best ways to combat that is to help other leaders recognize that you bring not only value to your role, you bring value to them. So part of your strategy has to be thinking about what is it we are doing for other leaders? Why should the chief revenue officer care about your role and your leadership around customer experience? If you can't answer that question, when you walk in the room, you're already in a position of reacting instead of being that proactive, intentional leader I know you can be. The other thing that I want you to think about is what do I need to do every day to make this happen? Working with leaders just like you, what I see is that we spend a lot of time developing PowerPoints, developing slides, developing conversation points to talk to our leaders. A lot of those conversations are about reacting to something short term. What I want you to do is start every conversation, every time you're reporting about here are the long-term goals that we all agreed on, and here's what we're doing about it to get there. If you cannot connect those dots, you are in reactive mode. We need to build momentum by getting everyone on board. And the way we do that is to make them the winner. This is a hard position. I will be the first to tell you I have empathy for customer experience leaders in today's world because there's so much pressure, there's not enough buy-in, there isn't always the reward we're looking for. What happens is I see people who become a little defeated and they start just reporting. They don't really put context or insights to it, they don't show where the organization will win if it invests in this. And so when things get a little uncertain, it's easier for leaders to say, Well, I don't really know what that's doing for us right now. Every conversation you have, every time you walk in the room, I want you to understand what is the value you're bringing to the entire organization, and specifically, what does this leader care about?

Shift From Advocate To Business Leader

Jeannie Walters 7:01

That's the difference between being a customer experience advocate and being a customer experience business leader. And that's the shift that gets you funded, that gets you resources, that gets you promoted. That's the difference. The best leaders here aren't the ones who are doing all CX work. The best leaders are actually translating what does that CX work mean to our organizational goals? The more you can become the chief translator, the more that people will respect the value you bring and look for the insights that you bring. I bet you know a few leaders right now today in your organization who are pushing their own rock uphill. They're going up against the grain with something. Look to those leaders and ask, can you help them achieve things? Can you actually bring them into the fold a little bit, have bigger conversations about customer experience? Because they will appreciate that. You can also start asking bigger questions about where do we fit in to the market? How does our customer experience compare to others? How does that make our marketing either harder or easier? How does that make our shareholders happy? How does that make us actually an innovative leader? We have to tie things back to these bigger goals.

Translate Metrics Into Business Outcomes

Jeannie Walters 8:29

And I talk about this a lot because I don't see it enough. In the work I do with leaders just like you, we talk a lot about this because a lot of the reporting that I see isn't connected at all. They think it is. They think it is because they talk about things like net promoter score or CSAT or survey response rates. But those are not outcomes, those are measurements. We need to make sure we are talking about business outcomes. And this is why part of the role of being a CX leader is to be translator-in-chief. We want to make sure that we are translating what we're doing and the results we're getting into those business results. Those other leaders who get promoted, get funded, get resources. So if this conversation is scaring you a little bit, well, that might be a good thing. If you're starting to think, I don't know where to start, all I do is report on feedback metrics, give us a call. See if we can help. Because this is the obstacle I see over and over and over again. We need to build momentum without a mandate. We do not need the title to lead change. We are in that transition of being looked upon as nice to have to being understood as must-have for the organization. That's the difference between being a CX advocate and a true business leader. So I'm doing this out of a place where I want you to succeed. And if this sounds like something that you're not quite sure what to take on, start with what you can. Look at one of your goals and ask yourself: is this connected to our bigger organizational goals? If not, how can it be?

Midyear Reset And Next Steps

Jeannie Walters 10:26

We are in the middle of the year. That means we have six months to really deliver on those annual goals if you are within the calendar year. What a great moment to reset. What a great moment to decide right now, right here, that for the rest of this year, you are going to show up as a business leader. You are going to walk in knowing that you are proactive and intentional, and you are absolutely the one for this role. I know you've got this, and I want to hear from you. So let me know what you're doing to make the second half of this year phenomenal for not only your organization and your customers, but for you as a leader. I can't wait to hear what you do. And

Ratings Membership And Book

Jeannie Walters 11:13

if you like this podcast, of course, we love your ratings and reviews. So that helps other leaders just like you who are maybe looking for this type of information, find this podcast. So please keep those coming. We appreciate you. Can't wait to talk to you again. Thanks for everything you do. If you're ready to turn insights into action, join CXI Membership, our community for customer experience investigators just like you. Get the tools, support, and inspiration to move from ideas to true impact. And don't miss my book, Experience is Everything: Making Every Moment Count in the Age of Customer Expectations. Available wherever you order books. Until next time, keep asking questions, keep improving, and keep leading with experience.