John Sills, leader in customer-led business and innovation, explores the significance of emotional and human experiences in creating successful organizations. He discusses the disconnect between leaders and customer experience, common challenges in becoming customer-led, understanding customer behavior, and offers advice to his younger self.
Organizations must prioritize the emotional and human aspects of customer experience alongside new technologies.
Investing in customer experience is essential and can be more costly to neglect, requiring leaders to maintain an outside perspective and empower their teams.
Deep dives
The Importance of Customer Experience
John Sills, author of The Human Experience, discusses the importance of focusing on the emotional and human aspects of customer experience. He explains that while organizations have embraced new technologies, they have often neglected the human connection, leading to a decline in customer satisfaction. Sills emphasizes the need for organizations to harness technology while staying human in their approach to customer interactions.
Misconceptions and Challenges in Becoming Customer-Led
Sills addresses common misconceptions and challenges faced by organizations in becoming customer-led. He highlights the importance of observing customers' behavior rather than relying solely on what they say they want. He also debunks the misconception that investing in customer experience is a costly endeavor, pointing out that delivering poor customer experience can be even more costly. Sills emphasizes the need for leaders to maintain an outside perspective, go beyond data averages, and empower their teams to deliver better customer outcomes.
Vision and Ambition for Customer Experience
Drawing from examples like Swiss Rail, Sills stresses the value of having a clear vision and ambition for the customer experience. He explains that organizations need to define what a great customer experience looks like for them, considering customers' needs and their own strengths as a business. Sills emphasizes the importance of giving customers autonomy and a framework, rather than overprocessing and stifling their ability to deliver exceptional experiences.
Inspiration and Advice for Leaders
Sills finds inspiration from observing the world around him and engaging with thought leaders on platforms like Twitter. He advises leaders to spend time with customers in their environment, rather than relying solely on data and surveys. Sills also highlights the value of focusing on individual experiences rather than data averages. He encourages leaders to empower their teams and create an organization that values autonomy, competence, and relatedness, ultimately leading to happier colleagues and customers.
The best advice comes from the most interesting people. In the 'Label Sessions Presents...' podcast we give you both.In this episode, Maxine Mackie of Label Sessions talks to John Sills.John is a leader in customer-led business and innovation, pushing boundaries for customers at HSBC and now The Foundation - exploring new perspectives to reconnect with what customers really value.His goal is to make life better for customers and in his latest book ‘The Human Experience’ he explores how doing just this can create a more successful organisation.Label Sessions is a global platform that connects you to the best advice from the most interesting people, whether you want advice, mentoring or ideas.Through podcasts we give you a little taste of what it would be like to have a live 1:1 session with leaders just like this through Label Sessions.To find out more and have the real experience visit labelsessions.com.
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