The Ticket: Discover the Future of Customer Service, Support, and Experience, with Intercom Exploring 'The Wheel': Clay’s rotational program creating future leaders through customer service
Aug 18, 2025
In a captivating discussion, George Dilthey, Head of Support at Clay, shares insights on 'The Wheel,' a groundbreaking 15-month rotational program aimed at developing future tech leaders through customer service. He explains how this initiative hires fresh graduates, integrating customer insights into various departments. The conversation highlights the dual role of mentorship and AI in enhancing team engagement and service quality. George also illustrates how rethinking customer support can transform it into a strategic asset that drives value and fosters long-term career growth.
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Support Team Projects Sparked The Wheel
- George recounts how support team members naturally took on projects outside the queue, like engineering builds and automations.
- That pattern led Clay to formalize The Wheel as a rotational program for new grads.
Team Members Transitioned Into Product And Ops
- George gave examples: Tanvi collaborated with engineers on product builds and Bruno built automations then moved to ops.
- These examples showed support hires impacting product and ops beyond answering tickets.
Start With Support Immersion Then Rotate
- Do run an intensive support immersion for new hires before rotations to build product and customer foundations.
- Then allocate roughly 30% of their time to rotate across teams to spread customer perspective.