People News, Features, and Interviews

​Smart speakers are everywhere. They are on everyone’s phone, in their homes, and on every display stand this holiday period as the perfect gift idea.

Nine out of 10 CEOs agree: Mastering the customer agenda is the primary challenge their organisations face now and into the future. Yet when it comes to actually orchestrating the people, process and technological changes necessary to ensuring an organisation delivers and exceeds modern customer expectations, many are struggling to truly break ground.

As organisations look to compete on customer experience, it’s to be expected the people, processes and technologies supporting all touchpoints within their customers’ journeys operate more in harmony. And arguably, there are no two more important teams in this picture than marketing and customer service.

Southwest Airlines has edged a step closer to a 360-degree view of the customer while also lifting employee engagement after deploying a new platform to improve customer service management.

One in four customer experience (CX) professionals will be out of a job in 2020, according to the latest Forrester 2020 predictions. But don’t read that as a sign interest in CX is waning: On the contrary, the level of c-suite and high-level CX managers is set to increase.

Steve Brennen is switching the world of Uber for the world of fintech disruption, taking up a new role as chief customer officer at Zip Co.

Former UBank CMO, Jo Kelly, has re-emerged as the new chief customer officer at Good2Give, a fintech operating in the social enterprise space.

It’s easy to get growth when the macro-economic environment and consumer sentiment is strong. But it’s the tougher climates like the one banks are facing now that are the most rewarding and prove the mettle and magic of marketing, says NAB’s Suzana Ristevski.

Confirmit has appointed Andrew Farries, former customer strategy leader at National Australia Bank, as director of customer experience (CX) consulting in Australia.

More than 300 Optus employees have already completed at least one class within the telco’s new CX Academy since its launch five months ago.

News of Suncorp’s CEO of customer, Pip Marlow, departure has promptly been followed by her appointment as the new CEO of Salesforce Australia and New Zealand.

Former Westpac head of advertising, Samuel Viney, has a new role as general manager, customer, at Amart Furniture. The role had been vacant since earlier this year.

Transforming the employee experience aids communication, improves transparency and boosts engagement and this, in turn, drives improvements in customer experience. That's the message from Facebook's Transform Sydney event held this week, where the social media giant put its employee experience (EX) tool, Workplace, on show.

CX is not the same as customer service, nor is it another name for user experience, CRM, technology or digital transformation, according to Gartner VP distinguished analyst, Don Scheibenreif.

For almost a 100 years, millions of Australians have relied on the NRMA for roadside assistance, advice on buying a car and road safety. But the motoring organisation has felt the force of digital disruption. In an era when cars are more reliable and mobile phones do the job of maps, travel guide and emergency help, its relevance has been challenged.

MetLife Australia says its decision to create a chief customer and marketing role is about elevating the role and cultural approach within the business.

AGL has confirmed former longstanding Australia Post executive, Christine Courbett, as its new chief customer officer.

The top customer experience-focused organisations globally are the ones who recognise they’re the problem, can act boldly, and are even willing to reduce their product lines to make things easier for customers.

When you are dealing with holiday makers who expect exceptional customer service, ‘gut feel’ isn’t going to cut it.

Brand owners often talk about their brand having a personality. Some are sassy, others are authoritative, and a few are cheeky. But when it comes to bringing the brand to life through a chatbot interface, focusing in on the personality might be the last thing you want to do.

Organisations are fast shifting from the ‘pioneering’ phase of testing artificial intelligence (AI) applications into implementation as a way of digitally transforming their businesses, IPsoft’s chief commercial officer, Jonathan Crane, believes.