I was moved by an inspiring piece about finding hope in a time of disruption and uncertainty. It was written by my friend Andrew Penn, CEO of Telstra. Though it was published this time last year, I found it relevant now. Penn observed that in these times of a great reset, it’s only human to lose hope. It’s true seemingly everywhere. Just looking at Twitter right now, it feels like the special place I once described as a human seismograph has…
Forbes: In the Rush to Go All-Digital, Prioritize Employee Experiences
Forbes featured an in-depth piece by Brian Solis about the importance of prioritizing the employee experience for the all-digital, success-from-anywhere world. Companies everywhere are accelerating digital investments in customer experience (CX) – but designing for employee experience (EX) is the next competitive advantage. Engaged and productive employees are instrumental to the success of delivering exceptional customer experiences and driving organizational success. By The Numbers: 93% of executives prioritizing EX report that their teams have the tools and technology to do their…
Building Trust in Digital Business
It now seems like a lifetime ago. Shortly before the onset of COVID-19 and my joining Salesforce as the Global Innovation Evangelist, I flew to London to participate in an expert panel on software defined networking (SDN) and the future of digital transformation. While digital transformation itself has been disrupted in the time since, SDN, like many enabling and mission-critical technologies are more important now than ever. I recently stumbled across unpublished material that I wanted to share with you…
The Art and Science of Human Centered Change and Innovation
When it comes to employee engagement and experience, innovation and digital transformation, corporate culture is under appreciated and largely neglected. Did you know that 85% of employees around the world are not engaged or actively disengaged at work according to Gallup? This global “norm” costs approximately $7 trillion in lost productivity. Titled “Culture 2.0 – The Art and Science of Human-Centered Change and Innovation,” my keynote at the Digital Workplace Experience aimed to change that. Culture is incredibly important to the…
Customer Experience In The Age Of Digital Distraction
Tamara McCleary is a dear friend. I was so happy when I joined her on SAP’s Tech Unknown podcast, a show that features “discussions from the edge of next.” Honestly, I didn’t know she was going to be the host. So, it was all the more special. Our conversation focused on what has become my next keynote topic/presentation, “Experience in the Age of Digital Distraction.” The impact of digital distraction on work and everything from CX to EX to experience…
Through a Research Lens: What Captured My Attention in 2018 and What’s in My Purview for 2019
Prophet’s Emily Schreck recently interviewed the Altimeter analysts to spotlight some of the things that we never get a chance to share, such as what we’re working on, what has our attention and what’s on the horizon. Schreck’s piece is now live. This year has been a whirlwind for Altimeter’s famed analysts; Charlene Li, Brian Solis, Susan Etlinger and Omar Akhtar. The team has published several new research reports, presented keynote speeches at top global industry conferences, and helped some…
Sven Esser: Brands of the Future: The Critical Relationship Between BX, CX, UX and EX – Brian Solis
At his blog, industry expert Sven Esser recently highlighted Brian Solis’ report on “The X Framework of Experience Design,” showing the ways that CX, BX, EX and UX come together for companies.
AI, Chatbots and Designing the Next Generation of Automated Customer Engagement
No matter how much sweetness or spin you add to it, early incarnations of AI-powered chatbots are the call centers of this generation. They’re cool. They’re scalable. They’re relatively inexpensive compared to human agents. Yes, chatbots scale engagement through new, popular messaging channels and introduce conversational commerce capabilities that carry the potential to deliver incredible experiences. But here’s the thing…most of the interactions are basic, seeking to replicate existing transactions and experiences that only seem to wow those designing not…
Employees Swipe Right to Personal Tech in the Workplace
The consumerization of IT has been long in the making. While it’s nothing new, the employee-driven trends of social media, BYOD (bring your own device) and BYOA (apps) in the workplace are only accelerating and proliferating. In addition to managing enterprise technology infrastructure and digital transformation roadmaps, IT must now balance the sanctioning and connectivity of new technologies while also managing and mitigating costs, compliance, security and data risks. At the same time, employees will say, and attentive organizations will…
It’s Time to Bring Digital Literacy to the C-Suite: An Interview with Paul Miller of the Digital Workplace Group,
I think the next big thing following massive innovation on the CX front is EX…employee experience. But, to do so requires a level of inward empathy not usually found roaming the halls of the C-Suite. This is something though, I believe, will become more pronounced as the move to customer-centricity is more closely linked to employee-centricity. To do so however, requires that companies empower employees, giving them access to information, expertise, and the reward mechanisms they need to innovate and…
