This week’s episode of the Be Customer Led podcast features Amanda Ono, Chief Human Resources Officer at Kroll. When she was in college, her passion was the interaction between teams and leaders and how they worked together to drive results. She worked in a wide range of positions, including recruiting, training, and building leadership programs, which led her towards the specific title she holds now. In today’s conversation, we talk about migrating from customer experience to employee experience.

 [01.26] Professional Journey – Starting the conversation, Amanda shares where she ignited her passion for customer experience. 

[07.40] Outcomes – Amanda explains what outcomes they achieved at Resolver by bringing customers and employees together as a business decision. 

[13.13] Training programs - If training is the answer, what's the question? Amanda shares why training programs fail most of the time and what we need to do to get real outcomes form them. 

[19.37] Leadership and management – We discuss the distinction between change leadership and change management. 

[26.21] Training on empathy – Amanda walks us through how they train employees on building empathy in their onboarding program at Resolver. 

[32.55] Inspiration – Wrapping up the conversation, Amanda shares where she gets her inspiration in her life to keep going. 

Resources

Connect with Amanda

LinkedIn - linkedin.com/in/amandaono/ 

Website - resolver.com/ 

Twitter - twitter.com/amandaono 

Book by John P. Kotter

Leading Change – 

goodreads.com/book/show/51370.Leading_Change

Today's episode of Be customer Led features Kimberly Wiefling, founding member & global consultant at Silicon Valley Alliances. Her superpower is uniting people of different nationalities, cultural backgrounds, and aesthetic preferences to accomplish a common goal. Kimberly has worked in the United States, Europe, and Asia. Also, she has visited Japan more than a hundred times to work with the culturally diverse staff of globalizing Japanese businesses. Throughout our conversation today, she imparts invaluable advice on creating an influential culture and leadership. 

[01:14] Background – Kimberly recounts the origins of her company, which she founded over two decades ago, and her professional journey. 

[04:36] Culture - Kimberly defines both corporate culture and leadership, and we talk about the relationship between the two. Also, we discuss the relationship between leaders and managers and whether one can be both, or if one must choose between being a leader or a manager.

[09:42] Disconnection -  Kimberly outlines why firms fail to give what employees want and why there seems to be a disconnect between the company, its executives and managers, and its employees.

[16:55] Culture in Japan -  What is the difference between the culture of Japan and Silicon Valley?

[19:07] Leadership - Leaders are responsible for creating and maintaining a strong organizational culture. This involves modeling the desired behavior, celebrating successes that align with the cultural values, and correcting or dismissing behavior that goes against the cultural norms.

[21:44] Culture - If you are a new leader and want to establish a company culture, Kimberly offers some suggestions on how to do so, as well as some actions you may take as an individual to alter an existing culture that is toxic or unappealing. 

[25:08] Action, Communication, and Thinking - The ACT framework is a simple and effective way for leaders to understand their roles and responsibilities.

Resources:

Connect with Kimberly:

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/scrappykimberlywiefling/

Website: wiefling.com/

Website: kimberlywiefling.com/

Silicon Valley Alliances: siliconvalleyalliances.com/

The CEO of Wine Access, Inc., Joe Fisch, joins Bill Staikos on this week's episode of Be Customer Led. Through careful selection, engaging narratives, and impeccable provenance, Wine Access makes finding and enjoying the world's most inspiring wines simple. During this episode, Joe discusses a variety of the experiences, insights, and perspectives that he has gained throughout his time working in the wine industry. 

[02:37] Background –  Joe describes his professional career, including the steps that ultimately resulted in the launch of his company. 

[05:47] Wine Access –  How exactly does Wine Access cater to the needs of its customers? 

[09:09] NPS – NPS, CX, and the Wine Industry

[13:37] Personalization – Joe explains how quickly they swing into action when a customer is having a bad time with their service. On top of that, he details his company's usage of customization. 

[19:05] Customer Satisfaction -  We talk about how to strike a balance between maximizing profits and sales and providing a satisfying experience for customers.

[25:33] Guest’s Question: In response to the previous guest's question, Joe outlines his interest in philanthropy and donating.

Resources:

Connect with Joe:

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/joefisch/

Website: wineaccess.com/

App: apple.com/us/app/wine-access/id1642804318