Umbrex is pleased to welcome Danielle Anderson with Perspective Consulting.  Danielle is a Customer Experience, Digital Strategy and Innovation Specialist with 19+ years of experience in consumer-focused industries including Retail, Luxury Goods and Hospitality. She has a successful track record of advising Boards and partnering with CEOs to drive high-value initiatives, build unique brand experiences and deliver sustainable growth at global Fortune 500, FTSE 250, high-growth and start-up organisations. She currently runs Perspective Consulting and has partnered with clients including…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Kenny Cao. Kenny most recently led GTM strategy and operations at Brex, a Fintech startup valued at $12B. Before joining Brex, Kenny is part of the founding team for the Customer Experience (CX) function for LinkedIn and established the CX function for LinkedIn’s SaaS lines of business. Prior to LinkedIn, Kenny was an Engagement Manager of McKinsey and the deputy branch manager of HSBC’s China flagship branch. Kenny holds an MBA from the University of…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Erik Long with Long Growth Strategies. Erik is a data and analytics-driven strategy expert, with 20+ years of marketing consulting and operating leadership experience deploying customer-driven growth strategies and optimizing business operations. Erik currently leads Long Growth Strategies, where he advises organizations on how to drive profitable growth through data and analytics-driven strategy, planning, capability transformation, and execution. Erik’s prior roles include Associate Partner with Ipsos Strategy3, VP Marketing with Lumere, a health tech startup, and…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Arda Gurtuna. Arda graduated from the University of Birmingham, UK. He enjoys 12 years of professional experience, where he had been part of McKinsey & Company and IBM as a management consultant which are followed by leading strategy in e-commerce unicorn and B2B conglomerate. Followed by these experiences and prior joining OMS, Arda also spent 3 years in a partner role for a private equity and a hyper-growth management consulting firm. During this experience, he…

David Edelman shares an article that explains why sometimes waiting for perfect marketing data can stop progress in creating a better customer experience. As I work with more CMO’s who are wading into broader responsibilities for driving company-wide customer experience programs, I am finding that many are slowing down because they feel they lack good enough customer data.  As one expands from looking at mostly marketing data to taking a broader look across all customer touchpoints, especially those in call…

Tobias Baer takes issue with the absurd and excessive KYC(Know Your Customer, the verification of identity) requirements that lock out legitimate customers from financial services. Unless you run a criminal operation, you would most probably agree with me that financial crimes should be prevented and that KYC is a critical element in preventing the illegal flow of money. Sadly, that doesn’t mean that KYC in today’s shape and form is working well. I’ve written before about the deficiencies of a…

David Edelman shares an article that explores the marketing data’s limitations when it is applied to improving customer experience. As I work with more CMO’s who are wading into broader responsibilities for driving company-wide customer experience programs, I am finding that many are slowing down because they feel they lack good enough customer data.  As one expands from looking at mostly marketing data to taking a broader look across all customer touchpoints, especially those in call center, physical channels, wearables,…

Sean McCoy shares an article on the importance of maintaining a measured approach to promoting new customer growth.  Sales commissions and incentives are a major part of the sales culture in many industries, and insurance agencies are no different. Agencies are considering what’s best for the policyholder when they offer a variety of plans from a variety of carriers. But this consideration on the policyholder experience is often neutralized by the incentive structures that carriers and the agency itself are…

Gregory Borel shares an older but always relevant post on  dysfunctional “operational excellence.” I am sharing this note following the equally astonishing and disastrous experience of awaiting a shipment sent by my Mother from the South of France to London. You will have unfortunately seen a few of those horrors before. The (rather) long and short of it is that I stayed home a full two working days, handled 10 calls with customer services, adding up well above two hours,…

It is an often unspoken agreement that, sometimes, the customer is wrong. Bernie Heine offers seven practical suggestions on how to deal with the situation.  Here is an interesting point to consider: The customer is not always right. Despite the age-old adage, you are undoubtedly aware that sometimes your customers are completely in the wrong. Knowing what to do if your customer is wrong is important. Whatever they are complaining about – your service, your product, or how you have…

A Dark Sky experience led Kaihan Krippendorff to ruminate on how to disrupt your industry. It’s 6:30 a.m. at the Dark Sky RV resort in Utah. I’m sitting out by the gas firepit and everyone else is asleep. The sun is rising, but it’s not one of those sudden appearances that I often see in the Northeast. Instead, the sky is wide open above the vast horizon, and it begins to change colors over the short desert vegetation and red…

Carlos Castelan provides key steps that can be taken to improve disconnects and find opportunities throughout times of change and functional issues.  In today’s world where change is one of the only constants, we often hear of companies undergoing a transformation to reinvent themselves and revitalize their customer offerings. This is a natural function of the organizational life cycle where companies grow and organize in a variety of ways along the way, including around services or products. However, in focusing…

Kaihan Krippendorff identifies the importance of proxemics between product and consumer/user as a key component of growth for businesses. Shuffling through the crowds of Fourth of July weekend shoppers, I spied my prize. The farm stand’s rows were bursting with color—juicy strawberries, rich blueberries, and robust peaches. “Over here,” I called out to my kids to join me. We carefully selected handfuls from the overflowing baskets. Fresh berries would make a perfect addition to our family’s dessert that night. When…

  Stephen Wunker shares a few key tips to help develop a customer experience strategy that is effective during times of crisis If the customer experience for your company hasn’t changed in the past year, you are unusual. In industry after industry, from consumer goods to B2B technology, the distancing, fear, and economic turbulence caused by the coronavirus are affecting the sales process, customer selection criteria, the way products and services are consumed, and even what customer service means. Designing…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome Samantha O’Neill.  Samantha is an independent consultant with expertise in Marketing, Digital strategy and Customer Experience. She was most recently the Chief Marketing Officer for Sun Life Canada where she ran a broad portfolio including Marketing, Customer strategy, the Digital properties (from the strategy through development), and the newly built Customer Experience capabilities. Prior to Sun Life, she was with LoyaltyOne and ran their Analytics function, serving Air Miles’ Partners with advanced analytics to support…

  In this article for Forbes, Stephen Wunker reveals how this small business led the charge in innovation, safety, and customer service during the height of the pandemic. You might not think of an auto body shop as a hotbed of business innovation – but you’d be quite mistaken. Consider the story of one small chain that shows how businesses can go on offense during the coronavirus pandemic, seizing the initiative to remake customer experience, business relationships, and competitive position….

  In this podcast, Susan Hamilton and Ethan Beute discuss brand psychology and how your breakfast cereal makes you feel about yourself.  Much like having a relationship with another human, a lot of it is about how that other party makes you feel about yourself. Or how you are able to see yourself via that other party.’ You know, I think the customer experience is very much about the relationship that you are building with your customer. In fact, I…

  As more companies seek mega mergers to dominate the marketplace, a new alliance is going to revolutionize how you access your meds. Kaihan Krippendorff uses Amazon’s recent expansion into pharmaceutical distribution to illustrate the importance of proximity in expanding and improving business offerings.    If you want to predict the path of innovation in your industry, consider one unifying strategic concept: proximity. Introduced by innovation guru Rob Wolcott, proximity is the theory that the production and provision of value…

Umbrex is pleased to welcome David Uriarte with Horvent. David Uriarte, former BCG consultant, has an outstanding track record of achievement in customer experience, business management, digital transformation and development in travel & leisure and other service industries. Senior international advisor, entrepreneur and executive with more than 20 years of relevant experience. Digital and people passionate, optimistic, flexible, with a strong strategic vision and leadership in high growth business. Managing Partner in Horvent Advisory Services and Partner of GuestPro (Leading…

  This article from David Burnie’s company blog identifies the value of the contact centre, and how it helps to prevent customer attrition.  The contact centre is a necessity for any mid-large size organization. It is where customer inquiries are handled across multiple channels, such as the phone, email or live chat. It is a bustling place of energy, activity and collaboration and often a starting point for many who want to forge a career in corporate. When built and…

  Carlos Castelan shares how to improve the customer experience and team collaboration. In today’s world where change is one of the only constants, we often hear of companies undergoing a transformation to reinvent themselves and revitalize their customer offerings. This is a natural function of the organizational life cycle where companies grow and organize in a variety of ways along the way, including around services or products. However, in focusing on efficiency and processes to enable scale, organizations lose…