By
Erica Marois
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Date Published: September 16, 2024 - Last Updated September 16, 2024
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As we gear up for the ICMI Contact Center Expo 2024, taking place October 21-24 in Orlando, I'm excited to bring you an exclusive interview with one of my favorite people in the contact center industry! If you don't already know our event emcee, Nate Brown, you are in for a treat.
Nate has been attending ICMI events for over a decade now, and he was kind enough to share his invaluable insights on making the most of the conference, navigating change in customer experience and implementing effective strategies for leading change in customer service teams.
An Exclusive Q&A with Nate Brown
We are thrilled to have you back as our emcee for ICMI Contact Center Expo this year! You've been coming to ICMI events for over a decade now. What advice do you have for first-timers?
Nate: You've got literally the best collection of Contact Center professionals right here together! You will learn so much from "the stage,"...but never underestimate how much you can learn from peer-to-peer conversations throughout the event. Don't be shy about it! Folks are EXCITED to share, and they want to know you.
This year's conference theme is all about navigating change. What are some of the biggest lessons you've learned about change over the course of your career?
Nate: I LOVE this theme! I feel like we could run this one for a decade and never tire of it. Here are a couple of quick thoughts on changes related to customer experience.
Many businesses are addicted to short-term outcomes. If there is no quantifiable impact on mega-metrics for executives, earning an appetite for change is hard. Customer Experience initiatives are some of the hardest. Not only is the value of the work hard to quantify, but it takes considerable time for the benefits to be proven out.
To overcome these challenges, CX leaders must connect the dots. For example, this could involve expanding your scope of control, upskilling yourself, or addressing organizational friction and resistance. It requires time and the cultivation of allies within the organization. Rather than forcefully pushing everyone into the CX mindset, it's more effective to plant seeds of customer-centricity and gradually shape the culture. Even if not explicitly labeled as CX, getting people to think in a customer-centric way and prioritize the voice of the customer can make a significant impact.
I know you're a huge proponent of Dr. John Cotter's 8-step process for leading change. Can you give us a brief overview of how you've used that process to help the customer service teams you've led?
Nate: Why, yes indeed! I did a "mini masterclass" with the fantastic Julia Ahlfeldt right here on this very topic! My response here could be many pages, so I will focus on some quick things in the beginning stages.
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LIGHT THE FIRE! Stage one of Cotter's model talks about establishing a sense of urgency. People don't just happen to change. You have to shake them up and make them believe they can't keep living/doing/acting a certain way. There are all kinds of ways to do this related to CX work.
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The (CX) Change Coalition: This is the type of work that has to be 'made real" to leaders across the organization. The CX team cannot "do" CX on behalf of the organization. It requires a united leadership core committed to a clear CX vision and willing to live it out with their teams.
As you can probably already tell, steps like these are SO important to making change stick! It's hard no matter how you try to do it, but when a CX leader leverages real change management techniques, they are more likely to succeed. I cannot wait to learn with you all at ICMI Contact Center Expo this year!
Unlock New Insights and Elevate Your Customer Experience at ICMI Contact Center Expo 2024
Nate Brown's insights give us just a taste of the incredible knowledge and experience waiting for you at ICMI Contact Center Expo 2024. Don't miss the chance to learn, connect and grow with some of the industry's brightest minds. Register now to join Nate, me, and hundreds of your peers as we navigate change and discover new ways to elevate customer experience!
Use the code JOINERICA to save $400 on any conference pass. I hope to see you there!
Nate Brown is a perpetual student of the world’s greatest experiences and the people who create them. Having spent the first decade of this career managing a complex technical support environment for Occupational Health and eLearning software, Nate transitioned to Customer Experience in 2015. After authoring The CX Primer, Brown was dubbed the “CX Influencer of the Year” by Cloud Cherry in 2019, and a top global CX thought leader by ICMI, Exceeders, Netomi, Martech and many more. As a passion project, Nate created CX Accelerator, a first-class virtual community for Customer Experience professionals. Nate can be found at a variety of conferences speaking and training on the CX topics he loves.