During the 90’s and early 2000s, Thursday nights were, for roughly 25 million Americans, Must See TV night. NBC’s lineup of hit shows like Friends, Seinfeld, and ER, were a cultural phenomenon that lives on in memes and catch phrases like Ross’s “Pivot!” from season 5. Ross’s detailed plan for success didn’t turn out the way he planned.

Software founders often have detailed plans for success only to find that the market is just as challenging as moving a couch up a set of switchback stairs. When the market spurned Natalie Perez’s first software venture, the company pivoted and found success in the QM and WFM space. Her new company, Cisne, is an AI-native WFM platform that is designed to solve the real challenges contact centers have been struggling to solve for decades. It entered public beta this week and she was kind enough to join the show to discuss a variety of topics related to Workforce Management. Topics covered include:

• What is WFM?• Challenges with current WFM technologies• The role of AI Agents in Customer Experience• Balancing Efficiency and Customer Experience• Agent Well-Being and Burnout in Contact Centers• Lessons from Past Failures• Introducing the public beta for Cisne.ai – the AI-Native WFM solutionConnect with Natalie on LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/pereznatalie/

Cisne – https://www.cisne.ai/

Music courtesy of Big Red Horse – https://www.facebook.com/bigredhorseband/

John Travolta’s turn as Vincent Vega in 1994’s Pulp Fiction revitalized his career. His character has returned to the US after a 3-year stay in Europe, mostly in Amsterdam. In this memorable scene, he colorfully explains to Jules, played by Samuel L. Jackson, how Europe is similar, yet different. While Vincent’s amusing explanation gave us one of the great movie quotes of all time, it digs into the very real differences in culture and customer expectations between America and Europe.

And don’t put the European continent in one bucket when it comes to customer experience, says Frances Chapireau – what works in one country may not in another. As a native Brit living and working in Germany, she’s keenly aware of how current CX “best practices” don’t always apply.

• Cultural Differences in Customer Experience• Data Protection and Privacy in Germany• Trust and Relationship Building in Business• Customer Experience Maturity Across Regions• Why Customer Feedback Surveys Are Far from Dead• LEGO®️ SERIOUS PLAY®️ and Creative Facilitation• Language and Cultural Nuances in GermanyConnect with Frances on LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/frances-chapireau-62644b38/

BuildCX – https://www.buildcx.consulting/

Music courtesy of Big Red Horse – https://www.facebook.com/bigredhorseband/

The 1999 Dance hit, “Praise You” by Fatboy Slim uses NINE samples, including vocals by Camille Yarbrough from the opening of her song, “Take Yo’ Praise.” It was incredibly successful, reaching #1 in the UK charts and #36 in the US, simply by using building blocks already established by others. Fatboy Slim recognized bits that worked in other compositions, from the Steve Miller Band to Isaac Hayes. He then simply took pieces that already worked and made them his own.

Building successful teams requires coaching. But how do you go about doing that? Brent Pattison built his own model based on what he’s seen worked through during his three-decade career in contact center operations. He joins the show to discuss what works, and his tactical book for team leaders, PRAISE.

• The Purpose Behind 3P Solutions• The Importance of Coaching in Business• Common Coaching Mistakes• The Role of Documentation• Building Relationships through Notetaking• Creating Alignment in Organizations• Barbeque Recommendations for visitors to Kansas CityConnect with Brent on LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/tarapaton/ Email Brent – brent@3psolutions.ca

Praise: The Cornerstone of Coaching to Success for Managers and Supervisors – https://www.amazon.com/Praise-Cornerstone-Coaching-Managers-Supervisors/dp/1068853514/ref=sr_1_1

Music courtesy of Big Red Horse – https://www.facebook.com/bigredhorseband/

Ask 20 people to define customer loyalty and you’ll likely get 20 different answers. Some might give you an academic treatise on different types of loyalty. Some might quote CX experts or companies specializing in measuring customer experience. Others might break out “4 C’s” or “3 R’s” to help define loyalty. When Tara Paton joined Next in Queue – she reached for perhaps the most succinct and accurate definition, courtesy of Kendrick Lamar.

Mortal Man was the final track on his platinum-selling 2015 album, To Pimp a Butterfly, which hit number 1 on the Billboard 200 chart immediately upon its release. It’s considered one of the greatest albums of all time. While never released as a single, many consider Mortal Man one of Lamar’s best tracks and a powerful statement about the meaning of loyalty.

• The Role of Reviews in Brand Perception• Influencer Marketing and Authenticity• Loyalty Programs and Potential Liability Issues• Driving Success in Retail for D2C Brands• The Value of Employee-Customer Relationships• Gamifying Customer Experience for Enhanced LoyaltyConnect with Tara on LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/tarapaton/

Huemanize – https://huemanize.co/ Music courtesy of Big Red Horse – https://www.facebook.com/bigredhorseband/

The Goonies were kids who lived in the “Goon Docks” – a blue-collar neighborhood whose existence is threatened by the development of a country club. Sean Astin, playing Mikey, has led them on an adventure in search of One-Eyed Willy’s rich stuff – a treasure everyone else had dismissed as mythical.

For decades, contact centers have been like the Goon Docks – a place where good people do good work but a place that never garnered much respect from the country club set. But just like One-Eyed Willy’s rich stuff changed the course of the Goonies, the previously hidden treasure trove of data in the contact center is emerging through the power of technology, particularly AI. Rick DeLisi joins to discuss new research conducted by Glia and Metric Sherpa. Despite some current disconnects, he’s excited about the evolution of the contact center and says right now, it’s our time.

• The Lasting Impact of The Effortless Experience• Navigating New Metrics and Expectations• What Personalization Really Means• How Contact Centers are Reinvesting in the Age of AI• The Emergence of AI for All• The Strategic Value of Contact CentersConnect with Rick on LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/rick-delisi-1122257/

Glia – https://www.glia.com/

Metric Sherpa – https://metricsherpa.com/

Music courtesy of Big Red Horse – https://www.facebook.com/bigredhorseband/

Disillusionment and discontent was alive and well before the rise of smartphones and AI. The 2003 Sofia Coppola film, Lost in Translation, is an exploration of experience. The unexpected friendship between Bill Murray’s Bob and Scarlett Johansson’s Charlotte is accidental, but it’s rooted in shared experiences that will only ever happen once.

The demand for analog, human experiences may rise again, says Kento Morita. As AI-created “slop” increasingly seeps into our culture, those wishing for high fidelity experiences will seek them out, not from a screen, but from a stage.

• The Rise of AI in Entertainment• The Value of Authenticity in a Digital Age• The Importance of Live Experiences• Navigating the World of Performance and Failure• The Intersection of Sports and Performance• Lessons from Crafting a Joke Every Day for a YearConnect with Kento on LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/kentmorita/

KENTO YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@kentonyc

Instagram – kento.nyc

Music courtesy of Big Red Horse – https://www.facebook.com/bigredhorseband/

The 1948 Ford Deluxe that Kenickie worked all summer for was a car in the academic sense – it had 4 wheels and an engine. But with a little imagination, effort, and teamwork, it could become something special – a car so fast it could be compared to greased lightnin’. In the 1978 film adaptation of Grease, this car wouldn’t just get fixed, it would become something magical.

The typical model of customer service is well known but when Todd Unger joined the American Medical Association as their CXO, he realized that customer service wasn’t fueling growth. To do that, he’d have to use a little imagination, effort, and teamwork to create a CX department that was special – one that could meet the needs of modern customers who speed through the buying process in just seconds.

• The Tornado Funnel: Redefining Customer Journeys• Customer Segmentation: Understanding Your Audience• The Nod: Emotional Insights in Marketing• The Importance of a Smooth Checkout Experience• Reducing Friction in Customer Experience• The Role of Technology in Customer Experience• Empowering Customer Service Teams• The Leadership Role in Customer Experience• Personal Insights and Future AspirationsConnect with Todd on LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/toddunger1/

The 10-Second Customer Journey – https://www.toddunger.com/

Music courtesy of Big Red Horse – https://www.facebook.com/bigredhorseband/

Unless you’re a huge fan, you’ve probably never heard of Prince Rakeem. As a solo artist, despite his enormous talent, he flamed out. But when Robert Diggs, aka Prince Rakeem, aka Bobby Digital, aka the Scientist, aka RZA assembled a team in 1992, it would be the beginning of an empire. The now-iconic C.R.E.A.M. was the second single from Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), released in January 1994. It was RZA who realized that on his own, he would never find the success that Wu-Tang could find as a collective. It was his vision, but he needed help to make it a reality.

A vision can only get you so far. This is a difficult lesson for many founders, but an important one. Whether it’s a lack of skills or a lack of bandwidth, or both, there are moments when even the savviest founders need help to scale their business. Lisa Guzman is dedicated to fostering meaningful connections between brands and their customers and she’s got some advice for startups this week on Next in Queue. We discuss:

• The Startup Journey: Founders and Their Challenges• Self-Awareness in Founding: Recognizing Strengths and Weaknesses• The DIY Culture: When to Seek Help• Tools and Resources: The Importance of Proper Support• Fractional Leadership: A Smart Solution for Startups• The Financial Perspective: What's in it for Founders?• Cultural Reflections: From New York to New OrleansConnect with Lisa on LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisa-guzman-bb81b653/

Music courtesy of Big Red Horse – https://www.facebook.com/bigredhorseband/