• We are presented with an opportunity to reimagine business processes, innovate and discover better ways to improve the customer experience.

• A customer centric strategy will get you through this wave.

Customer centricity is a business strategy that focuses on creating positive experiences for the customer through the full set of products and services that the company offers. Market and customer experience (CX) research provides actionable insights into the problems customers face, the solution requirements, and the solution context.

During this unprecedented time, monumental changes have taken place and we are daunted by all the uncertainty and challenges we are facing. We are in the process of adapting and rethinking many aspects of how we interact with our customers.

Customer service is what will keep you in business and differentiate your brand from the rest.  With the customer at the centre of it all, business processes need to function in a way that maintains a customer-centric culture. Buyers and end-users are turning to contact centers and digital channels to interact with brands. These platforms need to be easy to maneuverer; user friendly and the response from using these channels should almost be immediate. Business processes should by now, be at a point where they have been realigned and are able to handle the capacity of remote interaction and requests from the multi-channels.

With all of this happening from an operations perspective, it is essential to keep measuring the customer experience and staying proactive with regards to engaging customers. Staying in tune, in contact and accessible, will uncover new territory for growth. Companies _will_ in essence discover new ways to better serve their customers and ‘out play’ their competitors.‍

"Culture eats strategy for breakfast." - Often attributed to Peter Drucker but the origin is not clear

Maintaining a true customer-centric culture is key to surviving this wave. Positioning service excellence as a competitive advantage will grow your existing market share, and, lastly; having a comprehensive view of the customer impact variables alongside the financial and operational variables will allow a holistic business model approach.

One thing is for sure, these changing times push us to be resilient.