Being Customer-obsessed doesn’t mean being business blind.
This article is part of our Customer Experience Hub — a collection of articles that explore the architecture, practices, and mindset behind great CX, all grounded in real-world teaching and consulting experience.
When I was the VP of Finance
When I was the VP of Finance for a large U.S. direct marketing company, I was routinely called in by the big bosses to explain – with numbers – what was going on in our Contact Center and Warehouse operations.
Our VP of Operations was a natural storyteller. She could beautifully articulate a picture of what was happening with Customers and Employees.
But the bosses saw my role differently.
They didn’t totally understand what made a Contact Center or Warehouse ‘tick’.
But they could all read and understand numbers. That was their common language.
So they expected me to validate her stories –
- With a business lens
- To make it measurable
- To make it real for them in their language
Fortunately, the Operations VP and I were in sync
We planned and rehearsed our presentations to seamlessly integrate her human storytelling and my business proof.
In CX, service orientation is important. Empathy is essential.
But if that’s all you lead with — “I care deeply about Customers” or “I’m passionate about service” — it can come across as disconnected from a world that runs on business outcomes.
Being customer-obsessed doesn’t mean ignoring the numbers.
As Marshall Goldsmith says: “Make peace with that.”
I think that some CX professionals shy away from words like profit and growth – as if those things are somehow ‘bad’ or compromise our Customer-obsessed values.
I once heard a CX guru say to their audience that “We don’t do this for the money” – a line that got a lot of applause – and which I admit troubled me.
We do do it for the money
And we should be honest about that.
Whether that means more donations to your charity, more visitors to your museum, more efficient services for citizens, or more clients for your B2B business — it all comes down to delivering value that drives results.
My earlier big bosses saw the two job roles – VP, Finance and VP, Operations – as quite separate.
But today’s most effective customer-obsessed leaders bridge both disciplines — blending humanity with business outcomes.
https://www.omnitouchinternational.com/suprise-moments-in-cx-training-what-makes-participants-go-oh/
Thank you for reading!
I regularly share stories, strategies, and insights from our work across Contact Centers, Customer Service, and Customer Experience. If this resonates, I’d love to stay connected.
You can drop me a line anytime, or subscribe via our website.
Daniel Ord
[email protected]
www.omnitouchinternational.com
