BUILDING A CX PHILOSOPHY: 5-STEPS TO SUCCESS

One of the most frequent questions I receive from both small and medium-sized enterprises and large international corporations is how to establish a sustainable philosophy of Customer Experience (CX) within their organizations.

While we recognize that CX is a vital component of modern competitive advantage, how can a traditionally product- or process-focused organization shift toward a customer-centric philosophy?

Investing in CRM systems and talent management strategies is certainly important for strategic success, but these are tactical elements—tools we implement to achieve better CX outcomes.

Here, I want to focus on the broader CX philosophy and the changes we can make to culture and behaviours across the organization. After some thoughtful reflection (who doesn’t enjoy a good ponder?), I propose the following five core components.

1.Lead By Example

Effective leaders prioritize spending time with their customers. They engage with customers on the shop floor, roll up their sleeves, and actively seek to understand every aspect of the customer experience firsthand. A leader who doesn’t regularly connect with the customer interface should raise some red flags.

Recently, I had breakfast with the CEO of one of the largest hospital networks in the United States. He shared that he often removes his jacket and tie, puts on a plastic apron, and helps serve lunch and dinner trays in the hospitals, using that time to engage in meaningful conversations with patients at their bedsides.

While the patients may not know who he is, he believes this is the best way to gather honest feedback. Interestingly, a bit like hairdressers, patients tend to share everything with the dinner staff.

This practice keeps him closely connected to the realities of their work, allowing him to identify areas for improvement and understand what the customer experience truly entails. Many of the CX process enhancements he implements stem from insights gained during these simple interactions.

More importantly, it serves as a continual reminder to his staff about the primary focus—the patient. If the CEO can prioritize customer engagement, then so should everyone else.

You cannot foster a culture of authentic customer experience and customer centricity without truly believing in it as a leader. This commitment must originate from the top.

Let the Chaos Reign

Toward the end of my university years in the mid-90s, I worked part-time as a bartender at a relatively new bar called “The Thirsty Scholar,” which quickly became a popular hangout for students in the city.

While many bar owners often turned away college students, viewing the lively crowd as potential trouble, The Thirsty Scholar thrived thanks to its owners’ embedded customer experience philosophy. This became one of my earliest lessons in true customer focus.

The owner, a man in his mid-40s who seemed eager to relive his youth, embraced mischief and even a bit of chaos. His core belief was that the bar should provide customers with the “best night of their lives.”

I remember the bar was always bustling, with customers packed three or four deep at the counter, and the venue frequently pushed the limits of its fire code, the “Maximum Capacity” sign comically appearing to be more of a target to surpass than a guideline.

We Serve an Experience, not Beer

The music was lively, crowds danced on tables, and laughter echoed throughout the space. I recall the camaraderie of our small team behind the bar, serving hundreds while enjoying ourselves. Despite the chaos, it never felt like hard work.

Then came the 1 AM clean-up, where the sticky floors were littered with spilled beer, broken glasses, and the occasional item of discarded underwear—after all, students will be students. The more mess we had to clean up, the happier the owner seemed. For him, a clean floor signified a lack of fun and excitement. While other bars viewed their product as simply a venue, he understood that his was an experience.

If you didn’t grasp this philosophy, you wouldn’t last long in his employ. All staff members witnessed his customer-centric approach and were expected to reflect it. He prioritized hiring for cultural fit.

I can still picture him amidst the post-party chaos, the bar looking like a scene from an apocalypse, smiling as he swept up broken glass, muttering, “Another best night of someone’s life.”

His obsession with broken glasses was particularly telling. While other bar owners lamented lost glassware, viewing it as waste, he saw a fascinating CX equation: more broken glasses indicated a packed bar, more fun, and increased revenue. A night with no broken glasses might mean the party was over. The mess on the floor—underwear included—was tangible evidence of a successful night out; the product was not just drinks but the memories created, the experience.

He led by example, much like the hospital CEO I mentioned earlier. To genuinely embed CX throughout an organization, leaders must embody those values themselves. You need to put the customer front and centre, trusting that profits will follow when you meet their needs. You must engage with your customers, remain involved, and demonstrate the behaviour you expect from your team.

In essence, you must lead by example and fully embrace the CX philosophy you wish to instil (picking up underwear is optional).

2.Be Crystal Clear in your Expectations – Recruit ‘A-Team’ Players

The importance of talent management in executing an organization’s CX strategy cannot be overstated. Even when CX is driven by technology, data, and processes, the presence of CX-centric individuals throughout the company is essential for success.

The challenge with CX is that the “X” can sometimes represent an X-factor—a unique quality that either comes naturally to a person or doesn’t. It can be difficult to replicate the standout CX performers within a business, making recruitment of the right people critical from the start.

Assuming leadership is championing CX from the top, every team member must embody that same philosophy. Creating a CX-driven culture is challenging if it isn’t already ingrained in those responsible for delivering it. While you can inspire and train employees, after a settling-in period, top CX practitioners stand out quickly. In a CX-focused environment, there is no place for B-players; individuals who don’t align with the vision can disrupt progress and weaken the overall philosophy.

When managing talent for CX, be uncompromising. Average talent will result in average customer experiences.

3.Invest in Unreasonable Employee Experience (EX)

Once you’ve recruited the right people, it’s essential to take care of them. In his book Unreasonable Hospitality, Will Guidara shares his philosophy on customer experience while running his Michelin-starred restaurant in New York. He believes in going so far above and beyond to make a customer feel special that it could be seen as “unreasonable.”

I love this concept of exceeding expectations and often encourage the brands I work with to appoint an “Excite & Delight Director.” This role focuses on finding creative ways to surprise and delight customers, but this level of enthusiasm can only be expected from employees who experience it themselves. A strong CX strategy must be built on a solid foundation of employee experience (EX).

Too often, companies try to enforce a CX approach with a disengaged or exhausted workforce, which is a recipe for failure. Frustrated or burned-out employees are unlikely to care about delivering customer delight. So, what does “going beyond your employees’ expectations” look like in your organization? Research shows that beyond a certain level, pay increases don’t significantly improve employee motivation. The real question is: how do you surpass their expectations, show genuine care, and prove that they are more valuable to you than just their productivity? Do you even know their expectations well enough to exceed them?

Offering perks like a pool table in the break room no longer cuts it. Today, employees seek flexible working arrangements, generous time off, investments in physical and mental wellness, moments of joy, a sense of belonging, and personalized work environments.

EX Love Languages

If you’re unsure where to begin, consider applying the five love languages as a guide: express appreciation (words of affirmation), offer them more time with loved ones (quality time), perform small acts to ease their workload (acts of service), surprise them with thoughtful gifts (gift giving), and show genuine interest and empathy for their personal lives (shared connection). HR departments should shift their focus from policy enforcement to optimizing employee experience.

Employees will embrace a CX philosophy only if they’ve personally experienced the same level of “delight and excite.” Otherwise, you’re asking them to fulfil a promise you haven’t even made good to them.

Similar to Netflix’s approach to vacation days, I’ve never tracked my employees’ time off. They can take as many days as they need, provided their work gets done or they coordinate with their team. There’s no monitoring of personal, sick, or vacation days—I trust them, and they value that trust.

In simple terms, strong employee experiences result in a happier, healthier team capable of delivering exceptional customer experiences. It just makes sense.

4.Empower your Employees

Some of the most memorable customer experience stories come from moments when an employee steps outside the norm to show genuine compassion, going beyond standard processes or expectations.

Take, for example, the United Airlines pilots who coordinated to hold a plane on the ground so a passenger could catch his connection to be at his dying mother’s bedside. Or the Ritz Carlton staff who not only returned a child’s forgotten stuffed animal but also sent along eight Polaroid photos showing “Joshie the Giraffe” enjoying an extended vacation at the hotel—lounging by the pool, relaxing at the spa, and even golfing. There’s also the story of Eleven Madison Park, where the restaurant arranged for a black SUV to take a Spanish family, who had never seen snowfall, to Central Park to enjoy their dessert in the snow, complete with sleds for their children.

To deliver exceptional customer experiences like these, everyone in the organization needs to feel empowered. They should know they have the freedom to make decisions and take actions that create meaningful moments for customers.

Spend as You See Fit

At Ritz Carlton, employees are famously given a $2,000 discretionary budget to improve a guest’s experience. This empowerment enables them to see opportunities and act on them.

One of my favourite examples involves a Ritz Carlton housekeeper who found a laptop left behind in an empty room. The guest, who had already checked out and flown to Hawaii, needed it urgently for a meeting. While relieved to hear his laptop was found, his problem remained unsolved.

The housekeeper didn’t just offer empathy—she took compassionate action. Using part of the $2,000 budget, she bought a ticket to Hawaii, flew with the laptop in hand, delivered it to the guest at his hotel, and flew back the same day to return to work. Did her manager wonder where she was? Perhaps. Was she worried about getting in trouble? Not at all. The guest needed help, and she acted on what she knew was the best and quickest solution.

So, it’s not enough to lead by example, hire the right people, and take care of them—you must also empower them to create CX magic. Let them be proactive, give them the freedom to seize opportunities, and provide the resources, like a discretionary budget, so they can easily bring your CX philosophy to life.

5.Celebrate and Share CX Stories

This last point is wonderfully simple, yet often overlooked. Culture is a collective effort, and for it to truly take hold, everyone needs to feel aligned and be working toward the same goal.

In every organization, there are stories—moments when customers were delighted, made to feel special, or when the brand exceeded expectations. Sometimes, these stories are shared by customers within their own peer-to-peer networks, and we hear about them. But other times, they go unnoticed.

It’s essential that everyone in your organization hears these stories. Find a way to share these CX highlights internally. When employees are consistently exposed to stories of exceptional CX, it creates a desire within them to replicate those moments for others.

Spread the Joy

One insurance company came up with a clever solution: they printed new CX hero stories on disposable tray mats in their call centre’s cafeteria. Every frontline employee read two or three fresh CX success stories each time they sat down for lunch, reconnecting them with their purpose, empowering them, and inspiring them to deliver outstanding service.

Don’t save CX recognition for an annual award ceremony. Celebrate the magic of great customer experiences daily. Ensure these stories are captured, shared, and retold throughout the organization so they can inspire others. This is how you build a strong culture—by consistently highlighting the positive impact of exceptional CX delivery.

So, there you have it, five things you can do to truly embed a CX philosophy in your organisation. Lead by example, recruit the X-factor CX stars, invest significantly in EX programs, empower your talent to make a difference and capture and share all the stories.

On an end note, the Thirsty Scholar bar shut down many years ago, as the world became a far more politically correct place, and the college students moved on. Pat Murphy, its owner, sadly passed away, having given many delightful memories to tens of thousands of students over the years. He now tends bar in the beyond, no doubt a twinkle of mischief still in his eyes.

The building lay empty for a decade and only recently has reopened its doors as a coffee shop.

I’m going in next week to smash a glass and leave my thong on the bathroom floor. Some rituals should be preserved 😉