There are some individuals that are responsible for leading customer experience teams. While each role has distinct duties, they all strive to deliver positive CX.
Here are five of the executive-level key players to include on an organization's CX team.
1. Chief experience officer
The chief experience officer (CXO) leads a team that monitors customer interactions and ensures that service representatives respond properly to feedback to improve CX. The CXO creates customer journey maps that use data to predict future consumer actions, enables the business to act on those predictions and also tracks key performance indicators. When making business decisions, CXOs always keep the customer perspective in mind. They must understand all aspects of an organization, including the customer, employee and overall infrastructure, and make sure all parts are working together. CXOs typically report to the CEO but may also report to the COO or chief marketing officer (CMO).
2. Chief customer officer
While the CXO and the chief customer officer (CCO) roles are similar, the CCO role, in most companies, began in the sales division, while the CXO is more marketing-oriented. The CCO role differs from company to company but, typically, is responsible for research and CX metrics. The CCO reports to the head of marketing or a business unit that reports to the CEO. Often, the CCO is responsible for leading voice of the customer initiatives. A company can determine voice of the customer by analyzing data reflecting customer actions and feedback. Depending on the company, the CCO may take care of customer complaints or work directly with the customer service department.
3. Chief marketing officer
When it comes to creating marketing plans that boost the brand and increase sales, the CMO takes the lead. The CMO typically has advanced degrees in both business and marketing and reports to the CEO or COO. The CMO works closely with the sales team in order to develop strategies to drive sales. Some key responsibilities of the CMO include understanding the position of the company in the marketplace, gathering market insights and collaborating with sales to profit from those insights.
4. Chief information officer
When making business decisions, CXOs always keep the customer perspective in mind.
The CIO takes the lead on IT, strategy and implementation in an organization. The CIO typically reports directly to the CEO and may sit on the executive board. The CIO works with other members of the C-suite to determine how IT can support the organization and help it compete in a digital economy.
The CIO oversees all technology decisions of a business and ensures that the company stays within its IT budget when purchasing new technologies. The CIO collaborates with the chief information security officer to make sure the technology meets the company's cybersecurity frameworks. The CIO is also responsible for evaluating current systems, as well as new technologies to see how they will affect the organization in the future.
5. Customer service and support manager
The person responsible for overseeing both service and support teams in an organization is the customer service and support manager. She must ensure that all agents have proper training to respond to all customer inquiries and guarantee exceptional CX.
There are many components to customer service and support: call management systems, contact centers, internet-based customer service, and field service and dispatch systems. The customer service and support manager must be familiar with these systems so she can help reps solve problems efficiently and provide positive CX.
