At a recent COVID-19 Task Force Press Briefing, Dr. Anthony Fauci made the statement that “Data is real; model is hypothesis.” The data may be real, but it is real in the sense that most people believe. We have to figure out what that data represents by looking at those practices and context of testing. In this blog, we explore the point that “data + context = information.” Only by understanding the practices associated with the production of the data can we understand what the data means. Included in the blog are tips to adding more context to your data so that you have information that is more reliable and actionable.
Read MoreThis is a time when the heroes that have always been among us are being recognized. Healthcare providers are at the top of the list of those who are giving selflessly on a daily basis. While doctors and nurses are regularly acknowledged, there are more heroes in healthcare. Custodial staff, among others, are vital to the efforts to keep the pandemic at bay. Read how to integrate a greater diversity of professional voices in your workplace to handle crises and create innovative ideas.
Read MoreWe are in a moment unlike any in recent history where a collective sacrifice is needed. But why then do we seem to be so bad at it? What is required socially for people to sacrifice for a greater purpose? We look into the sociology of sacrifice to try and understand the current moment, with recommendations of what can be done to create a call to sacrifice in society, community, and organization.
Read MoreMany voices have mourned the loss of community in contemporary society. But what does it mean to be part of a community, and how do you turn a group of people into a community? For organizations, this is a key question: namely how do you create (virtual) workplace communities. By unlocking the power of community, workplaces can become about more than work.
Read MoreDeveloped by attorney Kimberle Crenshaw, intersectionality underscores the “multidimensionality of marginalized subjects lived experiences.” It was first conceptualized around how race and gender intersect with one another, leading to Black women having unique experiences related to other women. We are living in a moment that matters, but differently for different groups. Use the concept of intersectionality to drive your organizational and community response in order to take steps to best get through this historical time.
Read MoreArcades use to be a place of refuge, where identifies could be forged, high scores set, and battles won. In their place are a new kind of ‘kiddie casino’ operating under the name ‘arcade.’ What is lost when a name is stolen and a legacy neglected?
Read MorePart of the value of platform and experience ecosystems is in their diversity, and ability to incorporate disparate elements and strengths into a unified whole. Leveraging these connections can help to fuel opportunity and innovation not just through creating new products, but creative ways of arranging those partnerships. For this to happen, companies first have to have the goal of building those partnerships externally, and creating alignment internally. Doing so will yield the most healthy ecosystem possible.
Read MoreMike Rowe has looked at a lot of ‘dirty jobs.’ However, he has never looked at a job like a call center. Beyond the spotless cubicles and cleaned office space lies the challenges of ‘working the phones."‘ Part of that is the contentious call, trying to turn a confrontational situation into a moment of collaboration. Learn from other professions who have to handle challenging situations, and how contact center personnel can use their strategies.
Read MoreWhen you think of call center work, what comes to mind? If you are like most people, the images are not very favorable. However, perhaps no group is as responsible for the image your customers have about your company and brand. Companies need to capture this reality, elevate ‘call centers’ into ‘experience centers’ and turn their staff into knowledge workers.
Read MoreConversation analysis is a tool that can help us understand how to engineer better conversations to build relationships and rapport not matter the topic. As Madison shows us, it doesn’t necessarily take a lot of speech to accomplish a lot of work. When we can engage in our conversations consciously and deliberately, we are in a better position to do as Madison does, and build better relationships with everyone in our lives. See how e can apply CA to a brief exchange between a contact center work and customer to unlock the power behind these moments.
Read MoreTravelling is hard. Travelling with a child is harder. Travelling with a child to attend her grandmother’s funeral is even harder still. Travelling with said child to catch a 7:00am flight? Forget about it. Read how one small interaction can make the difference in a person’s day, missing those moments that matter can hurt your brand, and how on-line responses can exacerbate that problem.
Read MoreIf you want to build rapport between your American workers and those in India, Pakistan, South Africa, Bangladesh, or even England (amongst others), it would be a good idea to have a quick training program on how cricket is played (in the ODI 50 over format for the purposes of the World Cup). The point here is to reduce social distance by creating a common topic for people to engage. Have fun by focusing on a sport that is incredibly important to a lot of people around the work and in the workplace.
Read MoreExperience design is a growing concept in business and other areas of work. It is more of a concept than a field. In this webinar, I discuss how sociology and experience design can come together to explore and design the experience ecosystem.
Read MoreLearn how to develop your own sociological brand, translate what you know into what you can do, and communicate to a broader audience. This one-hour webinar will give you the basics on how to develop a personal brand based on your sociological skills and education.
Read MoreWhere does customer experience live? For those who are CX professionals, they would like it to live in the hearts and minds of all workers in an organization. But, where in an organization does it live? And why does that matter? More specifically, what role does human resources play in customer experience? This was the topic of conversation at our most recent CX Frontiers.
Read More“I don’t like to run in the woods,” she replied. I had heard this before from runners. There are those who only run on the roads, put off by the uneven terrain, the twist and turns, the variable pacing required, and the sometimes unpredictable conditions. I figured she was a road runner, and not a trail runner. “Why not? You would really like it,” I persisted, thinking this was my chance to convince her and open up her running horizons. “Because I’m afraid of being alone in such a secluded spot,” she responded.
Read MoreCustomers are not only made and lost, they are also constructed and deconstructed in the point of contact. Watch Gary give a talk at the American Sociological Association meeting (appropriately in Philadelphia, home of the Starbucks incident) about how race factors into customer standing. Using cell phone footage posted online, he explores what can happen when a person's skin can become more important than his or her standing as a customer.
Read MoreAbout a month ago, Cailin cut her leg open while playing around a scrap metal pile. Why she was playing around a scrap metal pile is a different story. But the focus of this Experience Review is her patient experience at Emerson Hospital in Concord, MA. Hear how television channel in the waiting room can have a major impact, how a hospital smelled like a hospital, and small tokens of generosity can go a long way in making patients feel better.
Read MoreThe customer is always right, right? Or perhaps it is not that easy. We collected some industry expert as in our first CX Frontiers event to explore this axiom of service and sales, finding the boundaries of where it applies and where it fails. Read the key take-away points that the experts settled on from their own experience in working with customers, clients, and crafting experiences.
Read MoreWhen you are surrounded by High Peaks, there is a beckoning to explore what they have to offer. And there is a lot on offer. When you have an 8 year old who wants to go on some of her own “epic” adventures, it is time to scale down rather than scale up the challenge. In doing so, you can learn a lot through the eyes of an 8 year old scaling her first “mountain.” Find out what happens when you exchange epic experiences.
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