Brad Cleveland | The Edge of Service | Customer Experience, Customer Service and Contact Centers

Most organizations have elements of a customer service strategy, but these are often undocumented, outdated, or scattered, which leaves them vulnerable as AI, customer expectations, competitors, and service channels rapidly evolve. What all organizations need is a clear, cohesive customer access strategy, a shared plan that defines how customers interact with the business and receive service.

In this episode, discover the essential 10 components of an effective customer access strategy, whether you’re a solo entrepreneur, a 50-person startup, or a global enterprise. One key concept discussed is how a strategy bridges an organization’s vision and mission with the practical decisions that make those goals a reality, from launching new products to implementing AI.

The discussion explores how to logically segment customers, identify types of interactions, determine access channels, set hours of operation, define accessibility standards, route customers efficiently, allocate people and technology resources, specify information requirements, leverage ongoing analysis for improvement, and summarize deployment of new services.

Several points are raised, including real-world examples, such as a mobile phone company’s secure, regularly-updated internal guide that helps align their teams, ensures accountability, and improves collaboration. A key theme that emerges is the value of getting started, even with simple steps, so you can build a common plan that benefits your organization and your customers. 

Understanding what quality means in customer service can feel like a daunting task with so many variables at play.

In this episode, Brad Cleveland brings clarity to the complicated world of quality standards, breaking them down into manageable, practical steps you can apply in your organization or team. Brad explains the difference between foundation and finesse standards, why both are essential, and how to strike the right balance to ensure consistent and exceptional service.

Drawing from real-world examples, he details how foundation standards deliver consistency and compliance, while finesse standards allow your brand’s personality and team’s individuality to shine through. Whether you’re leading a customer service team, managing a contact center, or committed to improving the customer experience in any environment, this episode gives you a blueprint for defining, implementing, and managing quality standards that work for your unique needs.

Ghosting in the professional world is more common than you think—and it's quietly hurting your organization more than it helps. In this episode, Brad Cleveland dives into the hidden costs of ghosting in customer experience, hiring, vendor relations, and more.

Learn why simply not responding isn’t “efficient,” but actually undermines your brand, culture, and future opportunities. Brad breaks down five key reasons why ghosting is bad business, shares eye-opening examples, and wraps up with practical tips you can use today to close the communication loop without adding to your workload. If you’re involved in leadership, HR, customer service, or just want to foster a better workplace, you can’t afford to miss this one.

Don’t forget—responsiveness isn’t just about being polite. It’s a foundational aspect of building trust with everyone your organization touches.

Most workforce optimization programs focus on forecasting, scheduling, quality management, coaching, and performance management. Those capabilities remain essential. But they're no longer enough.

Increasingly, the customer conversations that shape customer loyalty, brand reputation, and future demand never reach your contact center. Instead, they're happening on Reddit, Facebook groups, review sites, online communities, and other digital channels.

In this episode, Brad Cleveland explains why this is one of workforce optimization's biggest blind spots—and how leading organizations are expanding their view of customer service work to identify issues earlier, improve customer experience, and make better decisions.

In this episode you'll learn:

If you're responsible for customer experience, customer service, workforce optimization, workforce management, contact centers, or AI strategy, this episode is for you.

Join Brad Cleveland as he shares an unforgettable experience flying in a historic P51 Mustang and uncovers powerful lessons for CX that every customer experience and service leader should know. Discover how a simple innovation in aviation history can inspire transformational change in your organization, especially when it comes to applying AI and improving customer service. This episode isn't just about planes—it's about unlocking potential by focusing on what holds your team back. Sometimes, the key to elevating performance isn't high-tech upgrades, but rather identifying and removing critical constraints.

Explore how the famed P51 Mustang became a game changer in World War II, and learn why the biggest breakthroughs in customer experience may be waiting just beyond the next simple adjustment. Brad Cleveland draws powerful parallels between aviation's past and the future of CX, including the importance of making life easier for employees and customers alike.

If you're looking for practical insights and actionable lessons for CX, this is the episode for you. Subscribe for regular tips on customer experience, leadership, AI, and contact centers.

Are you deploying AI in customer experience, but unsure if you're on the right track? In this episode, Brad Cleveland breaks down how leading organizations successfully align AI integration with their broader organizational and service strategies. This paves the way to exceptional customer engagement and lasting brand loyalty.

Many companies treat AI as purely a technology initiative, but Brad Cleveland reveals why the best results come when AI is integrated as a core part of your overall service strategy. Drawing on real-world examples and ten essential questions that every service strategy should answer, he demystifies the process of leveraging AI for sustainable growth and superior customer experiences.

From identifying your customers and the nature of their interactions to weaving AI seamlessly across all touchpoints, you’ll discover insights that help you avoid common mistakes and realize AI’s full potential.

Whether you’re just starting out or already have a strategy in place, this episode provides actionable advice on how to use your service strategy to guide AI deployment—and how to unlock value that extends far beyond the initial use case.

Customer service is not customer experience—or is it? In this insightful episode, Brad Cleveland clears up one of the most misunderstood concepts in business today. Many customer experience (CX) professionals draw a hard line between CX and customer service (CS), but as Brad Cleveland explains, that can actually push frontline employees out of the larger experience mission—when it should be pulling everyone in.

Discover why customer service, while not the entirety of the customer experience, sits at the heart of CX improvement. From dealing with complaints and solving problems to hearing client pain points first, customer service teams are often the best source of insight for creating lasting, positive experiences. Brad Cleveland shares leadership lessons on how to avoid turf wars and foster an environment where everyone, from warehouse staff to contact center teams, feels part of the mission.

Learn what really separates customer service from customer experience—and why your organization should stop treating them as silos.

AI is transforming customer experience by delivering faster service, better insights, and personalized interactions. But as Brad Cleveland explains, there’s a growing risk of “slop” (i.e., friction, loss of trust, and organizational debt) when speed and automation take priority over thoughtful design, quality standards, and human judgment. 

Drawing on insights from a recent Wall Street Journal article and industry experience, Brad Cleveland breaks down common pitfalls of rushed AI deployment, such as buggy systems, hollow communications, frustrated customers, and missed opportunities for employee development. 

Learn how leading organizations use AI to empower—not bypass—people, defining quality, building trust, and continuously improving. Discover practical leadership tests to ensure AI-driven changes actually improve the customer and employee experience.

In this episode, Brad Cleveland shares key insights from his virtual ICMI conference keynote, tackling the top questions facing contact center leaders today. Are AI advancements really reducing agent roles? Why is agent workload still rising even as automation increases? How can organizations prepare teams for the complexities of the AI-powered future?

Dive into research-backed analysis, practical strategies, and global perspectives on how contact centers are rapidly evolving to meet new challenges. Discover the latest trends around generational shifts in customer preferences, the growing complexity of work handled by agents, the importance of upskilling, and proven ways organizations are retaining top talent. Learn which AI applications are delivering the most value right now—and what separates leading contact centers from the rest.

Whether you’re a contact center manager, CX professional, or business leader, this episode is packed with actionable advice to help you navigate change, advocate for support, and unlock new levels of value for your organization and customers.

Are you truly seeing your business through your customers’ eyes? In this episode, Brad Cleveland reveals the seven essential ways leading organizations step into the customer’s perspective to drive real transformation in customer service, loyalty, and results. Drawing on powerful case studies and time-tested approaches, you’ll learn why relying solely on surveys and data isn’t enough, and how to unlock deeper, actionable insights from direct customer interactions, social media, employees, reviews, and more.

Whether you’re a business leader, supervisor, or on the front lines of customer experience, this guide shows you how to build better connections, encourage feedback, and make smarter decisions by tuning into what truly matters to your customers. Equip yourself and your team to create lasting engagement and drive your organization’s success.