CX Passport

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How can a small CX team make a big impact inside a giant organization?
CX Passport guest Helge Tennø says the answer is simple... hitch your wagon to something bigger.

In this episode, Helge challenges CX from every angle. He questions whether “customer” is even the right word, brings anthropology into business, and shows how CX gains influence when human needs and business needs overlap. You’ll also hear about his love for ultra running, his dream of exploring Bangkok, and the pasta dish he cannot stop cooking.

What you’ll hear in this episode:

• Why anthropology belongs in CX strategy
• The danger of reducing humans to just “customers”
• Business design and the overlap of human and company needs
• Why you might want to stop saying “CX” altogether
• How to move from engagement metrics to real learning and value

CHAPTERS
00:00 Welcome to Norway
01:34 Change workshops and the human at the center
03:32 Anthropology and ethnography in CX
06:25 Business design explained
10:10 Why sometimes you should stop saying “CX”
13:11 Is CX ripe for disruption?
14:55 From customer centric to system centric
16:10 First Class Lounge
20:13 Why tech transformations fail without the human
22:48 Hitch it to something bigger
25:01 Closing the gap between what vs. why
29:40 Where to find Helge

Guest Links
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/helgetenno/
Medium: https://everythingnewisdangerous.medium.com/

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I'm Rick Denton and I believe the best meals are served outside and require a passport.

Disclaimer: This podcast is for informational and entertainment purposes only. The views and opinions expressed are those of the hosts and guests and should not be taken as legal, financial, or professional advice. Always consult with a qualified attorney, financial advisor, or other professional regarding your specific situation.

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Some call it doom and gloom for CX. Others say it’s just evolving. But Mike Kendall isn’t giving up on customer experience... he’s rethinking it.

From his early days helping define CX at Capital One to leading strategy at big brands and now advising through The Customer Lab, Mike brings a perspective forged by real-world change... and a drummer's rhythm.

And yes, you’ll want to hear the story of playing a 2000-year-old castle in Spain.

5 first-class insights:

• Why CX sometimes feels like the uncool cousin of Product... and how to fix that
• How to create cross-functional trust without needing formal authority
• What’s really behind “CX is dead” chatter
• The art of knowing your C-suite’s secret agenda
• A fresh way to think about CX’s role in driving shareholder, employee and customer value
  
  

CHAPTERS
 00:00 Internal empathy... not just customer empathy
 01:15 CX + product tension: why those teams drift apart
 03:00 Technology gap and its role in CX’s “identity crisis”
 06:00 Finding your value in a product-driven world
 08:50 Building trust across silos
 11:00 Speaking the language of results
 13:30 Mission over title... create value and then get the title
18:35 First Class Lounge – travel, paella, and brussels sprout rebellion
23:40 Is CX dead... or just evolving?
26:00 The C-suite pendulum: shareholder, employee, customer
27:30 Advice for early CX careers
29:30 Learn more about Mike

Guest link: https://www.thecustomerlab.com/

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I'm Rick Denton and I believe the best meals are served outside and require a passport.

Disclaimer: This podcast is for informational and entertainment purposes only. The views and opinions expressed are those of the hosts and guests and should not be taken as legal, financial, or professional advice. Always consult with a qualified attorney, financial advisor, or other professional regarding your specific situation.

What's on your mind? Let CX Passport know...

What will customer experience actually look like five years from now?

In this *Greatest Hits* episode of CX Passport, Bill Staikos lays out a compelling, grounded vision for the future of customer experience. A seasoned CX executive, advisor, podcaster, and soon-to-be author, Bill combines practical wisdom with future-ready thinking.

Originally released as Episode 155, this conversation stood out for its clarity on how CX needs to evolve — moving beyond survey teams and jargon to delivering business-aligned results. Bill breaks down how technology, human-centered design, and executive-level strategy must come together in today’s rapidly changing landscape.

CHAPTERS  

00:00  CX is a toolkit, not a strategy  

04:14  Automation and AI in the CX future  

06:00  The four personas of a modern CXO  

10:01  AI vs hype: what’s real?  

16:33  CX’s reckoning in 2023  

19:12  Will CX go the way of Six Sigma?  

20:41  First Class Lounge  

26:42  Change management that actually works  

31:16  How to start: know the business strategy

Episode resources:  

Connect with Bill Staikos on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/billstaikos  

Explore Be Customer Led podcast: https://www.becustomerled.com

If you like CX Passport, I have 3 quick requests:

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I'm Rick Denton and I believe the best meals are served outside and require a passport.

What's on your mind? Let CX Passport know...

From the theater to hedge funds to Alaska Airlines...
 Tori Signorelli’s path to CX isn’t typical. And that’s exactly what makes her perspective matter.

Early in her role at Alaska Airlines, Tori’s fresh eyes are helping evolve the guest journey without losing the human touch. This episode is full of practical, honest CX wisdom... plus a few tasty travel moments.

What’s in the episode?

• Why “healthy businesses are not still”
• CX orchestration over ownership
• Visibility as a survival skill for CX teams
• How global living built deep empathy
• Why beautiful design still needs gritty execution

CHAPTERS
 00:00 Healthy businesses aren't still
 01:02 Immersing in airline CX as a newcomer
 05:13 “Do no harm”… CX during operational change
 08:54 Aligning guest experience with business metrics
 11:02 From theater to hedge funds: Tori’s unique CX foundation
 15:37 Global living and building global empathy
 18:51 First Class Lounge
 23:20 Service design isn’t just blueprints
 25:38 CX must be visible to be valuable

Guest Links
https://www.torisignorelli.com/

Want more from CX Passport?
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Watch the conversation unfold
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I'm Rick Denton and I believe the best meals are served outside and require a passport.

What's on your mind? Let CX Passport know...

Would your customer actually *pay* for the experience you’ve designed?

In this *Greatest Hits* episode of CX Passport, Karyn Furstman brings 30+ years of CX and operations expertise to the mic. With a background at brands like Washington Mutual, Safeco, Bank of America, and JPMorgan Chase, Karyn knows how to link customer experience to tangible business results.

Originally aired as Episode 203, this conversation stuck with listeners for its clarity on leadership alignment, Lean methodology, and the reality of CX influence, even without a seat at the C-suite table.

CHAPTERS  

00:00  The customer would pay for it  

02:12  Lean and CX in harmony  

05:25  CX belongs in operations  

08:57  Avoiding the “initiative trap”  

11:55  CX influence without formal authority  

16:42  Orchestrating CX with or without a team  

19:52  First Class Lounge  

24:09  Tying CX to financial outcomes  

27:16  Make the CFO your best friend  

29:58  Why Karyn launched her consulting business

Episode resources:  

Connect with Karyn Furstman on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karynfurstman  

Learn more about Customers First: https://www.customersfirst.com

If you like CX Passport, I have 3 quick requests:

✅ Subscribe to the CX Passport YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/@cxpassport  

✅ Join other “CX travelers” with the weekly CX Passport newsletter https://cxpassport.kit.com/signup  

✅ Bring 🎙️🎬 CX Passport Live to your event https://www.cxpassportlive.com

I'm Rick Denton and I believe the best meals are served outside and require a passport.

What's on your mind? Let CX Passport know...

Michel Stevens believes technology should be boring... and that’s a compliment.

In this episode of CX Passport, Michel shares how three core values — honesty, fairness, and trust — shape every decision in customer experience and leadership. From his start on the contact center floor to leading global teams, Michel reveals how calm technology and clear values drive better results.

We talk about:
👉Why “boring” tech is better tech
👉The 3 values that guide great CX
👉How fairness improves decision-making
👉Building trust across global teams
👉What honest leadership really looks like


CHAPTERS
0:00 The Three-Part CX Value Equation
0:18 Michel’s Unplanned Journey Into CX 
4:18 Grocery Store Epiphany 
6:21 Balancing Speed, Humanity, and Brand 
10:38 Journalism Skills in CX 
13:28 Creating Space for Curiosity 
16:01 Lessons From European Business Culture 
17:51 First Class Lounge 
23:26 When Tech Gets Boring, It Gets Useful 
26:34 Connecting Strategy to Tangible Outcomes

Guest Links:
 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michelstevens/


#customerservice #customerexperience #customer #improvecustomerexperience #customerserviceprocess #process #business #management #travel #bettercustomerservice #podcast

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Can complaints actually be your company’s greatest asset?

In this *Greatest Hits* episode of CX Passport, Scott Lee Holloway shares his CX journey…from a teenage pet shop employee in the UK to leading customer experience strategy for APS Bank in Malta.

Originally aired as Episode 167, this conversation continues to resonate. Scott breaks down the cost of poor CX, why unstructured feedback matters, and how creativity (including a James Bond-style internal launch video) can drive serious CX results.

CHAPTERS  

00:00  The cost of poor CX  

02:29  Malta and the road to APS Bank  

05:29  Support ≠ inefficiency  

08:03  Getting skeptics on board  

10:06  Loving complaints  

15:52  CX maturity in Malta  

18:08  First Class Lounge  

23:50  Extracting value from unstructured data  

26:58  Building a CX team from scratch

Episode resources:  

Connect with Scott Lee Holloway on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottleeholloway  

Visit Scott’s site: https://www.scottleeholloway.com  

If you like CX Passport, I have 3 quick requests:

✅ Subscribe to the CX Passport YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/@cxpassport  

✅ Join other “CX travelers” with the weekly CX Passport newsletter https://cxpassport.kit.com/signup  

✅ Bring 🎙️🎬 CX Passport Live to your event https://www.cxpassportlive.com

I'm Rick Denton and I believe the best meals are served outside and require a passport.

What's on your mind? Let CX Passport know...

 CX won’t work if the people closest to the customer don’t have a seat at the table.

Kate Guenther’s journey started in childhood, learning how trust is built through human-centered service. Today, that experience fuels her belief that strategy only works when everyone is aligned — from the C-suite to the frontline.

In this episode, we talk about:

• How a childhood lesson sparked Kate’s customer-first mindset
• Why CX breaks down when key voices are excluded
• The danger of strategy with no frontline input
• How to bring product, ops, and support to the same table
• Why sustainable CX depends on clear ownership
  
  

CHAPTERS
 0:00 Meet Kate Guenther
 1:20 Interior design lessons and the Genevieve story
 4:18 The shift from transaction to interaction
 7:00 Equipping teams to scale CX
 10:42 The connection between product and customer experience
 12:34 Delivering CX results executives care about
 14:07 First Class Lounge
 17:53 What companies get wrong in CX
 19:03 Scaling with soul: how to truly listen
 21:10 Why great CX starts at the frontline
 22:45 What’s next for Kate
 23:01 Where to find Kate

Guest Links:
 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kdg/

If you like CX Passport, I have 3 quick requests:
 ✅Subscribe to the CX Passport YouTube channel: https://youtube.com/@cxpassport
✅Join other “CX travelers” with the weekly CX Passport newsletter: https://cxpassport.kit.com/signup
✅Bring 🎙️🎬CX Passport Live to your event: https://www.cxpassportlive.com

I'm Rick Denton and I believe the best meals are served outside and require a passport.

What's on your mind? Let CX Passport know...

How do you build customer experience around support… not in spite of it?

In this *Greatest Hits* episode of CX Passport, Sarah Hatter shares insights from over a decade of championing support as a strategic pillar of CX. As the founder of ElevateCX and someone who’s worked across SaaS and startup landscapes, Sarah brings a grounded, honest take on what actually works when supporting customers.

Originally released as Episode 173, this conversation stood out for its real-world perspective, practical advice, and Sarah’s clear voice for treating support teams like the heart of the business.

CHAPTERS  

00:00  Asking permission in support conversations  

02:30  Support as a CX foundation  

05:10  Why fast responses aren’t always better  

08:45  The “escalation mindset” trap  

12:20  Training great support teams  

15:40  Mental health in support roles  

18:05  What leaders miss about burnout  

20:15  Why support should be a strategic asset  

22:45  First Class Lounge  

26:20  How ElevateCX was born

Episode resources:  

Connect with Sarah Hatter on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahhatter  

Learn more about ElevateCX: https://www.elevatecx.co

If you like CX Passport, I have 2 quick requests:

✅ Join other “CX travelers” with the weekly CX Passport newsletter https://cxpassport.kit.com/signup  

✅ Bring 🎙️🎬 CX Passport Live to your event https://www.cxpassportlive.com

I'm Rick Denton and I believe the best meals are served outside and require a passport.

What's on your mind? Let CX Passport know...

 What if you could measure trust in real time?

Tim McCleary brings neuroscience, global experience design, and deep culture work into one unique conversation. As the founder of The Involvement Practice, Tim helps organizations move from slogans to action... building trust and performance from the inside out.

In this episode, we talk about:

• His work with neuroscientist Paul Zak to measure trust
• The global truth: people are people
• How to localize culture without diluting it
• Why great branding must match real experience
• The 3 S’s of memory-making: sight, sound, and scent

High-trust cultures perform better. Tim shows us how to build them... and how to prove it.

CHAPTERS
 0:00 Meet Tim McCleary
 1:32 Why communication is the throughline
 4:54 The origin of Involvement Culture
 8:57 Localizing global strategy
 12:05 Brand, culture, and customer experience
 16:21 When CX lost its way... and where it’s going
 19:34 The experience economy and emotional design
 22:58 First Class Lounge
 28:08 Neuroscience and the measurement of trust
 33:20 What to do with trust data
 34:58 Where to find Tim

Guest Links:
 🌐 The Involvement Practice: theinvolvementpractice.com
🧠 Be Human Project: theinvolvementpractice.com/be-human

If you like CX Passport, I have 3 quick requests:
 ✅Subscribe to the CX Passport YouTube channel: youtube.com/@cxpassport
✅Join other “CX travelers” with the weekly CX Passport newsletter: cxpassport.kit.com/signup
✅Bring 🎙️🎬CX Passport Live to your event: www.cxpassportlive.com

I'm Rick Denton and I believe the best meals are served outside and require a passport.