Next in Queue

The right song in the right scene in the right movie cements itself in your brain. Last year’s Loser by Tame Impala is featured in Spider-Man: Brand New Day and that scene brought the Australian psychedelic band a legion of new fans. Worldwide streams for the track jumped over 800% following the film's opening weekend. It will no doubt be prominent on many Spotify Wrappeds the end of this year.

Wrapped is very personal. It’s a view into the songs and podcasts that resonated with you throughout the year. It leverages a lot of data and packages in a way that makes you feel seen, not watched. It’s that relational context that allows us to trust Spotify, says Christina Garnett. But they walk a fine line and breaking that trust could completely alter our view of Spotify forever.

• How teaching informed her view of CX• The Customer Trust Equation• When personalization becomes creepy • Establishing brand trust• The missing voice in strategy sessions• The role of people in AI-powered customer experiencesConnect with Christina on LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinamgarnett/

Transforming Customer-Brand Relationships – https://www.amazon.com/Transforming-Customer-Brand-Relationships-Emotional-Connection/dp/1398621323/ref=sr_1_1

Music courtesy of Big Red Horse – https://www.facebook.com/bigredhorseband/

AI in 80’s films was often scary. WOPR in WarGames. Skynet in The Terminator. Master Control Program in Tron. But 1985’s Weird Science made AI sexy, that is, if you can call Kelly LeBrock’s Lisa character AI. But she was created on a computer and trained on all the data Gary and Wyatt could feed it. How “human” she was exceeded all their expectations. But when Lisa became part of their reality, Gary and Wyatt found themselves in new and challenging situations. Those experiences helped them gain confidence and “grow up.”

Today’s AI can solve complex problems just like Lisa. Corinne Flanagan should know – she’s deployed a virtual agent named Kate to help Smartsheet users through all kinds of technical questions. That has reserved the new and challenging situations for her team of human support agents. And they’re gaining confidence and evolving to Smartsheet’s Support Agent 3.0 – human concierge agents that provide incredible customer experiences.

• Support evolution at Smartsheet• The team’s response to AI• How training and hiring have changed• Lessons learned from AI deployment• AI’s impact on agent burnout and job satisfaction• Building community and recognition among support teamsConnect with Corinne on LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/corinne-flanagan-6b20842/

Music courtesy of Big Red Horse – https://www.facebook.com/bigredhorseband/

Many rock musicians have been honored as inductees to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. But John Fogerty’s 1985 hit, Centerfield, got him honored by the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Today, it’s a fixture at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York, and just about every ballpark across the country. Baseball and its heroes have been mythologized as a deeply American tradition. But like anything else, it has evolved with technology, even so far as to use an Automated Ball-Strike (ABS) Challenge System in the Major Leagues as of 2026. While technology is continually being introduced in sports, humans are still at the center of the action.

Sports are hardly the only domain where technology has continued to drive change. Customer Service interactions have long evolved as new technologies have been introduced to contact centers. AI “bots” or Virtual Agents are simply the next evolution. But humans should still be at the center of the action, says Jeff Toister. Jeff’s authored five books on Customer Service and this year, he was inducted into the ICMI Hall of Fame. This week, we discuss:

• The Human Element in Customer Service• The Impact of Greetings on Customer Experience• AI in Customer Service: Opportunities and Concerns• The Evolution of AI and Human Interaction• Creating Human Connections in Customer Service• The Role of AI in Routine Transactions• Skills Unique to Humans in Customer Service• The Future of AI and Human CollaborationConnect with Jeff on LinkedIn - https://linkedin.com/in/jefftoister

Jeff Toister's Website - https://toistersolutions.com/

Human Service Book - https://humanservicebook.com/

Music courtesy of Big Red Horse – https://www.facebook.com/bigredhorseband/

One of the most enduring basslines of all time was the lead into one of the greatest rock collaborations of all time – Queen and David Bowie. 1981’s Under Pressure became a #1 hit in the UK. Under Pressure explored how navigating the labyrinth of normal life could bring people to a breaking point. 9 years later, that same (slightly altered) bassline would spawn another hit, Vanilla Ice’s Ice Ice Baby. Not long after, Vanilla Ice was under pressure, facing a landmark copyright lawsuit that was eventually settled out of court.

The feeling of being under pressure constantly can quickly lead to burnout, a topic we’ve tackled on this show in the past. The ideal way to deal with burnout is to remove yourself from the cause – often your job. But more often than not, that’s an unrealistic solution because we all have bills to pay. This week, Steph Lundberg joins Next in Queue to talk about strategies to mitigate burnout for those of us who need to carry on.

• The Birth of Support Human and Bad Job Bingo• Understanding Burnout and Its Symptoms• Navigating Job Challenges and Burnout• The Importance of Taking Time Off• The Evolution of Work Ethic• Rethinking Going Above and Beyond• Career Planning During Burnout• The Importance of Networking, Community, and Support• Prioritizing Personal Well-beingConnect with Steph on LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/smlundberg/

Support Human – https://supporthuman.cx/

Music courtesy of Big Red Horse – https://www.facebook.com/bigredhorseband/

Employing a stark departure from the bland, clinical approach previous manuals had taken, Alex Comfort’s 1972 book, The Joy of Sex, took the world by storm. The illustrated manual spent over a year in the top five of the New York Times Best Seller list. It was an entirely different and liberating approach to the intimate relationships that are part of the human experience. The following year, Motown soul legend, Marvin Gaye, released the #1 single, Let’s Get It On, his own musical plea for sexual liberation.

The Joy of CEHX, that’s C for Customer, E for Employee, H for Human, and X for eXperience, is a different kind of plea for liberation. Aileen Day has written a book that also employs a stark departure from the bland, clinical approach previous CX manuals have taken. She joins Next in Queue this week to discuss:

• The Joy of Sex and Customer Experience• The Human Experience in Business• Trust and Brand Loyalty• The Dynamics of Retail and Manufacturing• Online Dating and Authenticity• The Importance of Honest Feedback• An Exercise in Trust • XM Global Collaborative and Future EndeavorsConnect with Aileen on LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/aileen-day-1800valued/

The Joy of CEHX – https://aileenday.com.au/book/

XM Global Collaborative – https://www.xmgc.org/

Music courtesy of Big Red Horse – https://www.facebook.com/bigredhorseband/

If I asked you to think of a hit TV show set in Miami during the late 80’s, Miami Vice would likely be the first thing that pops into your head. But lasting longer, bringing in far more awards, and featuring American treasure, Betty White, I would argue the Golden Girls had an even more lasting impact on the world. A sitcom featuring 4 single, older women living together and navigating their “golden years” together was a revelation. Their lived experiences informed how they approached every situation. This scene, featuring Estelle Getty’s character, Sophia, reminds us of a simpler time in technology – when the answering machine was the peak of communication technology in the home.

Clearly, communication technology has evolved a LOT since then, both in our homes and in contact centers. That evolution in technology requires new skills of contact center leaders, says Ty Givens. She’s experienced this evolution first-hand and today, she guides CX leaders through the challenges that come with a growing business.

• Technology's Impact on Leadership• The Importance of Data Literacy• B2B vs B2C Customer Understanding• Navigating Customer Experience in Hyper-Growth Companies• Identifying Skill Gaps in Leadership• Strategic Thinking in Rapid Growth Mode• Understanding Vendor Relationships and Contracts• The Future of AI and Human InteractionConnect with Ty on LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/tybryantgivens/

CX Collective – https://www.cxcollective.com/

Music courtesy of Big Red Horse – https://www.facebook.com/bigredhorseband/

Nate Gibson may not be a household name, but his rockabilly novelty, Duck Butt, released in 2017, reminds us that there’s something silly about our favorite feathered waterfowl. Ducks may seem elegant, but when they need to eat, they put their beak in the water, and their tail goes up and that’s when you see those legs churning in the water. Chaos.

You’re on stage. There are 100 people in the audience. You’re beginning to sweat. You’re holding the podium in front of you and your presentation is frozen. Sounds like chaos. When Dean Griess sat down to write a book about public speaking, he wanted to make sure that the readers wouldn’t feel silly in front of an audience. He wanted to help them glide smoothly along the stage and not flail furiously like a duck with its butt in the air. His book, Don’t Show Your Duck Butt, contains practical strategies to conquer nervousness, capture attention, and create remarkable experiences.

• Understanding Public Speaking Fears

• The Vulnerability of Speaking to an Audience

• Tips for Overcoming Nervousness

• The Importance of Body Language

• Navigating Technology in Presentations

• Buying Time During Presentations

• The Role of Breaks in Long Sessions

Connect with Dean on LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/deangriess/

Get your copy of Don’t Show Your Duck Butt – https://deangriess.com/about-the-book/

Nate Gibson – http://www.nathandgibson.com/index.html

Music courtesy of Big Red Horse – https://www.facebook.com/bigredhorseband/

EDM and children’s fairy tales may not seem like they go together, but in 2011, Skrillex channeled the 1991 movie, Hook, a cinematic sequel to the story of Peter Pan. Based on J. M. Barrie’s 1911 novel, Peter and Wendy, Hook imagines adult Peter returning to Neverland to rescue his two young children from Captain Hook. Bangarang is more than a Grammy-winning hit for Skrillex, it’s the battle cry of the Lost Boys, Neverland’s gang of orphans who never grow up and never back down from pirates.

Connecting with kids as an adult, especially kids who haven’t grown up in model environments, is an adventure. But when you do, the adventure may take you to unexpected places. That’s what Ethan Adshade learned when he signed up for Teach for America right out of college. His plan to go into finance took a turn to a career in learning and development. Today, he’s the Senior Director of Global Training and Development for Ticketmaster, and he joins Next in Queue to talk about what he’s learned during his adventure.

• Lessons from the Classroom• Navigating Challenges During COVID-19• The Power of Preparation• Strategies for Classroom Management• Understanding People in Education and Business• Education’s Impact on Community• The Future of Learning and TechnologyConnect with Ethan on LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/ethan-adshade/

Music courtesy of Big Red Horse – https://www.facebook.com/bigredhorseband/

During the 90’s and early 2000s, Thursday nights were, for roughly 25 million Americans, Must See TV night. NBC’s lineup of hit shows like Friends, Seinfeld, and ER, were a cultural phenomenon that lives on in memes and catch phrases like Ross’s “Pivot!” from season 5. Ross’s detailed plan for success didn’t turn out the way he planned.

Software founders often have detailed plans for success only to find that the market is just as challenging as moving a couch up a set of switchback stairs. When the market spurned Natalie Perez’s first software venture, the company pivoted and found success in the QM and WFM space. Her new company, Cisne, is an AI-native WFM platform that is designed to solve the real challenges contact centers have been struggling to solve for decades. It entered public beta this week and she was kind enough to join the show to discuss a variety of topics related to Workforce Management. Topics covered include:

• What is WFM?• Challenges with current WFM technologies• The role of AI Agents in Customer Experience• Balancing Efficiency and Customer Experience• Agent Well-Being and Burnout in Contact Centers• Lessons from Past Failures• Introducing the public beta for Cisne.ai – the AI-Native WFM solutionConnect with Natalie on LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/pereznatalie/

Cisne – https://www.cisne.ai/

Music courtesy of Big Red Horse – https://www.facebook.com/bigredhorseband/