273: How do I create a turnkey system for consistency?

The job was finished. The customer was still waiting. When a utility team walked through its process, one question exposed the gap. Who contacts the customer to tell them the work is done? In Episode 279 of The Customer Service Revolution, Denise Thompson and Dave Murray, Vice President of Consulting at The DiJulius Group, break down how to fix inconsistent customer service across locations and departments. Dave shares how KeyBank used local advocates, daily huddles, and manager coaching to make service standards part of the workday. You'll learn how to spot a handoff nobody owns, involve frontline employees in writing standards they can deliver, and use complaint patterns to see where service is improving. Dave closes with what to do in your first seven days and what you can put in place by the end of the first month. Show notes Listen to The Customer Service Revolution Podcast Read the KeyBank customer experience case study Meet Dave Murray Register for It Shouldn't Be This Hard, the free November 17 webinar with John DiJulius and Dave Murray

Before dismissing an employee's request, experience the obstacles they face serving your customers. An employee asks for a new computer. You see an expense. They see another day of apologizing to customers for a system that keeps failing. In this excerpt from Episode 278 of The Customer Service Revolution Podcast, John DiJulius challenges leaders to experience the work before judging the request. When employees repeatedly face frustrated customers without the tools to help them, the problem reaches beyond technology. It affects their ability to deliver the experience you expect—and their willingness to keep doing the job. John's advice: sit beside them. Better yet, do the job yourself. Key takeaways: An employee's request may reveal a service obstacle leaders haven't experienced. Recurring technology problems create frustration for employees and customers. Understanding frontline work helps leaders evaluate what employees need to succeed. Empathy becomes actionable when leaders experience the work firsthand. Show notes and resources: The DiJulius Group: https://thedijuliusgroup.com/ Explore The Customer Service Revolution Podcast: https://thedijuliusgroup.com/the-customer-service-revolution-podcast/

Can someone feel heard even when the answer is no? In Episode 277 of the Customer Service Revolution Podcast, John R. DiJulius III welcomes Lisa Duran, author of Strong Enough to Listen: Bridging the Communication Gap Between Our Choices and Our Responses. They explore how listening skills for leaders shape employee and customer experience, why choosing person over problem builds connection, and how Lisa's CLR model helps leaders respond with care. Learn what "yes, and" means when you disagree, why John keeps a WAIT reminder on his screen, and how writing down your thoughts can help you interrupt less. The conversation also covers curiosity, customer feedback, AI, and the listening habits that carry from work into home life. Discover practical ways to help people feel heard while maintaining clear boundaries. Show-Notes Links Customer Service Revolution Podcast The DiJulius Group Connect with Lisa Duran on LinkedIn Find Strong Enough to Listen on Amazon — Amazon search link Strong Enough to Listen — Books-A-Million

Your board asks, "What's the return on customer experience?" Do you have an answer beyond happier customers? In Episode 276, Denise Thompson puts John DiJulius in the boardroom to explain how leaders can defend customer experience investment with a stronger financial case. They discuss earned sales growth, customer retention, referrals, service recovery costs, and the difference between measuring customer sentiment and customer behavior. John also explains how a Return on eXperience—or ROX—dashboard helps leaders identify the metrics that matter for their business. In this episode: • Connect customer experience improvements to potential revenue. • Understand earned sales growth from repeat business and referrals. • Examine the hidden costs of poor service. • Evaluate automation beyond immediate cost savings. • Identify when a CX investment does not deserve approval. • Prepare a stronger case for your next budget meeting. Download the ROX Dashboard Template: https://thedijuliusgroup.com/rox-dashboard/ Schedule a conversation with The DiJulius Group: https://tdg.click/call Find The Customer Service Revolution Podcast wherever you listen: https://thedijuliusgroup.com/the-customer-service-revolution-podcast/

What gives a customer a reason to return—and bring someone else with them? John DiJulius welcomes Tai Anderson, a founding member of Grammy-winning band Third Day and author of Market Like a Rockstar, for a conversation about customer loyalty, brand trust, and earning referrals. Tai shares his ROCKSTAR framework and explains why the experience after the sale deserves as much attention as the effort to win a new customer. Together, they explore how to ask for referrals at the right time, stay connected with existing customers, and make appreciation personal for customers and employees. In this episode: Why fandom goes deeper than brand preference How customer experience becomes part of your marketing Why referrals depend on trust and timing The eight stages of the ROCKSTAR framework How a short video can make a thank-you more meaningful The connection between employee loyalty and customer experience Connect with Tai: https://taianderson.live/ Explore the book: https://taianderson.live/book Find The Customer Service Revolution Podcast wherever you listen. https://thedijuliusgroup.com/the-customer-service-revolution-podcast/

AI can help your team clear the busywork. Which customer moments still need a human? John DiJulius welcomes Jess Pischel, founder of Human First AI Consulting and former senior customer experience consultant and Customer Experience Executive Academy dean at The DiJulius Group. Together, they explore AI and customer experience through practical examples: turning workshop notes into usable information, challenging an employee onboarding process, and improving handoffs between chatbots and employees. Jess shares three questions leaders can ask before exploring an AI use case and explains why employee involvement matters. John and Jess also discuss the conversations that should retain human empathy, accountability, and judgment—from service recovery to employee recognition. In this episode, you'll learn: Why automating a messy workflow can deepen the problem. Where AI may relieve repetitive work that drains your team. How to involve employees and discuss both wins and failures. Why a chatbot handoff should preserve the customer's context. Which moments call for human judgment and a personal conversation. How to start small rather than chase every new tool. Connect with Jess and explore the resources discussed: Human First AI Consulting: https://www.humanfirstaiconsulting.com/ AI Readiness Assessment: https://www.humanfirstaiconsulting.com/ai-readiness/ Human First AI Collective: https://hfaicollective.com/ AI training and TechCred information: https://www.humanfirstaiconsulting.com/techcred-reimbursement/ Listen and explore more episodes: Find the Customer Service Revolution podcast wherever you listen. https://thedijuliusgroup.com/the-customer-service-revolution-podcast/ Know a leader deciding where AI belongs in the customer experience? Share this episode with them.

What happens to your customer experience when your best employee calls off? In Episode 273 of the Customer Service Revolution Podcast, Denise Thompson and John DiJulius explore how to eliminate employee roulette and create a consistent customer experience across people, locations, and channels. John breaks down the Customer Experience Cycle: service defects to avoid, nonnegotiable standards to deliver, and opportunities to go above and beyond. Learn why being brilliant at the basics builds trust, how to turn your best employees' habits into teachable standards, and why everboarding and leadership accountability keep training alive. The conversation also explores service aptitude, the risks of rapid growth, and the Zero Risk approach to preparing for predictable problems. Discover how to make your brand promise repeatable while preserving the personal connection customers value. Explore customer experience consulting and the Customer Experience Executive Academy: https://thedijuliusgroup.com/ Schedule a conversation: https://tdg.click/call As mentioned in the episode: Cal DiJulius's wedding tuxedo story in Vogue

Your employees don't experience your organization through its mission statement. They experience it through their leaders. In Episode 272 of the Customer Service Revolution, Denise Thompson talks with Dave Murray, Vice President of Consulting at The DiJulius Group, about the connection between employee experience, leadership and customer experience. Dave shares lessons from his work with PSECU, including why managers must reinforce CX standards after training, how better one-on-ones can change employee relationships, why organizations should examine turnover by department and how recognition from frontline leaders influences engagement. The bigger message: customer experience and employee experience cannot operate independently. The employee experience your company creates eventually becomes the customer experience your customers receive.

When Innovation Stops Serving the Customer When does innovation stop being customer-centric and start becoming corporate strategy for strategy's sake? In Episode 271 of the Customer Service Revolution, Denise Thompson and John DiJulius examine Nike, Apple, Starbucks, Gap, Peloton and other major brands to explore what happens when companies chase new channels, customers and efficiencies while losing sight of the people who made them successful. They discuss why removing friction isn't always the same as improving customer experience, how Apple creates extraordinary ecosystem loyalty, why Starbucks is returning to its roots, and the question every leadership team should ask before approving its next major innovation.

EY is investing $100 million in employee rewards for future-focused skills such as judgment, adaptability, collaboration, leadership, innovation, and exceptional client service. What does that reveal about the future of work? Denise Thompson and John DiJulius discuss why human skills become more valuable—not less—as AI takes over routine tasks. Technology can increase speed and efficiency, but customer loyalty is still built through empathy, trust, judgment, curiosity, listening, and service recovery. John explains why organizations should stop treating these capabilities as "soft skills," how misaligned incentives undermine company values, and how leaders can make service aptitude observable, teachable, measurable, and rewardable. You'll also hear the ten service aptitude skills, how a Day in the Life exercise builds customer empathy, and a practical 30-day plan to audit what your company hires for, trains, measures, and rewards. Resources Mentioned EY's announcement about its $100 million employee rewards investment Interview Questions Designed to Gauge Service Aptitude Potential Customer Experience Executive Academy Experience Revolution Membership and workshop library The Employee Experience Revolution Links: Experience Revolution Membership:  https://thedijuliusgroup.com/membership/ The DiJulius Group Methdology: https://thedijuliusgroup.com/x-commandment-methodology/ Company Service Aptitude Test:  https://thedijuliusgroup.com/c-sat-forms/individual-c-sat/ Schedule a Complimentary Call with one of our advisors:  tdg.click/claudia Ask John!  Submit your questions for John, to be aired on future episode:  tdg.click/ask Customer Experience Executive Academy: https://thedijuliusgroup.com/project/cx-executive-academy/ Books:  https://thedijuliusgroup.com/shop/ Contacts:  [email protected] , [email protected] If you want to learn how world-class organizations build cultures customers cannot live without, explore The Experience Revolution Membership. Inside the membership you'll gain access to livestream workshops, practical frameworks, and proven strategies used by organizations around the world. Learn more at https://thedijuliusgroup.com/membership/ Learn More If your organization is working to improve customer experience but struggling to connect it to measurable business outcomes, The DiJulius Group can help. Visit: https://thedijuliusgroup.com Listen to more episodes: https://thedijuliusgroup.com/the-customer-service-revolution-podcast/ Subscribe We talk about topics like this each week; be sure to subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts so you don't miss an episode.