2013 Predictive Consulting Group, Inc.

All rights reserved. Reproduction prohibited.

CHIEF CUSTOMER OFFICER COUNCIL
www.ccocouncil.org | (978) 226-8675 Page 1
Cri ti cal Success Factors
for the
Chi ef Customer Of fi cer

by Curtis N. Bingham

2013 Predictive Consulting Group, Inc.
All rights reserved. Reproduction prohibited.
CHIEF CUSTOMER OFFICER COUNCIL
www.ccocouncil.org | (978) 226-8675 Page 2
Cri ti cal Success Factors for the Chi ef Customer
Offi cer

Curtis N. Bingham
Founder and Executive Director
Chief Customer Officer Council
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uemandlng cusLomers, lnLense pressure from Lhe CLC, and relenLless compeLlLlon. Pow can you, as a
loyalLy execuLlve or chlef cusLomer offlcer (CCC), hope Lo saLlsfy Lhe flrsL Lwo and ouLsmarL Lhe Lhlrd?
CuLLlng Lhrough Lhe nolse of Lhe C-sulLe ls a challenge for CCCs and lL can ofLen be Loo llLLle Loo laLe lf
sLeps are noL Laken qulckly.
1he average Lenure of Lhe CCC ls only 29.6 monLhs, ofLen falllng casualLy Lo Lhe "8esulLs rlghL now!"
syndrome LhaL lgnores crlLlcal facLs: llke greaL wlne, sLrong relaLlonshlps Lake Llme Lo develop and grow
more proflLable as Lhey age. Many of Lhese relaLlonshlps cannoL Lake rooL wlLhouL a sLraLeglc plan Lo
LransmlL Lhe volce of Lhe cusLomer lnLo Lhe C-SulLe, Lhereby poslLlonlng Lhe company Lo succeed and Lhe
CCC Lo Lhrlve. 8ased on nearly a decade of work wlLh more Lhan 130 CCCs, l have developed Lhe
followlng crlLlcal success facLors LhaL wlll ensure LhaL you meeL or exceed your personal and cusLomer
goals.
!"#$% '() *%+,*#"(- .#*/0#/*% 1'##%*2 1he LlLle and reporLlng sLrucLure of Lhe CCC are powerful
slgnals of Lhe company's commlLmenL Lo cusLomer cenLrlclLy. 1he successful CCC wlll have Lhe LlLle
of CCC and reporL Lo Lhe CLC or Lo an lndlvldual no more Lhan one level below Lhe CLC (e.g., chlef
markeLlng offlcer, chlef operaLlng offlcer).
34%0/#"5% ./++,*# 1/.# 6% /(7'5%*"(-2 1he conLlnued vocal and vlslble supporL of Lhe CLC and C-
sulLe ls crlLlcal Lo growLh and sLablllLy for Lhe CCC. 1he CLC has Lo malnLaln hls supporL and noL
abdlcaLe lnvolvemenL ln cusLomer cenLrlclLy [usL because Lhe company hlred a CCC. 1he llkellhood
of success ls dlmlnlshed wlLhouL consLanL endorsemenL from Lop leadershlp.
3'*(%) '/#8,*"#92 1he CCC has a cerLaln amounL of poslLlonal auLhorlLy by vlrLue of hls or her LlLle.
1he expllclL, vlslble supporL of Lhe CLC provldes borrowed auLhorlLy, whlch ls valuable buL lL can
wane. 1o be successful over Llme, Lhe CCC musL earn hls or her own auLhorlLy and credlblllLy wlLhln
Lhe organlzaLlon. AuLhorlLy ls earned as Lhe CCC leads peers, execuLlves, and employees Lo
recognlze how cusLomer lnslghL and cenLrlclLy can be valuable alds ln achlevlng Lhelr own buslness,
deparLmenL, and personal goals. ulLlmaLely, such earned auLhorlLy can ecllpse boLh poslLlonal and
borrowed auLhorlLy ln power and value.

2013 Predictive Consulting Group, Inc.
All rights reserved. Reproduction prohibited.
CHIEF CUSTOMER OFFICER COUNCIL
www.ccocouncil.org | (978) 226-8675 Page 3
::; +*",*"#9 '$"-(1%(# 7"#8 #8% :3;2 8y allgnlng prlorlLles wlLh Lhe CLC and Lhe resL of Lhe C-sulLe
Lhe CCC secures hls or her vlslblllLy aL Lhe hlghesL level of Lhe company and ls lnvolved ln key
corporaLe declslons. All execuLlves should be worklng Loward Lhe same goals and, accordlng Lo Lhe
resulLs of a CCC Councll Survey, mosL CCCs and CLCs are dolng so. 1hough ranklngs were sllghLly
dlfferenL, boLh CLCs and CCCs ldenLlfled excellence ln execuLlon, cusLomer loyalLy and reLenLlon,
and Lop-llne growLh as Lop prlorlLles. Where Lhey dlffered was LhaL CLCs ldenLlfled conslsLenL
execuLlon as a Lop prlorlLy, whlle CCCs ldenLlfled encouraglng lnnovaLlon as Lhelr Lop prlorlLy. 1hese
resulLs lndlcaLe LhaL CCCs are dolng a good [ob of allgnlng Lhelr prlorlLles wlLh corporaLe prlorlLles,
whlch bodes well for Lhelr success.
:*%'#% 1%#*"0. #8'# #"% #, *%5%(/% -*,7#8 '() +*,<"#'6"$"#92 Whlle dlfflculL Lo accompllsh, Lhe ablllLy
of Lhe CCC Lo Lle cusLomer-cenLrlc programs Lo revenue growLh and proflLablllLy ls crlLlcal. 1here ls
growlng evldence LhaL cusLomer loyalLy and degree of cusLomer engagemenL are Lled Lo revenue.
Cne large Lechnology company saw a 33 percenL lncrease ln purchases from companles LhaL were
more engaged ln cusLomer programs. AnoLher organlzaLlon ldenLlfled LhaL a 1 percenL lncrease ln
loyalLy scores resulLed ln a $33.3 mllllon lncrease ln revenue. Academlc research supporLs Lhls
relaLlonshlp beLween loyalLy scores and spendlng. 1hese are consldered "proxy measures" and Lo be
used effecLlvely Lhere musL be consensus on Lhelr valldlLy as measures and Lhelr lmpacL on revenue
and proflLablllLy.
=/++,*# ,< "(#%*('$ '() %4#%*('$ '$$"%.2 WlLhouL Lhe supporL of peers, communlLy leaders, lndusLry
analysLs, and Lhe cusLomer, CCC lnlLlaLlves wlll have llmlLed resulLs. CrlLlcal Lo Lhe fuLure of Lhe CCC
ls developlng Lhese alllances and belng expllclL abouL successes.
!"% 0,1+%(.'#",( #, 1%'./*%. ,< 0/.#,1%* 0%(#*"0"#92 All execuLlves and senlor leaders should
have cusLomer measures (e.g. saLlsfacLlon, loyalLy) as parL of Lhelr ManagemenL by Cb[ecLlves
(M8C). Many managers do noL recognlze Lhe lmpacL Lhelr deparLmenL has on cusLomer cenLrlclLy.
lor example, Lhe condlLlon and appearance of a uLlllLy company's repalr Lrucks leaves an lmpresslon
on lLs cusLomers for beLLer or worse, [usL as an overly complex blll sends a message LhaL Lhe
cusLomer's vlewpolnL ls noL consldered or valued.
Conclusion
So, now LhaL you have Lhe success facLors...where you sLarL? 1hese success facLors are guldeposLs on
your paLh Lo reallzlng your career goals as a CCC. CreaLe a plan around Lhose goals and use Lhese crlLlcal
success facLors as self-evaluaLlon crlLerla Lo malnLaln focus and lmprove your chances for success.
*1


*
Copyright Notice: All content contained in this article is copyright protected material. Reproduction, in whole or in
part, in any form or medium, without the express written permission of the Chief Customer Officer Council is strictly
prohibited.

This article is excerpted from The Bingham Advisory: Eight Imperatives for the Chief Customer Officer, available for
free download from the CCO Council website at: http://www.ccocouncil.org/thebinghamadvisory/.

2013 Predictive Consulting Group, Inc.
All rights reserved. Reproduction prohibited.
CHIEF CUSTOMER OFFICER COUNCIL
www.ccocouncil.org | (978) 226-8675 Page 4
About CURTIS N. BINGHAM
1he flrsL Lo promoLe Lhe role of chlef cusLomer offlcer (CCC) as caLalysL for
compeLlLlve advanLage, CurLls ls recognlzed as Lhe world's foremosL auLhorlLy on
CCCs. Pe ls founder and LxecuLlve ulrecLor of Lhe Chlef CusLomer Cfflcer
Councll` and creaLor of Lhe CCC 8oadmap and Lhe CusLomer CenLrlclLy MaLurlLy
Model: groundbreaklng, proprleLary works LhaL asslsL companles achleve
cusLomer cenLrlc culLure and revenue growLh. CurLls ls a champlon of cusLomer
engagemenL as a crlLlcal growLh englne and flrsL Lo ldenLlfy engagemenL as Lhe
nexL evoluLlonary sLep beyond loyalLy. An lnLernaLlonal speaker, auLhor, and
consulLanL, CurLls ls passlonaLe abouL creaLlng powerful cusLomer sLraLegles and
LrusLed for hls buslness acumen, acLlonable lnslghLs, and commlLmenL Lo
measurable buslness resulLs.
About THE CHIEF CUSTOMER OFFICER COUNCIL
1he CCC Councll ls a powerful and lnLlmaLe gaLherlng of Lhe world's
leadlng cusLomer execuLlves from wldely dlverse lndusLrles. 1he
Councll helps execuLlves achleve ob[ecLlves fasLer and more easlly by
leveraglng besL pracLlces. lL helps valldaLe and reflne sLraLegles and
lnlLlaLlves Lo avold experlmenLlng aL cusLomer expense. Membershlp
ls by lnvlLaLlon only, and purposefully cross-polllnaLed wlLh Lhe mosL
forward-Lhlnklng companles, large and small, so as Lo help cusLomer
execuLlves dellver solld, cusLomer-cenLrlc buslness resulLs. lor more
lnformaLlon, emall lnfo[ccocouncll.org or call 978-226-8673.


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