Leading the Customer Experience explores the relationship between leadership behaviour and exceptional service. Most organisation’s strategic aims and goals centre on the delivery of excellent service. Loyal customers not only keep buying from a company but also recommend the business to others. It is clear that managers and leaders throughout an organisation have a key influence on the experience that customers receive. How leaders behave has a direct impact on their team member’s motivation to go the extra mile to deliver excellent service for the customer. Sarah Cook’s vision for Leading the Customer Experience is to provide practical advice, tools and techniques for managers in how to effectively lead and motivate their team to deliver the best possible customer service. This book encapsulates her research on the behaviours of leaders who successfully create an environment where employees deliver exceptional service and she brings a pragmatic and business focused approach to the topic. Each chapter contains a variety of case study examples from businesses in UK and Europe, Asia Pacific, US and BRIC countries. These include service organisations in the financial sector, manufacturing, hospitality, transport, healthcare, public and third sectors.

’What I particularly appreciated about this book is its ability to describe the behaviours of leaders who successfully create and execute a clear vision around both customer and employee engagement. In addition, I like its pragmatic approach to the topic: Cook offers a rich collection of practical tools, techniques and examples that organisations can start using today.’ simply-communicate, September 2015

Sarah Cook is the Managing Director of The Stairway Consultancy Ltd. She has 20 years’ consulting experience specialising in customer service, leadership and culture change. Prior to this Sarah worked for Unilever and as Head of Customer Care for a retail consultancy. Sarah has wide experience of helping public and private sector organisations improve their leadership capability and customer experience. She works in UK and on a global basis. Sarah regularly speaks at conferences on customer service. She is a business author with 35 books and manuals published. Titles published include: Customer Care Excellence; Practical Guide to Employee Engagement; Change Management Excellence and Complaint Management Excellence.