TechSee’s Annual Influencer List
For a second year, everyone at TechSee is proud and excited to share our annual list of influential leaders in the space of digital customer service. We received overwhelmingly positive feedback last year, so we’re back with another edition – this time even bigger and better!
This list is an homage to the business leaders and influencers pushing the envelope when it comes to innovation in customer experience and customer service. They are “the ones to watch” and we recommend you follow them on Linkedin, Twitter, or YouTube or try meeting them at key industry events. Their knowledge and impact is constantly reshaping the service industry.
A lot of new faces, a few familiar names from last year’s list, and a lot of inspiration for the industry. If you missed the 2022 list, you can check it out here. Finally, worth mentioning the list is by no means a ranking, and the influencers are in alphabetical order.
Enjoy!
- Adrian Swinscoe, Customer experience advisor, author, speaker
Adrian is a huge fan of organizations that do great things for their customers and has been helping many achieve their own level of greatness for over 25 years via consulting, writing, speaking workshops, and advisory work. Adrian’s driving passion is helping create, develop, and grow businesses that take care of their customers in the best way possible and create the great teams that are required to do that. In addition, he is also a best-selling author, Forbes contributor, blogger & podcaster, and frequent conference speaker.
- Agnes So, Head of Customer Support & Engagement at HotDoc
Based in Melbourne, Agness is passionate about creating exceptional customer experiences through lean teams, self-service, and training. As the Head of Customer Support and Engagement at HotDoc, she is responsible for leading the customer support and engagement strategy. Before joining HotDoc, Agnes spent 4 years at Apple. Skilled in leading high-performing teams and utilizing customer insights to drive improvements, Agnes works on unique ways to build customer loyalty through community programs and events.
- Blake Morgan, Customer Experience Futurist, Bestselling Author, Keynote Speaker
Blake has been studying customer experience for over 15 years and has flown to the far corners of the earth to find out what is the secret sauce of the world’s most customer-centric companies. As the host of The Modern Customer Podcast, she explores how businesses can make customers’ lives easier and better, featuring experts that provide simple, tangible advice you can immediately apply at your own organization. Blake is also the author of two books on customer experience, including “The Customer Of The Future”, which was identified by Business Insider as one of the top 20 books executives are reading to deal with COVID-19.
- Bob Thompson, Founder and CEO at CustomerThink
Bob is the CEO of CustomerThink, a research and publishing firm focused on customer-centric business management, and Founder/Editor-in-Chief of CustomerThink.com, the world’s largest community dedicated to customer-centric business. In addition, Thompson is a popular keynote speaker, blogger, and the author of Hooked On Customers: The Five Habits of Legendary Customer-Centric Companies. His goal is to harness the collective intelligence of customer-centric thought leaders to help businesses create better customer relationships.
- Brad Cleveland, Consultant, Keynote Speaker, Course Instructor
Brad Cleveland is a global expert in customer strategy and management. He has advised governments and clients across 45 states and over 60 countries, and his books and articles have been translated into over a dozen languages. Brad teaches courses on customer strategy and management, customer service leadership, and CX leadership. He’s been featured in top-tier publications such as The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, CNN Money, the New York Times, as well as on major television networks. Brad was the founding partner and former CEO of the International Customer Management Institute (ICMI) and remains a senior advisor today.
- Brittany Hodak, Keynote Speaker & Author of “Creating Superfans”
Brittany is widely regarded as the “go-to source” for creating and retaining superfans. She has been invited to speak to audiences and organizations across the world, including American Express, WeWork, Sony Music, Inc., and the United Nations. She has published more than 350 articles for a variety of national media, including regular columns for Forbes, Adweek, and Success. Brittany is also the co-founder of The Superfan Company, a fan-engagement agency that has created campaigns and products for global brands including Walmart, Disney, Amazon, Luke Bryan, Katy Perry, and the Boston Red Sox.
- Charlie Mitchell, Senior Editor at CX Today
Charlie is an award-winning magazine editor, with vast experience in writing about technology, customer service, and much more. He grew Call Centre Helper Magazine’s audience from 40,000 visitors a week to well over 100,000, in just a few years, and certainly knows how to create engaging content that keeps people coming back for more! As the Senior Editor for CX Today, he works with a small team of journalists to create cutting-edge features and cover the latest industry news from the fast-paced CX world.
- Clare Muscutt, Founder and CEO of Women in CX
As a globally recognized leading CX practitioner, Clare has dedicated her career to crafting innovative strategies that balance customer and employee needs with business outcomes. She has led CX for giants such as Whitbread, Sainsbury’s, and Compass Group as well as providing clients worldwide with groundbreaking products, services, and experience design services as a consultant. Passionate about amplifying the voices of other women, Clare launched the ‘Inspiring Women in CX’ podcast during the pandemic, which led her to founding Women in CX, the world’s first online membership community for women in customer experience and technology.
- Dan Smitley, Workforce Management and Contact Center Guru
As an experienced public speaker and thought leader, Dan is passionate about leveraging workforce management, contact center operations, strategic thinking, project planning, and data analytics to help companies, customers, and front-line employees succeed. He is currently the Strategy & Optimization Czar at Call Design North America (CDNA), the leader in workforce management solutions for contact centers. In his role, he helps leaders and organizations consider, find, and implement what it takes to move their contact centers from a cost center to a strategic asset.
- Jeanne Bliss, Founder & CEO at Customer Bliss
Jeanne Bliss is the Founder and President of CustomerBliss and Co-Founder of The Customer Experience Professionals Association. She is a 5-time Chief Customer Officer, a published author of four books, a keynote speaker, a thought leader, and an industry-leading expert on customer-centric leadership. Jeanne has 35 years of experience helping companies elevate their position with customers and the marketplace. She hosts a popular podcast called The Human Duct Tape Show, listed #1 on Inc.’s 9 Binge-Worthy Marketing Podcasts.
- Jo Causon, CEO at Institute of Customer Service
Jo is a strategic leader with over 20 years experience within the commercial and not-for-profit sectors. An experienced strategist with excellent knowledge of business management, strategy, brand, and marketing. She has a strong record of delivering results across all aspects of an organization, leading to sustained growth and profitability. Her experience has included working with all forms of media, and she is called upon as a customer experience expert for radio and TV broadcasts as well as a regular keynote speaker.
- John R. Patterson, Author and Speaker, Customer Service and Leadership Consultant
Through his company, Progressive Insights, John Patterson provides advisory services for two distinct markets; organizations focused on delivering outstanding customer service through developing a customer loyalty culture and the office interiors build-out/ renovation/ relocation market. He is also the co-author of the best-seller “Wired and Dangerous; How Your Customers Have Changed and What To Do About It.” His articles have appeared in numerous professional journals, and he has appeared live on ABC News and Fox Business.
- Jon Arnold, Tech Thought Leader, Analyst, and Speaker
Jon provides thought leadership and go-to-market counsel focusing on the business-level impact of communications technologies on digital transformation. Jon’s thought leadership can be followed on his JAA’s Analyst Blog. In addition, Jon produces a monthly podcast – Watch This Space – which is a regular feature in his monthly newsletter, JAA’s Communications and Collaboration Review. In early 2023, Jon was named as a Top 100 United Comms Influencers 2023, and a Top 16 CCaaS Influencer. Jon is frequently cited in the media, speaks regularly at industry events, and is an active member of the SCTC.
Keith Gait, Chief Executive at the Customer Experience Foundation
Keith has a wealth of executive-level customer-centric operations. He has spent his entire career in customer service, holding senior roles at NHS Direct, Sainsbury’s, Condor Ferries, South East Ambulance Service, and Stagecoach. Keith took over the leadership of the CX Foundation in April 2021, curating and providing a range of content, resources, and thought leadership. In addition, he is the author of Definitely CX, the definitive reference and how-to guide for customer experience, the publisher of The CX Morning Brew, and host of CX Diaries podcast.
- Leonie Williams, Co-Founder & Director at Customer Service Solutions Group
Leonie has worked with over 100+ companies in the UK and with global reach, ranging in team size from 50 up to 20,000 people, and across 20 sectors which have given her unique and scaled industry insight. She works with business leaders to work out how to weave the customer into their already established cultures.
- Mike Aoki, President at Reflective Keynotes, GTACC Award winner
Mike is the President of Reflective Keynotes, a Canada-based training firm that helps contact centers improve their sales and CX results. He has over 20 years of customer service, sales, and management experience, with a laser focus on contact centers. He regularly advises companies on topics such as contact center sales skills, coaching skills, and handling irate customers. Check out Mike’s latest interview with Martechvibe where he discusses the importance of proper agent training and the impact of AI on the customer service role.
- Nate Brown, Senior Director of CX at Arise, Co-Founder of CX Accelerator
Nate’s sweet spot is helping employees to understand the customer journey and how they play a role in improving it. At CX arise, he helps organizations accelerate their CX transformation, improving the lives of customers, employees, and partners through great experiences. He is also the founder of CX Accelerator, a non-profit community to equip, encourage, and connect Customer Experience professionals at every stage in their journey.
- Nick Glimsdhal, Director at Contact Center Solutions
Nick is a Senior, Account Executive at VDS, a leading provider of cloud contact center solutions that transform customer and employee experiences. Nick is also the host of the acclaimed podcast, Press 1 For Nick, which ranks among the top 2.5% of podcasts worldwide. He has interviewed leaders from some of the most renowned brands in the customer experience industry, such as Chick-fil-A, Zappos, Google, and Disney. Through his podcast, Nick inspires his audience to create exceptional customer experiences that drive business success.
- Rebecca Gibson, Contact Center Consultant
Rebecca is a tireless contact center advocate who believes passionate, connected employees are the key to memorable customer experiences. She specializes in practical, creative approaches to contact center training, employee development, performance management, and contact center quality. With over 20 years of contact center experience, Rebecca has worked in HR and recruiting, training and development, software product design, and consulting leadership. She’s a frequent contributor to Contact Center Pipeline and other industry publications and currently serves on the ICMI Advisory Board.
- Shameem Smillie, CCaaS Consultant, Founding Member of Women in CX
Shameen is a true leader when it comes to Digital and Customer Experience Transformation. She is an expert in CCaaS & Contact Center technology and operations and has helped many organizations deliver successful digital transformation, with an approach that focuses on continual business and innovation whilst supporting a culture of empowerment and inclusivity. Shameen is an advocate and activist for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, and a champion for Women in Tech.
- Scott Sachs, President at SJS Solutions
Scott Sachs is president of SJS Solutions, a consultancy that specializes in the development and deployment of contact center technology. With over 20 years of experience leading large multi-site contact centers, Scott helps customer service organizations develop their vision for the future and then works with them to navigate the vast array of options to identify, select, and implement the most appropriate solution. In addition, Scott has published numerous articles and is a regular speaker on a variety of key customer service topics. You can explore some of Scott’s recent articles here.
- Stephanie Todd, Founder & CEO SoulCX
Stephanie has led some of the world’s largest organizations through strategic customer experience and digital transformations. Delivering innovation and growth. As the CEO of SoulCX, she is helping clients understand the goals for the customer experience and the problems we are trying to solve together. With over 20 years of experience and working with some of the most iconic brands (startups to some of the oldest brands in the world) she brings a level of expertise paired with honesty to do the right thing. In addition, she hosts the CX & CHILL Podcast, the real, raw customer experience podcast which explores the good, the bad, and the future of customer experience with incredible brands around the world.
- Tom Brannen, Industry Analyst & Influencer
After 25 years as an independent communications technology consultant, Tom launched OnConvergence, an industry analyst firm focused on the technologies that drive human convergence to solve real business problems. OnConvergence seeks to understand and communicate the value of leading communications technology solutions, primarily leveraging video as the media of choice for sharing technology success stories. If you’re attending CPaaS Acceleration Summit 2023 in Amsterdam this September, Tom will be a speaker at the event!
