Managing Customer Experience Across Cultures

Much for brands to learn from Singapore. To manage brand legacy alongside technology and advancement, brands must strike a careful balance between preservation and progress. Singapore has become a model of modernity without losing its uniqueness. It blends futuristic architecture, smart infrastructure, and a global business environment with deep-rooted cultural heritage, local traditions, and multicultural harmony. Sleek skyscrapers rise beside historic shophouses; hawker centres thrive next to Michelin-starred restaurants. It’s a city where innovation meets identity—where cutting-edge urban planning coexists with festivals like Deepavali and Chinese New Year. Define Non-Negotiable Brand Values and Identify what must never change. These values form the emotional core of the brand that tech innovation must serve, not disrupt. Evolve the Expression, Not the Essence. Modernize without alienating loyal users. Retain symbolic or nostalgic cues that remind audiences of the brand’s roots. Integrate Innovation with Storytelling. Frame new technologies (AI, AR, VR etc.) as extensions of the brand’s purpose, not departures from it. Maintain Consistent Brand Voice Across Platforms. As tech enables channels, ensure tone, visuals, and personality stay coherent. Use Flagship Experiences to Reinforce Both. Design physical or digital spaces to reflect both legacy and future-forward thinking. And most crucially - Listen and Adapt. Leverage data and community feedback to innovate with empathy, not in isolation. In short, the brand legacy is the soul, and technology is the tool—they must evolve together, not at the cost of each other. By preserving green spaces, promoting multilingualism, and respecting its past while embracing the future, Singapore proves that progress doesn’t have to erase character—it can enhance it. #Singapore #culture #legacy #brand #innovation #essence #brandpositioning #transformation

I can't begin to tell you how often I get a call during which the person I'm speaking with says something to the extent of, "I've been running our Voice of the Customer surveys for years and nothing's getting better in those customer relationships." This, of course always results in me asking how they've worked toward changing their people, process and technologies to meet their customers at or above their expectations based on what they learned in that feedback? Surprisingly, the answer is almost always the same, "what do you mean?" Too many CX teams have been lead down the primrose path of overcommitting technology solutions as the magic silver bullet cure-all for all issues with their customers and do not put anywhere enough emphasis on the need to adapt and change, and to meet their customers, where they are, in their respective journeys at those defining moments of service. Indeed, I tell them that an overreliance on tech as that silver bullet is very much the same as an overweight person blaming their bathroom scale for their unhealthy condition. It's not the scale's fault they may overeat and perhaps get too little exercise, and until this changes, the scale won't report anything more optimistic. The moral of this short story is obvious. CX improvement may be powered by the customer's voice, but it is always a change management function. If we do not prepare to change our ways and continue to evolve our organization and how we do what it is we do, we risk not meeting our customers when and where they are looking for us and will indeed continue to disappoint. Ignoring the most basic need for adaptive change is akin to the famous Albert Einstein quote about his definition of insanity: doing the same things the same ways you always have but looking for a different (and presumably better) outcome. The odds, my friends, are against. We need to be willing to change, and in many ways, burn the boats from our past and free ourselves to find new and innovative ways to serve our customers when, where and how it matters to them. Until we do this and fully commit to transformative changes to practically every aspect of our business, we are truly only paying lip service to our customer focus and the experiences we create. It's a gigantic, missed opportunity for so many. Knowing how to change and using state of the art technology as a change enabler will prove to be key in this process. Having the right priorities, focus areas, and direction will have a positive, orchestrative effect and conversely the lack of the right analytics to guide this decision process will leave you sub-optimized or worse, functionally crippled. If I leave you with nothing more here, please consider customer experience as a change management job more so than simply a measurement one. We all need data to make our decisions, true point, but don't assume that just because you have invested in a state of the art NPS program, that this alone will be enough to make an impact.

Last year, Apple apologized for an iPad ad. Last month, Gwyneth Paltrow and Astronomer split the internet—half called it brilliant, half called it tone deaf. This month, American Eagle’s Sydney Sweeney campaign became a culture war flashpoint. Marketing used to have rules. Now it has landmines. If this were only about brand misfires, the fix would be simple: smarter strategies, sharper creative. But something deeper has shifted. The contract between brands and culture has changed. And the playbook that promised predictability no longer applies. For decades, the system was straightforward: craft the message, test it with target demos, launch with confidence. There's a new world. → Apple’s “Crush” ad: world-class production, pulled in days. → American Eagle: pitched as empowerment, read as male gaze. → Cracker Barrel: tried to modernize, alienated its loyalists. Today, audiences are the micro-editors. Every move is dissected in real time. The safe bets? They vanish. The formulas? They fail. But the answer isn’t chasing controversy. It’s learning to move with culture, not control it. The strongest brands don’t retreat to beige castles. They understand brands are vessels of meaning. They see this moment not as chaos, but as an opportunity. An opportunity to broaden the lens. To bring in diverse perspectives. To read the cultural currents before stepping into them. The lesson isn’t “outrage sells.” The lesson is this: culture is complex, fast-moving, and discerning. To matter, your brand must be fluent enough to land the right way—not just to be heard, but to be understood. Because the greatest risk to your brand isn’t silence. It’s being heard for all the wrong reasons. The real danger cuts both ways: Irrelevance leaves you invisible. Misunderstanding leaves you exposed. The strongest brands navigate both.

Your customer service employees are struggling. Don't rush to solve the problem. First, ask "Why?" One office couldn't get employees to follow the correct procedure for greeting visitors. Employees were expected to be friendly, but also follow a few security protocols. The receptionist did it well. The back-up receptionist was also great. But chaos ensued when one of those two were out. Everyone else was expected to pitch in, but they never did it right. Management brainstormed a list of solutions. More training. Call a meeting. Send out an email. None of it worked. I was visiting the office for an unrelated consulting project. The manager explained the challenge, and I asked to chat with some of the employees. The first question I asked was "Why is covering the front a challenge?" The employees all admitted they struggled to follow the correct procedure for greeting visitors. "Why?" I asked. "We always forget it," admitted the employees. "Why?" I asked. "Because I don't use it often," said one employee. "By the time it's my turn to cover the front, it might be a few weeks since we talked about it in a meeting." Asking "Why?" just three times uncovered the real challenge. Employees wanted to do the right thing, but they did it so infrequently that they forgot the procedure. The solution became obvious. A small sign with the three step-procedure was placed at the front desk, so any employee covering for the receptionist could see it. Performance immediately improved and everyone followed the procedure. Bottom line: don't rely on brainstorming to solve customer service problems. Go to employees first and ask them "Why?" until you get to the root of the issue. #ServiceCulture

"We saved money with outsourcing, but we're losing our customers." That's what the CTO of a major Nordic bank told us when their software development partner in India couldn't grasp what their customers actually needed. Sound familiar? This $2B bank had outsourced development for cost savings. But the gap between Nordic customer expectations and delivery was widening. Product enhancements weren't hitting the mark. Quality was slipping. So they made a bold move: brought 65-70% of their outsourced team in-house, creating their own Global Capability Centre in India. But here's the thing—hiring the same people doesn't automatically fix the culture problem. That's where we came in. Here's how we transformed their struggle into success: 📍 We started with alignment, not assumptions. Vision and strategy workshops with GCC leadership created a shared understanding of what "Nordic quality" actually meant. 📍 We equipped managers to bridge cultures. Multiple capability workshops helped Indian managers understand Danish operational styles—and vice versa. 📍 We addressed team-specific challenges. Targeted interventions for vertical teams solved unique behavioral and alignment issues that were holding back performance. 📍 We invested in cross-cultural understanding. Workshops highlighted cultural sensitivities and differences, turning potential friction points into collaboration strengths. 📍 We coached high-potential leaders individually. 1-on-1 coaching helped emerging leaders navigate the evolving environment and exceed expectations. The result after 2 years? → A fully integrated GCC aligned with parent company culture → Peak performance levels that met Nordic quality standards → Cost savings maintained while customer satisfaction improved The lesson? When you bring outsourced teams in-house, don't just change the org chart. Change the culture. Facing a similar GCC transformation challenge? Let's connect. #GlobalCapabilityCenter #CulturalIntegration #BusinessTransformation #LeadershipDevelopment #GCC

One of the most important lessons I’ve learned from building businesses in Saudi Arabia is the power of what I call glocalization, which is the art of blending global strategies with local market insights. For brands to thrive in today’s interconnected world, they need to balance the strengths of global expertise while staying deeply connected to the local culture. Here’s how glocalization can help create a brand that resonates with Saudi consumers while positioning it for regional and global growth: 𝟏. 𝐊𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐭: Saudi Arabia is undergoing a rapid transformation, but local values and cultural nuances still drive consumer behavior. Understanding these insights allows you to tailor your offering to meet local expectations while leveraging global best practices. 𝟐. 𝐋𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐎𝐰𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 & 𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐲: When I worked at Majorel and now with X-Shift, we focused on embedding our brand into the local fabric by being authentic and owning our Saudi identity. Localization is not just about the translation of material to Arabic, but about relevance and creating real connections with consumers. 𝟑. 𝐀𝐝𝐚𝐩𝐭 𝐆𝐥𝐨𝐛𝐚𝐥 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐋𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐍𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐬: Don’t just import a strategy. Make it yours. While global frameworks provide a solid foundation, they need to be adapted to fit the unique needs of the local market. Successful brands take the best of both worlds. 𝟒. 𝐏𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐑𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐭𝐡: Once you’ve built a strong local presence, you’re ready to scale. By aligning your brand with local needs, you set yourself up for expansion into regional markets with similar cultural touchpoints then later realize your global ambitions. There’s no universal formula for success, but the key is finding the perfect balance. My experience building businesses in Saudi Arabia has taught me that success comes from creating something that truly resonates with people where they are, all while thinking ambitiously. When you master this balance, you build a brand that is not only deeply connected to its local roots but also flexible and ready to thrive on the global stage. What strategies have you found most effective in balancing local relevance with global ambition? Share your thoughts in the comments! #business #global #local #growth #KSA #SaudiArabia

Leadership without a DEI lens cannot lead a diverse workforce. I'll give you two examples from my time in retail: 1. During the month of Ramadan, our store leader made sure the managers were aware that our Muslim employees were fasting. She instructed us to be mindful when they requested longer breaks, needed to leave early, or took time off to recoup or celebrate the end of Ramadan. 2. Our neighborhood had a large Somali population, so naturally many of them were our customers and employees. After one of my American-born colleagues complained about how long Somali employees took to move the line, my boss calmly pulled me aside for a cross-cultural lesson. She told me how, in many cultures outside the U.S., time is more fluid; that everything isn't as time-oriented. It was customary for Somali customers and employees to discuss life, family, and health, even in the pharmacy checkout. Of course, we still needed to get our customers through the line, but we had to be mindful that in some cultures, transactional conversations are not the norm. Without a DEI lens, there would have been a lot of misunderstandings in each scenario. And we all know misunderstandings on the job can lead to disciplinary action, termination, or lack of upward mobility. Too often, we humans only see things from one perspective. In the process, we potentially harm those with different lived experiences, especially those from marginalized backgrounds. What's good for the goose is not always good for the gander. #Diversity #DEI #DiversityAndInclusion #Inclusion #Equality [Alt text written within the photo.]

Does exceptional service still translate into real customer loyalty in China? 😬 Yes, in 2025, Haidilao - one of country's top examples of service culture - still relies heavily on wow service as a foundational part of its strategy, but there's more. Here’s what make them unique: 1️⃣ Hyper-personalized service delivered through 专属客户经理 (dedicated customer managers). This deep, personalized connection is a powerful modern loyalty driver for the chain. 2️⃣ Robust ecosystem and digital integration are likely the most significant reason for 200 million members in its loyalty program. For instance, Haidilao member points can be used with other industries like travel and transportation, etc). 3️⃣ Diversified A Thousand Stores, A Thousand Faces Strategy 千店千面 also plays a role, as Haidilao caters to diverse needs, such as local tastes (e.g., spring menus in Shandong, cherry blossom menus in Hubei) ; cooking workshops (e.g. fresh cut beef workshop, seafood workshop, etc); late-night snack joints and pet-friendly stores, etc. Plus their multi-brand strategy with 126 stores under 14 other brands (like BBQ and fried chicken sub brands) also make a difference. More in the recent Bloomberg article by the amazing Biyun Song. Your take? https://lnkd.in/gmphDSA3

"𝘓𝘦𝘵’𝘴 𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴." In the U.S., it means delay the discussion. In the U.K., it means start the discussion. 𝐒𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐬. 𝐎𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠. Now imagine navigating that kind of nuance not just in language, but in culture, etiquette, and expectations while running businesses globally - India, UAE, South America, Europe, US. Solving global business problems is basically a masterclass in diplomatic relations. In one country, being direct is respected. In another, it’s seen as rude. Refusing tea or coffee can be seen as a lack of interest in the relationship in one place and perfectly fine in another. You start picking up unspoken rules: ➡️ When to push, when to pause ➡️ When silence is agreement and when it’s disapproval ➡️ How the same “yes” can mean absolutely, maybe, or not a chance Running businesses globally has taught me that the product or service is only half the battle. The other half is building trust across borders -- knowing how to listen, adapt, and speak in a way that resonates in that specific context. 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐚𝐧’𝐭 𝐆𝐨𝐨𝐠𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭. You can only learn it by being in the room, making mistakes, and adjusting in real time. In global business, you’re not just a founder. You’re a translator, a bridge, and sometimes, a peacekeeper. What’s the most surprising cultural or communication difference you’ve experienced at work? #founderdiaries #culturalcontext #globalbrand #buildingaglobalbrand #communication #diplomacy #context

People criticized Nike for this campaign, and it served as a marketing lesson that every global company needs to understand. The London Marathon is one of the world's major marathons. This year, it attracted over 55,645 participants. Hence, making it a natural fit for Nike's marketing efforts. Their campaign copy was - "Never Again. Until Next Year." Quite interesting to capture that familiar feeling runners have after completing the 26.2-mile race. Anyone who has run a marathon knows this sentiment - you're exhausted, you swear you'll never do it again, but somehow you're back the following year. ➡️However, the phrase "Never Again" holds deep historical significance. It originated as a solemn vow after the Holocaust, when 2 out of every 3 European Jews were killed. This phrase became a commitment to ensure such atrocities would never happen again. ➡️The campaign's timing was particularly sensitive, launching close to Yom HaShoah, which is Holocaust Remembrance Day observed annually to honor the memory of those lost. What this situation teaches us about marketing is the importance of cultural context in global campaigns. For marketers working on global campaigns, this highlights three important considerations: 1. Diverse perspectives in creative review processes help identify potential cultural sensitivities. 2. Understanding historical context becomes crucial when your audience spans different cultures and communities. 3. Thorough research into local customs and significant dates can prevent unintended conflicts. It doesn’t mean that you should avoid bold, creative ideas. They do work, but ensure those ideas work across all the communities you're trying to reach. What do you think about this campaign? #nike #marketing