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Make CX Your Boardroom Priority

By Lauren Feehrer, CCXP posted 18 days ago

  

This post first appeared on LinkedIn.

What is your company’s most aggressive growth strategy?

Perhaps you just thought about market expansion, product innovation, or digital transformation.

But what if I told you that a customer experience (CX) strategy could be just as powerful—an engine that drives growth and strengthens customer loyalty and profitability in ways traditional strategies often miss?

Last week, I met with a team of executives to discuss CX as a strategic growth driver. I’m always energized by these conversations—when a company is ready to look beyond just words and commit to customer centricity in a way that holds the organization accountable. We talked about lead and lag measures and the need to emphasize operational data that connects directly to both customer and business outcomes. And, of course, we tackled the hot topic of CX ROI, a challenging but essential area for today’s customer experience leaders.

As I hear of more CX leaders and teams being laid off, budgets being slashed, and resources stretched thin, it’s clear that the value of CX isn’t always fully understood at the executive level. Yet, in times like these, a well-defined CX strategy isn’t a luxury—it’s a lifeline.

The rigor needed to make CX a true asset: building organizational accountability, prioritizing actions that impact both the business and the customer, and measuring success in ways that connect CX directly to financial outcomes.

While surveys and journey maps provide valuable insights, they’re just part of the picture. A real CX strategy focuses on driving actions that directly impact both customer satisfaction and the bottom line.

I had the privilege of consulting for EMC² during their heyday in the early 2000s, long before their acquisition by Dell. I was just a kid, carrying my grandfather’s briefcase to my cubicle, dressed in my Ann Taylor slacks and cardigan set, learning how to manage global teams and build quality software. I felt privileged, not just for being let in the door with my liberal arts degree and no clue how to even spell ROI, but for the rigor that EMC² had in work that mattered.

It was terrifyingly awesome. IT projects had to be approved by the Vice President of Customer Service, whose title was also “Business CIO.” Crafting a business case took more than an innovative idea and passion—it required careful planning, buy-in from cross-functional stakeholders, and, most importantly, financial analysis that highlighted tangible benefits. Presenting the case to her was intimidating—she said no a lot. I later realized that her no’s paved the way for success; she only approved projects that had the most significant impact on both customers and the business.

Fast forward 20-something years, and I can still picture that young woman pleading her case to Kathie Lyons. And I want to encourage fellow CX leaders to have the same discipline when making a case for investment in the programs we design.

Let’s dive in…

CX serves two crucial purposes:

Growth Driver:

  • CX insights and human-centered design guide smarter decisions, reducing siloed thinking and empowering the entire leadership team to make proactive, value-driven choices. Designing and implementing improvements and innovation based on customer need

Risk Mitigator:

  • Prevents issues before they arise, minimizing costly client support and negative word-of-mouth, ultimately safeguarding the company’s reputation and profitability.

In your program, you're likely addressing both aspects, but it's essential to tailor your messaging to resonate with each member of your C-Suite based on what matters most to them. A Chief Marketing Officer might focus on how customer feedback can refine targeting strategies, leading to higher conversion rates and increased revenue. A Chief Legal Officer would be interested in how effective CX practices can help identify potential compliance issues early, reducing the risk of legal disputes and protecting the company from costly litigation.

Before you walk into the boardroom, create a stakeholder map. It doesn’t need to be fancy; I’ve written plenty of them on napkins! Start by listing each person’s name, then give them a CX score (yep, that’s a 1-10 score on how aligned they are with your CX strategy). Next, explain why you assigned that score, and finally, note what each stakeholder cares about most. You might already recognize this subconsciously, but putting it into writing will spark a-ha moments that can help you tailor your messages.

While we’re eager to proclaim the benefits of our work, CX leaders tend to approach it too broadly. Macro-CX emphasizes long-term growth and customer loyalty through strategies like:

  • Acquisition: Attracting and winning new clients with exceptional experiences.
  • Retention: Building loyalty and keeping clients coming back, thereby reducing churn.
  • Overall growth: Expanding client relationships and driving higher lifetime value.

However, to truly resonate in the boardroom, we need to shift our conversation to Micro-CX, highlighting its immediate impacts. This involves discussing:

  • Top-line growth by enhancing client acquisition and satisfaction.
  • Bottom-line impacts that come from streamlining operations to reduce costs and improve efficiency and profitability.

Micro-CX ROI is all about driving daily revenue impact through granular, day-to-day touchpoints that directly affect revenue-producing activities. These small moments in the client journey—such as smoother checkouts, faster service, and clearer communication—contribute to incremental improvements and enhance client satisfaction. To truly see ROI, your CX efforts must target issues that impact everyday client interactions and generate immediate value. Unlike macro-level CX strategies focused on acquisition, retention, and growth, Micro-CX delivers tangible results in real-time by enhancing individual interactions that boost daily sales, reduce friction, and foster client loyalty on the spot.

At EMC², those micro-CX moments were crucial in bridging the gap between customer service and engineering. By enabling teams to connect with devices in the field to deploy patches remotely, we significantly reduced downtime, which was a quantifiable benefit that drove efficiency. Additionally, by deploying those patches, we mitigated the risk of data unavailability, which posed a significant threat to our clients’ operations, particularly in industries like banking and healthcare. The potential for lost data was a key risk metric we included in our business cases, highlighting the critical need to maintain client trust and retention.

Here’s what I’ve learned a CX leader needs to do—from my early days at EMC² to my 20 years of proving the value of CX activities each day:

1. Align with finance on key calculations that support the hard benefits in a business case. The worst thing you can do is walk into the boardroom with your numbers only to have finance question their validity. Establishing a collaborative relationship with your finance team early on ensures that your metrics are solid and credible. This alignment not only strengthens your business case but also demonstrates that you understand the financial implications of your CX initiatives, making it easier to gain buy-in from the executive team.

Which calculations should you focus on?

  • Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) by segment: Helps you understand the long-term value of each customer type and spotlights the cost of a lost customer.
  • Average Handle Time (AHT): Assesses efficiency in customer interactions.
  • First Contact Resolution (FCR): Evaluates the effectiveness of service.
  • Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC): Assesses the efficiency of your marketing and sales efforts.

Additionally, focus on metrics specific to your industry, such as in insurance:

  • Hit Rate: Measures the percentage of successful applications or policies written compared to the total number submitted, reflecting the effectiveness of sales strategies.
  • Claims Processing Time: The average time taken to process claims, impacting customer satisfaction and retention.
  • Loss Ratio: The ratio of claims paid out to premiums earned, indicating the profitability of the insurance products.

2. Frame your proposals around the executive team’s personal legacy and long-term impact. When presenting CX initiatives, emphasize how these projects align with the executives' goals for the organization and their vision for the future.

Here’s how to approach it:

  • Connect to Corporate Vision: Illustrate how your CX initiatives support the company’s strategic goals and the executives’ personal objectives, such as enhancing brand reputation, driving innovation, or achieving sustainability targets.
  • Highlight Competitive Advantage: Discuss how investing in micro-CX not only improves customer satisfaction but also positions the company as a leader in the market, potentially leading to industry recognition and awards that reflect positively on the executives’ leadership.
  • Emphasize Lasting Change: Frame the conversation around creating a culture of customer-centricity that will outlast any individual executive, highlighting how their support for these initiatives can create a legacy of excellence in customer experience that shapes the organization’s future.

3. Demonstrate quick wins through pilot programs. Start by identifying a specific micro-CX initiative that addresses a pressing pain point for customers and can be implemented on a smaller scale. By launching a pilot program, you can gather data and insights that illustrate the tangible benefits of the initiative.

Highlight the following:

  • Measurable Outcomes: Present clear metrics from the pilot that demonstrate improvements in customer satisfaction, efficiency, or revenue.
  • Customer Feedback: Share qualitative feedback from customers that illustrates the positive impact of the initiative on their experience.
  • Scalability Potential: Discuss how successful pilot outcomes can be scaled across the organization to drive broader benefits.


As you navigate the boardroom discussions, remember that a robust CX strategy is not just an operational necessity but a critical component of your company’s growth and sustainability. By aligning with finance, tailoring your messaging to individual executives, and emphasizing both macro and micro CX initiatives, you position yourself as a leader who not only understands the intricacies of customer experience but also its profound impact on the organization’s legacy.

Now is the time to advocate for these vital investments with confidence and clarity. Your voice is needed now more than ever! 

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LoyaltyCraft was built from a passion for helping companies create meaningful customer experiences. Founded in 2016 by Lauren Feehrer CCXP, we focus on strategy, qualitative research, customer design, and employee engagement to help mid-market companies open the door to new customers and keep existing ones from leaving out the backdoor. You can schedule time to connect with Lauren here.


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