Part 5 - When the customer meets the employee
Many businesses talk about the customer as if the relationship primarily consists of products, prices, technology and channels. But many customers meet the business through a human being.
It could be the store employee, customer service representative, advisor, salesperson, service technician or the person who responds when something has gone wrong.
This meeting is important for several reasons.
The employee represents the business at the moment the customer needs help. At the same time, the employee is in a unique position to observe questions, frustrations, needs and changes in the market.
The first line is therefore not just a service function.
It can be one of your business's most important sources of trust, customer insight and learning .
The first line is the business from the customer's perspective.
The customer rarely thinks about which department the employee belongs to.
If the customer meets a store employee, she meets the business.
If she calls customer service, she meets the business.
If she talks to an advisor, she meets the business.
Internally, the employee may have limited responsibilities, specific powers and a specific role in the organization. For the customer, such boundaries are often invisible.
This creates an important responsibility.
A good strategy, a strong brand and a good product can be weakened if the customer encounters an employee who lacks information, time or opportunity to help.
Similarly, a difficult situation can be significantly improved if the customer meets a person who understands the problem and can actually do something about it.
This does not mean that all responsibility should be placed on the front line.
On the contrary.
The quality of the customer meeting also depends on how the business organizes, trains and supports the employees who meet the customer.
Service is more than politeness
Good service is often associated with friendliness.
It is important, but insufficient.
A nice employee who doesn't have access to the right information
can still provide a poor customer experience.
A friendly customer service representative who is not authorized to solve the problem can make the conversation pleasant without the customer moving forward.
Good service therefore requires several things at the same time:
understanding the customer's problem
relevant professional knowledge
access to the right information
ability to explain
sufficient authority
time to find a good solution
willingness to take responsibility for the next step
Service is thus both human and organizational .
It's not enough to hire good people if the systems around them make it difficult to help the customer.
The customer notices when the organization is not coherent
This becomes especially clear when the customer has to repeat information.
She has already explained the problem in a form.
Then she has to explain it again in chat.
Then she calls and has to start over.
For the business, this can be due to three different systems.
For the customer, it is one continuous bad experience.
The front line then becomes the place where the consequences of the business's internal weaknesses become visible.
The employee may experience the same problems repeatedly:
information that doesn't follow the customer, systems that don't talk to each other, unclear rules, missing inventory data or processes that are more difficult than they need to be.
Therefore, the customer meeting is also a mirror of the organization.
It shows how well the business actually works from the outside.
The customer service representative has knowledge that management does not necessarily have.
The frontline employee faces reality in real time.
She listens to the questions customers ask.
She discovers what they don't understand.
She notices which products cause problems.
She hears what the competitors are offering.
She sees where digital solutions fail.
She can discover new needs before they become visible in the reports.
This makes the front line a source of knowledge.
But knowledge is often scattered and informal.
One employee hears ten times that customers don't understand a pricing structure.
Another discovers that customers keep asking for a feature that doesn't exist.
A third sees that many customers use the product in a different way than the business had intended.
If these observations remain with each individual employee, the organization does not necessarily learn anything.
Value arises when the business manages to gather experience and identify patterns .
The customer meeting is also an insight meeting
Customer service is often measured as an operational activity.
How many calls were answered?
How long was the wait?
How quickly was the case concluded?
These are relevant goals.
But they don't say everything about the value that arises in the conversation.
A customer meeting can also provide information about:
new needs
unclear products
weak product information
technical problems
changed expectations
friction in the customer journey
ideas for improvements
This means that a call can have two values at the same time .
It can solve the customer's problem.
And it can teach the business something.
If the business only measures the first value, it risks overlooking the second.
A complaint may be more valuable than it seems
Complaints can be demanding.
The customer may be irritated.
The employee must handle the conflict.
The business may have made a mistake.
But the complaint also contains information.
If one customer complains, it may be an isolated incident.
If a hundred customers complain about the same thing, the business has received a signal.
Thus, the question should not only be:
How do we end this case?
The business should also ask:
Why did it arise?
The customer service representative may be the first to see the pattern.
If the business has good systems for passing this knowledge on, the complaint can be the start of an improvement.
Then customer service goes from being purely problem-solving to also becoming part of the company's learning system.
Trust is built in concrete meetings
Trust is abstract.
But it is built through concrete experiences.
The customer may not expect the business to never make mistakes.
However, she often expects the business to handle the error properly.
Here the employee plays an important role.
How is the customer greeted?
Is the problem understood?
Does anyone take responsibility?
Does the customer have to fight to be believed?
Does she receive clear information about what happens next?
Such moments can have a major impact on how the customer evaluates the business afterwards.
This is also why Richard Branson's view of employees and customers is relevant in this part of the series. Virgin has for many years emphasized the connection between employee experience and customer experience.
A commonly used Branson principle is:
"Train people well enough so they can leave, treat them well enough so they don't want to." - Richard Branson
The point is basically about employees, but it has a clear connection to the customer: the business needs competent people who are both able and willing to create good meetings.
The good employee needs room for maneuver
A customer can experience great frustration if the employee constantly has to say:
"I'm not allowed to do that."
"I can't do that."
"You need to call another department."
"The system won't let me."
Some restrictions are necessary.
Businesses need control, rules and security.
But too little room for maneuver can make the first line ineffective.
The employee can see the solution, but not be allowed to use it.
This creates frustration for both parties.
The customer experiences the business as rigid.
The employee feels that she is not allowed to use her judgment.
Good customer orientation therefore requires a balance between standardization and professional judgment .
The employee must know when the rules apply.
But she must also have clear room for maneuver when the situation requires individual assessment.
The employee must receive the correct information
Modern customer relationships are largely information-based.
The customer often expects the employee to be able to see:
what has been ordered, when the item was shipped, what agreement the customer has, what previous inquiries there are and what has already been done.
When this information is missing, customer meetings become more difficult.
The employee must spend time searching.
The customer must explain the story again.
The conversation gets longer.
Frustration is increasing.
Technology can therefore strengthen the human customer relationship.
A good CRM system, good knowledge bases and coherent customer data can make the employee much better able to help.
The important thing is that technology supports people.
Not that the human has to spend most of the conversation fighting with the technology.
Efficiency must not be measured too narrowly
The first line is often cost-sensitive.
That makes efficiency important.
But poor goal design can create incorrect behavior.
If customer service is primarily measured by call length, the fastest call can be rewarded even if the customer has to call back later.
If the employee is measured by the number of cases closed, the organization may have many closed cases without the fundamental problems being solved.
The business should therefore investigate more than speed.
Relevant efficiency can also be:
whether the problem was solved the first time
if the customer had to contact again
whether the employee had the necessary information
whether the cause of the problem was recorded
whether recurring problems were raised further
whether the customer's time was used effectively
In other words, effectiveness should be assessed from both sides of the relationship .
The customer's time also has value
This is an important perspective.
Businesses are good at measuring their own working hours.
The customer's time is less frequently visible in the accounts.
But the customer spends time standing in line, waiting on the phone, finding information, explaining problems and correcting errors.
When a business improves a process and saves the customer time, it creates value.
When shifting work to the customer to reduce its own costs, the business should also ask what this does to the customer experience.
The customer service representative often discovers these types of problems first.
This is where the customer says:
“Why do I have to do this again?”
"Why can't you see what I've already submitted?"
“Why is this so difficult?”
Such questions are not just an annoyance.
They are insights into friction .
The front line can be a source of innovation
That brings us directly to Part 6.
When the employee sees the same problems repeatedly, ideas often arise.
What if we changed the text?
What if the customer received this information earlier?
What if the systems were connected?
What if we could resolve this directly without forwarding the case?
What if the product was changed?
This is innovation in a very concrete form.
Not necessarily major breakthroughs.
But improvements that occur because someone sees the difference between how the process was intended and how it actually works.
The front line can therefore be an important part of employee-driven innovation.
But then the organization must be willing to listen.
When ideas disappear
One of the biggest losses can occur when employees have learned that no one is interested.
They have previously declined.
Nothing happened.
They came up with suggestions.
No one answered.
Eventually they stop reporting.
Then the business doesn't just lose its ideas.
It also loses some of its contact with the market.
This is a management challenge.
Amy Edmondson's research on psychological safety is relevant here.
She has shown how important it is that employees feel they can speak up about mistakes, problems and ideas without unreasonable social risk.
In organizations where employees don't dare to say what they see, important problems can remain hidden.
A key point from Edmondson can be summarized as follows:
"Psychological safety is a belief that one will not be punished or humiliated for speaking up with ideas, questions, concerns or mistakes." -Amy Edmondson
This is not just about the work environment.
It is also about the organization's ability to learn.
Management must take an interest in what the front line knows
If management wants real customer focus, it must ask questions that go beyond the month's customer satisfaction score.
What do employees hear?
What has changed?
What questions come up more often than before?
What annoys customers?
What is not working well in the systems?
Which products create the most uncertainty?
What are customers asking for that we don't offer?
This requires structured channels between the front line and the rest of the organization.
This could be regular meetings, systematic categorization of customer inquiries, or direct contact between customer service and product development.
The point is not the form.
The point is that the business must make it possible for knowledge to move .
The customer and the employee create knowledge together
Customer insights are often presented as something the business collects from the customer.
But in direct customer meetings, insight arises in a relationship.
The customer explains.
The employee asks.
The customer elaborates.
The employee knows the product and can connect the information to previous experiences.
Through the conversation, both parties can understand the problem better.
This makes the customer meeting a form of knowledge production.
The customer brings the experience.
The employee brings the company's knowledge.
The meeting between them can create new insights.
That's one of the reasons why the customer service agent experience can be so
valuable.
She doesn't just learn from one customer.
She learns through patterns across many clients .
The front line is part of the invisible capital
Here we meet again The Invisible Capital.
An experienced customer service representative may have developed significant knowledge of:
the customers, the products, the problems, the organization and what actually works.
This knowledge is not necessarily contained in any database.
It is found in experience.
If the employee leaves without the knowledge being shared, the business could lose more than one employee.
It may lose some of its market understanding.
Therefore, businesses should also think about how knowledge from the front line is documented and shared.
Employee experience is not just about labor.
It can be intellectual and relational capital .
AI can empower employees
Artificial intelligence could have a particularly interesting role in the front line.
AI can help employees find information faster.
It can summarize past customer history.
It can suggest relevant solutions.
It can analyze large volumes of inquiries and identify recurring problems.
This can reduce much of the routine work that currently takes time.
But the value depends on how the technology is used.
If AI is only used to further reduce call times, the business could miss a bigger opportunity.
If it is instead used to give employees better knowledge and more time for complex situations, technology can strengthen both service and learning.
The best use of AI may therefore be to make the human in the customer meeting better.
Automation makes the human encounter more important
As more and more simple questions are solved digitally, the role of the frontline may also change.
The simplest inquiries may disappear into self-service and AI.
What remains may be the most difficult situations.
Complex problems.
Dissatisfied customers.
Big decisions.
Situations that require discretion.
Then the demands on the employee may actually increase.
First line care is becoming less routine and more knowledge-intensive.
This makes investment in expertise even more important.
Automation therefore does not necessarily mean that the relationship between the customer and the employee becomes less important.
It can make human encounters less frequent but more meaningful .
The customer remembers how the business made them feel
Maya Angelou is associated with a phrase that is often used in the context of service and relationships:
"People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel."
Although the quote is used in many contexts, it hits something central in the customer meeting.
The customer does not only evaluate the solution technically.
She also considers how she was treated.
Was she taken seriously?
Was she listened to?
Was the problem understood?
Did she get help?
These experiences affect trust in the business.
Therefore, the employee's role is difficult to reduce to the efficient handling of cases.
The relationship is also emotional.
The first line connects the business with the market
We can thus describe the first line as a connecting link.
On one hand, the business stands with:
products, systems, rules, technology and strategy.
On the other hand, the customer states:
needs, expectations, questions, problems and experiences.
The employee finds himself between these two worlds.
She will translate the business for the client.
And the customer for the business.
This makes the front line something far more than a service channel.
It is an interface between the organization and the market .
The meeting can create both service, trust and insight
This is the core of Part 5.
When the customer meets the employee, three things can happen simultaneously.
The customer can get help.
The business can build or weaken trust.
And the employee can learn something about the customer.
A good customer meeting is therefore not only successful when the case is closed.
It can also be successful when the organization uses what it learned to make the next customer encounter better.
That's when the front line truly becomes part of the business's value creation.
From the customer meeting to the innovation
Thus we now have the missing connection between Part 4 and Part 6.
Part 4 showed how customer insights arise.
This article shows how much of this insight can arise in the encounter between the customer and the employee.
The next step is about what the organization does with the knowledge.
Will it be left with the employee?
Or will it turn into improvement, new solutions and innovation?
This leads us further to:
Recommended literature
Customer focus, customer insight and customer relationships cannot be understood in isolation from developments in digitalisation, innovation and user experience. The way a business interacts with its customers is shaped today by people, technology, digital services, organisation and the ability to develop new solutions.
Therefore, this bibliography currently contains books that highlight several of these perspectives.
Here you will find literature on digitalization, innovation, user experience, usability and the development of digital services, among other things. Steve Krug's Don't Make Me Think is a natural example: The book is about usability on the web, but at the same time touches on a fundamental question in the entire Customer series – how easy or difficult the business makes it for people to succeed in what they are trying to do.
Similarly, literature on innovation can help us understand how observations, needs and problems of customers and users can be developed into better products, services and work processes.
The literature list will eventually be expanded with more books that specifically address customer focus, customer insight, customer relations, customer loyalty, e-commerce, service and customer experience.
The goal is not to collect as many books as possible, but to build a literature base that makes it possible to understand the customer from multiple professional perspectives.
From San Francisco and Oxford to the customer
Experiences from professional seminars and study trips in San Francisco and Oxford are also part of the background for this professional universe. Topics such as innovation, digitalization, e-commerce, user experience and new business models have over time contributed to a broader understanding of how technology and organizations must take as their starting point the people the solutions will actually work for.
The Customer Series continues this perspective: Technology is a tool. Innovation is a tool. Value arises when solutions actually work for the people they are designed for.
The Long Tail: Why the Future of Business Is Selling Less of More
Author(s): Chris Anderson
Short review
The Long Tail is one of the most influential books on how the internet has transformed commerce, marketing, and consumer behavior. Chris Anderson introduces the theory of the “Long Tail,” which explains how digital markets enable significant value creation through a large number of niche products, rather than relying on a few bestsellers.
The book shows how digital distribution, low inventory costs, search engines, and intelligent recommendation systems have made it profitable to offer an almost unlimited product range. Where traditional stores were limited by physical shelf space, online stores can offer millions of products and let customers find exactly what they are looking for.
Chris Anderson illustrates the theory with examples from Amazon, Netflix, Google, and the digital music industry, showing how the internet has changed the rules of competition for businesses around the world. Many of the insights have since become even more relevant through artificial intelligence, personalization, and modern search technology.
The authors take the reader through the entire process – from planning and organizing to publishing, managing and continuously improving content on websites and digital services. Although technology has evolved since the book was published, the principles of quality, relevance, management and long-term content work are at least as relevant in an era where search engines and artificial intelligence assess the credibility and usefulness of content.
Why we recommend the book
At The Invisible Capital, we consider The Long Tail to be one of the most important books in e-commerce, digitalization, and modern value creation.
The book explains why customers no longer just buy the most popular products, but increasingly find value in specialized products and services that meet individual needs. This insight has had enormous impact on the development of online stores, digital marketplaces, search engine optimization (SEO), information architecture, and content strategy.
Today we see that the theory also fits very well into the development of artificial intelligence. AI helps people discover relevant content, products and knowledge that were previously difficult to find. This has given the Long Tail principle a new dimension, where well-structured content and high professional quality are increasingly important for visibility, trust and value creation.
This is a book we believe everyone who works with e-commerce, digital marketing, customer experience, innovation, digital strategy or artificial intelligence should read.
Content Strategy for the Web (2nd Edition)
Author/authors: Kristina Halvorson and Melissa Rach
Short review
How do you create content that actually helps people – and at the same time supports your business goals? Content Strategy for the Web is considered one of the most influential books in the field of content strategy and digital communications. The book shows how good content does not arise by chance, but through a deliberate strategy where user needs, the organization's goals, structure, work processes and management are closely linked.
The authors take the reader through the entire process – from planning and organizing to publishing, managing and continuously improving content on websites and digital services. Although technology has evolved since the book was published, the principles of quality, relevance, management and long-term content work are at least as relevant in an era where search engines and artificial intelligence assess the credibility and usefulness of content.
Why we recommend the book
At The Invisible Capital, we believe that good content is one of the most important forms of invisible value creation. A website is far more than design and technology – it is the content that builds trust, creates great customer experiences and helps people find the answers they are looking for.
This book is perfect for leaders, communications consultants, content producers, web editors, UX designers, and anyone working with digital services. It shows why a clear content strategy leads to better user experiences, more effective interactions, and stronger digital results over time.
In an era where artificial intelligence is increasingly important in how information is discovered, understood, and communicated, this book is more relevant than ever. It reminds us that technology alone never creates value – it is good, structured, and relevant content that makes the difference.
Don't Make Me Think
Author: Steve Krug
Short review
Don't Make Me Think is one of the world's most influential books on usability and web design. Since its first edition in 2000, the book has helped designers, developers, content producers, and managers understand a simple but powerful principle: Good digital services should be intuitive. The user should be able to complete their task without having to stop and think about how the website works.
Why we recommend the book
This is one of the books that has had the greatest impact on my own work with digital services. Over the years – from SAS and the Norwegian Opera & Ballet to working on Bærum Municipality’s website – the principles in this book have been an important reminder that technology is never an end in itself. The goal is to make everyday life easier for the people who use the services. Despite the fact that the book was published many years ago, the message is just as relevant today.
Internet Marketing & eCommerce
Authors: Ward Hanson and Kirthi Kalyanam
Short review
Internet Marketing & eCommerce provides a thorough introduction to how the internet has changed marketing, commerce, and business development. The book combines theory and practical examples in digital marketing, e-commerce, customer behavior, value creation, and digital business models. Although written at a time when the internet was still in its infancy, many of the fundamental principles are still highly relevant.
Why we recommend the book
This book was an important part of my own learning journey in digital marketing and e-commerce. It helped build my understanding of how technology, customer experiences and business strategy are interconnected – an insight that later became very important in my work with SAS, the Norwegian Opera & Ballet, Bærum Municipality and eventually the project The Invisible Capital. Many of the ideas about customer value, digitalization and innovation presented on the website have their roots in the knowledge this book conveys.
The Innovator's Solution: Creating and Sustaining Successful Growth
Authors: Clayton M. Christensen and Michael E. Raynor
Short review
In this sequel to The Innovator's Dilemma, Clayton Christensen shows how businesses can translate innovation theory into practical strategy. The book explains how companies can identify new growth opportunities, develop disruptive innovations, and build organizations that thrive in rapidly changing markets.
Why we recommend the book
While The Innovator's Dilemma explains why established businesses are often challenged, The Innovator's Solution provides concrete advice on how to meet the challenges. The book is therefore a natural next step for anyone who wants to understand innovation, strategy and long-term value creation.
The Innovator's DNA: Mastering the Five Skills of Disruptive Innovators
Authors: Jeff Dyer, Hal Gregersen and Clayton M. Christensen
Short review
What characterizes people who create groundbreaking innovations? The authors identify five key skills – observation, questioning, experimentation, networking and association – that are common to the world's most innovative leaders and entrepreneurs.
Why we recommend the book
This book shifts the focus from organizations to the people behind innovation. It shows that creativity and innovation can be developed through deliberate training and experience. The perspectives align well with the philosophy behind Invisible Capital, where human competence and curiosity are the most important drivers of development.
Competing Against Luck: The Story of Innovation and Customer Choice
Authors: Clayton M. Christensen, Taddy Hall, Karen Dillon and David S. Duncan
Short review
In this book, Clayton Christensen further develops the theory of Jobs to Be Done – the idea that customers do not primarily buy products, but "hire" them to solve specific needs. Through practical examples, the authors show how businesses can develop products and services that address customers' real-world challenges.
Why we recommend the book
For anyone working in customer experience, service design, and innovation, this is one of the most insightful books ever written. It reminds us that value creation always starts with understanding the people we are developing solutions for – a fundamental principle of Invisible Capital.
The Innovator's Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail
Author: Clayton M. Christensen
Short review
The Innovator's Dilemma is considered one of the most influential books on innovation and technological change. Clayton M. Christensen introduces the theory of disruptive innovation and explains why even the most successful businesses can fail when new technologies and business models challenge established markets. Through a series of examples, he shows how companies often focus on today's customers and incremental improvements, while overlooking innovations that later change entire industries.
Why we recommend the book
This is one of the books that has had the greatest impact on modern innovation thinking. When I first read it, it gave me a whole new perspective on why some businesses succeed in transformation, while others lag behind – even when they are well led. The insight has been an important part of my own understanding of digitalization, innovation and change management, and many of the reflections in The Invisible Capital build on the ideas Clayton Christensen presents in this classic. The book is as relevant today, in the face of artificial intelligence and digital transformation, as it was when it was published.
Open Innovation: The New Imperative for Creating and Profiting from Technology
Author: Henry Chesbrough
Short review
Henry Chesbrough introduced the concept of Open Innovation and changed the way many businesses think about research and development. He shows how companies can create more innovation through collaboration with customers, universities, start-ups, suppliers and other external partners.
Why we recommend the book
Open Innovation has had a major influence on modern innovation thinking and was also an important topic during the seminars in Oxford and San Francisco. The book shows why future value creation occurs in the interaction between people, businesses and knowledge environments – not within closed organizations alone.
Blue Ocean Strategy: How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make the Competition Irrelevant
Authors: W. Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne
Short review
Blue Ocean Strategy challenges businesses to shift their focus away from fierce competition and instead create new markets with little or no competition. The authors present strategies and models that help organizations develop innovative products, services, and business models.
Why we recommend the book
This book has inspired leaders around the world to rethink strategy and innovation. Instead of competing for the same customers, it shows how businesses can create new value through creativity and differentiation. The perspectives align very well with the themes of innovation, digitalization, and long-term value creation in Invisible Capital.
Outside Innovation: How Your Customers Will Co-Design Your Company's Future
Authors: Patricia B. Seybold
Short review
Patricia Seybold shows how businesses can create better products and services by actively involving customers in the innovation process. The book describes how dialogue, co-creation and close collaboration with users can provide better solutions and stronger competitiveness.
Why we recommend the book
Customers often hold the most important insights into how products and services can be improved. This book emphasizes the importance of listening, involving, and learning from users – a perspective that is echoed in many of the articles on The Invisible Capital. Innovation rarely happens alone; it is created in the interaction between people.
Blown to Bits: How the New Economics of Information Transforms Strategy
Authors: Philip Evans and Thomas S. Wurster
Short review
This book analyzes how digital information is changing competitive conditions, markets, and business strategies. The authors explain how the internet is disrupting established structures and creating new opportunities for businesses that are able to think differently.
Why we recommend the book
Although written early in the internet revolution, the book describes many of the developments that still characterize business today. It provides valuable perspective on how digitalization affects value chains, competition, and innovation – themes that are central to Invisible Capital.
Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything
Authors: Don Tapscott and Anthony D. Williams
Short review
Wikinomics shows how openness, sharing and collaboration across organizations create new forms of innovation and value creation. Through a number of international examples, the authors describe how digital networks make it possible to develop products, services and knowledge together.
Why we recommend the book
This book was groundbreaking when it was first published, and many of the ideas have since become a natural part of everyday digital life. The perspectives on collaboration, knowledge sharing, and open innovation processes align very well with the philosophy behind Invisible Capital, where people and networks are at the center of value creation.
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