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Maz Iqbal

Maz Iqbal

Bold Intent
Maz helps his clients generate profitable growth by helping them craft and enact business, marketing, service, and digital strategies that create superior value for customers. He has 20+ years of experience that spans industry, corporate recovery, marketing services, and management consulting. Maz says he has something valuable to contribute in the areas of strategy, customer experience, leadership and organisational effectiveness. And invites you to check out the Customer+Leadership Blog (www.thecustomerblog.co.uk).
  • Is This The Answer to Collaboration, Creativity, and Innovation?
    0 comments 397 reads
    Posted on 2013-06-13

    I met up with a ex-colleague today who is passionate about customers, about service, and about the customer experience. He showed me the NPS charts and figures and lamented that so little real change is occurring in the organisation and so the NPS scores are static. He even went to a call-centre, sat with call-centre agents, and observed them responding to customer calls.

    What did he notice? He noticed that these agents were not picking up on the customer’s emotional state and responding creatively to generate a meaningful connection. They were too busy on the task of working many screens-systems, finding information, and relaying this information to customers.  He noticed that the call-centre agents were going about their customer conversations (and work) in a robotic way. I detected a hint of complaint towards the call-centre agents.

    This got me thinking about organisations and work places. In my 20+ years of experiences I have worked with-for many organisations and...

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  • Are These the 7 Key Difference Between Effective and Ineffective Leaders?
    0 comments 202 reads
    Posted on 2013-06-11

    In light of my experience and the continuing scandals – NSA/Prism and Lloyds PPI complaint handling – I have been reflecting-grappling with the leadership, accountability, and integrity. As such I wish to share with you my  take on the seven key differences between effective and ineffective leaders.

    1. Effective leaders are clear on what matters, communicate what matters, and model the desired values and behaviours. Ineffective leaders are either not clear on what matters or simply not able to able-willing to rule some stuff out. Ineffective leaders suck at communicating what matters. And they don’t live-model-embody the fine sounding values, beliefs, and behaviours that they talk about...

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  • Why Not Treat Customers, Employees and Suppliers Badly?
    0 comments 298 reads
    Posted on 2013-06-06

    We are not here merely to earn a living and to create value for our shareholders. We are here to enrich the world and make it a finer place to live. We will impoverish ourselves if we fail to do so.

    - Woodrow Wilson

    I cannot help noticing that the arguments for treating customers right are based on revenue and profits. I cannot help noticing that the arguments for treating employees right are based ultimately on revenue and profits. I cannot help noticing that the arguments for treating suppliers right are either missing or when present are also justified on the basis of the impact on revenues and profits.

    If we justify action on the basis of revenue and profit then surely it is OK to treat:

    • customers badly if that will lead to higher revenues and profits?
    • employees badly if that will lead to higher revenues and profits?
    • suppliers badly if that will lead to higher revenues, profits or cash...
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  • How Sky Failed Me at the Moment of Truth
    0 comments 344 reads
    Posted on 2013-06-05

    How companies respond to moments of truth says all there is to say about the company and its orientation towards customers. This is where the talk of customer focus, customer experience, and customer-centricity is actually put to the test by the customer. I have done some work in the telecommunications industry and I can tell you that device or service failure shows up as a moment of truth for many customers. When the customer relies on his phone and it no longer works that is a big deal for her. When the customer relied on his broadband connection and it fails that is big deal for him. Correct?

    Yesterday, my broadband connection failed and stayed that way for several hours. I searched through the Sky paperwork to find a customer services number. I didn’t find any as Sky have made a conscious choice not to print that number on their invoices/statements. Instead, the paperwork only shows the URL for the support section of the Sky website. That would have been useful if and...

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  • What Made The Apple Store Experience a Memorable One?
    2 comments 799 reads
    Posted on 2013-05-30

    It was early on a Saturday morning when my daughter and I turned up at the Apple store in Reading. What grabbed my attention? The store showed up as clean, bright, open, uncluttered, and spacious. I also noticed that there were many customers there.  Amongst each group of customers there was an Apple employee demonstrating the product and answering questions. I did not notice any customers walking around looking for an Apple employee to help them, serve them.

    Whilst I was taking this in, a matter of seconds, Andy approached us to see what we needed.  I shared the reason I was in the store, ”My daughters iPod will not charge”, and handed over the iPod to Andy. Then we followed Andy to the side of the store. He found an iPod station and proceeded to mount the ‘faulty iPod’ on the stand. Then I heard that familiar sound when the iPod starts charging. I was delighted to find that this was the case , and said “It must be the cable then!”.

    Andy went to get a new cable and...

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  • Who and What is the Biggest Obstacle to Making the Transition to Becoming a “Customer Company”?
    0 comments 350 reads
    Posted on 2013-05-28

    Are the Tops are the biggest obstacle to your organisation becoming a “Customer Company”?

    Some of you have questioned my emphasis on the Tops and their critical importance to any successful shift towards your organisation becoming a “Customer Company”.  Some of you have asked me why it is that I have focussed on the Tops and not the Middles and the Bottoms.  The answer is twofold.

    First, there is the fact that every system has certain points that have much higher leverage than others. Isn’t that  what we are looking for when we map the customer journey, assess the customer experience, and look for the “moments of truth” – the interactions that...

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  • How Well Are You Positioned to Make The Shift to Being a “Customer Company”? Answer these 10 Questions to Find Out
    4 comments 859 reads
    Posted on 2013-05-23

    It takes something to run a marathon.  It takes something to orient your organisation around the customer.  It takes something to be a “Customer Company”.  And it takes a lot more than technology or changing some processes here an there.

    What does it takes to be a “Customer Company”?  It takes passion.  It takes steadfast commitment. This passion and commitment has to reside in the hearts of your senior management (“Tops”). And this passion and commitment has to be visible and experienced throughout your organisation.

    Why does it take this level of passion and commitment from your Tops?  Because an authentic shift toward customer-centricity requires changes at multiple levels: priorities, policies, practices, processes, people, and platforms. This kind and scale of change only occurs when there is genuine passion, commitment and leadership from the people at the very top of your organisation.

    How can you work out if the Tops in your organisation have this kind...

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  • Can Insight into the Human Condition Help Us With Leadership, Employee Engagement, and Customer Experience?
    0 comments 329 reads
    Posted on 2013-05-20

    It occurs to me that “outside in” is being approached with an “inside-out” way of being in the world.  And the people that are doing this are blind to it.  What do I mean by that?  It is best to illustrate it through behaviour.  As such I urge you to read this post by Wim Rampen that points at the gulf between customer-centric rhetoric and company centred behaviour.

    Why is it that so many are doing “outside-in” through an “inside-out” lens. And are blind to it?  Why is it that so many talk about employee engagement and collaboration and yet there is so little of it?  Why is it that we talk about social and yet social media used by business folks is anything but social? Why is it that we talk about service and yet so little service is experienced?  How is it that there is so much...

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  • Change Only Works When…..
    0 comments 299 reads
    Posted on 2013-05-16

    The shift towards an authentic customer-centred orientation is a huge shift for just about every large organisation.  That means organisational change. At the heart of all effective organisational change lies effective communication.  Effective communication is radically different, I say distinct, from what passes for communication in the workplace.

    If you are going to make the kind of organisational shifts that are necessary to cultivate customer relationships, call forth the best from your employees, and excel at the customer experience game, then I advise you to listen to the wise words of Danny Meyer, in his book Setting The Table:

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  • Why Stop at Satisfaction When You Can Generate Happiness and Gratitude?
    0 comments 331 reads
    Posted on 2013-05-15

    Are you present to the big difference between a satisfied customer and a happy-grateful one?

    There is a satisfied customer. There is a happy customer. And there is a happy-grateful customer.  Too often we are not present to these distinctions. You and I can create satisfied customers simply by taking care of the functional aspects of the customer experience. To create a happy and grateful customer requires the human touch that evokes positive, life affirming emotions.  And, I say that the human touch makes all the difference when it comes to repeat business and customer advocacy in a services centred business.  Allow me to share a story with you.

    “I like Hussein.  He’s friendly, kind and genuine.”  That is what my daughter said to me, with a big smile on her face, as we were leaving The Daruchini, our local Bangladeshi restaurant in Binfield.   I found myself feeling the same way.  What had turned a usually satisfactory experience, at this...

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