IAM180- Serial Entrepreneur Helps CEOs Compete on Their Customer Experience

Mike Wittenstein is a serial entrepreneur and CEO is the professional services space. He started his first consultancy while still in grad school, launched GALILEO, one of the world's first digital agencies in 1992, joined IBM global services in the role of eVisionary, then founded StoryMiners, one of the world's first customer experience design consultancies in 2002. He's worked with global brands, regional leaders, and start-ups as an advisor, board member, consultant, and facilitator. Mike's businesses always support his clients' desired outcomes. He believes that building in agility has helped me succeed over time.

• CEO Hack: (1) Walk in the customers show to know what needs to change (2) Double down the technology and learn
• CEO Nugget: (1) No matter how hard you try, your brand can't get better than your customer experience (2) Designing costs less than reacting
• CEO Defined: Example to other people in whatever is of value to you

Website: https://storyminers.com/

Portfolio

www.storyminers.com
www.cxcoaches.com
www.mikewittenstein.com

Directories

www.linkedin.com/in/mikewittenstein
www.espeakers.com/marketplace/profile/10392/simple

Videos
https://www.myasbn.com/interviews/crafting-customer-experience-around-needs-unique-customer-mike-wittenstein-storyminers/
https://www.myasbn.com/small-business/growth-strategy/boost-referrals-loyal-customer-base-mike-wittenstein-storyminers/
https://vimeo.com/26354725
https://vimeo.com/287635341
https://vimeo.com/287635352

Full Interview

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Transcription:

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Intro 0:02

Do you want to learn effective ways to build relationships, generate sales and grow your business from successful entrepreneurs, startups, and CEOs without listening to a long, long, long interview? If so, you've come to the right place. Gresham Harkless values your time and is ready to share with you precisely the information you're in search of. This is the I AM CEO Podcast.

Gresham Harkless 0:26

Hello, hello, hello this is Gresh from the I AM CEO Podcast and I have a very special guest on the show today. I have Mike Wittenstein of StoryMiners. Mike, it's awesome to have you on a show.

Mike Wittenstein 0:36

Thanks for having me.

Gresham Harkless 0:37

No problem, no problem, and the first thing I want to do is introduce Mike, so you can hear about all the awesome things that he's doing. Mike Wittenstein is a serial entrepreneur and CEO in the professional services space. He started his first consultancy while still in grad school called GALILEO, one of the world's first digital agencies in 1992, joined IBM global services in the role of eVisionary, then founded StoryMiners, one of the world's first customer experience design consultancies in 2002.

He's worked with global brands, regional leaders, and start-ups as an advisor, board member, consultant, and facilitator. Mike's businesses always support his clients' desired outcomes. He believes that building in agility has helped me succeed over time. Mike, are you ready to speak to the I AM CEO community?

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Mike Wittenstein 1:25

I am ready to go. Let's start.

Gresham Harkless 1:26

Let's do it. So the first question I had was to hear a little bit more about your CEO story. And what led you to start your business?

Mike Wittenstein 1:33

Sure. Well, I've been CEO a few times the first time was when I was 13 years old, I had a micro-manufacturing business. And that's what I learned that it's lonely at the top, believe it or not, a 13-year-old could figure that out. There are a lot of people that are interested in watching what you're doing. And some people are hoping that you're going to do well and others aren't really there to help you. They're there for the entertainment.

That was my first experience. But let's fast forward to StoryMiners. That was your real question. Before StoryMiners. I was eVisionary for IBM Global Services. And when I was inside of that huge company with hundreds of 1000s of employees, I realized that a lot of it worked well. And a lot of it didn't work that well. So I was known as the guy who would try to boil the ocean, not a really good moniker in a company that large.

Gresham Harkless 2:21

Yes,

Mike Wittenstein 2:22

What I learned from IBM was two things. One is that you could apply the principles of systems thinking to the way you structure your enterprise, much like running a scrum, it's all agile. But think about it, make your business run on capabilities rather than on hierarchy. And it can respond more quickly.

The other thing I learned was the value of not focusing so much on everything that goes on inside the business. If everybody inside the business focuses on the customer's outcomes, everybody's naturally aligned to the same metrics to the same heartbeat to the same, you know, everything that matters.

So blending those two things together is what I wanted to do at StoryMiners. I believe, and I've done it a few times with clients. But I still believe there's a lot of work to be done in not just making the front end of the business more responsive to customers. But making the backend more agile, you do those two at the same time.

And you can get that to that unicorn status, you can be a real mover and shaker. Most companies today only work on one side, they work on higher sales on the front end, or lower costs on the back end. But if you do both at the same time with your customer's goals in mind, that's when you can really leapfrog the competition. So that's why I wanted to become a CEO.

Gresham Harkless 3:34

Awesome, awesome, awesome. And I'm sure it's great that you've been able to see that as a 13-year-old, but also in IBM, which is a huge, big company, you'd be able to kind of distill down some of the things that a big company like that can kind of work on, but also you can see it in businesses and organizations as well. So I know you touched on a little bit, but I want to hear a little bit more on how you're doing that with StoryMiners, like how are you kind of helping support those clients so that they do reach that unicorn status, so to speak.

Mike Wittenstein 3:58

Well, not everybody can be a unicorn, they're very unique by definition, but we can help people to become a lot more agile, a lot more profitable, and to make it a lot more fun to work there. So what we typically do is somebody will come to us and say, Hey, StoryMiners, I'm stuck because, and then they'll fill in the blank. One of their stocks is I can't get my people to follow me. I've got all these ideas, but nobody's on board.

So whether that's a mid-level manager or an executive, we blend the power of story and customer experience to suck out of them all the juicy parts of their ideas and recast it back as an experience of the future. When that person shares their vision. Not so much in terms of I want you to do this. I want you to do that. But in terms of a little bit of a fairy tale, it's believable.

And this got some hard-nosed business numbers to it as well. If you will start to turn their heads they get interested. They go, you know, that's something I could support. I really liked that idea that that feels like me.

That's why I came to work at this company. I get very excited. Another thing that could be facing is a pivot and your show Gresham is people in pivots. You could have named it that everybody looking at a new angle, they're being pressured, or they feel a calling.

And when you're facing a pivot, we don't get the luxury of 50 years ago, where you can just make one small turn of a single dial in your business is better, it's much more complicated than that, you've got multiple things you've got to touch at the same time. So in order to orchestrate all that change, everybody's got to get behind a singular vision.

And it can't be just a mission statement like we're going to be the best in the South East, what the heck does that mean? Nobody can follow that that's not the leadership that's just rah, rah talk, you know, too much beer not enough time for that mission statement, you want people to finish, let them put the icing on the cake, let them cross the baton to the finish line.

So let them put their own stamp on the way their work is going the way the experience is going to come across the way the operations are going to change that gets everybody involved. You know, pulling on the rope, instead of pushing it. Pushing on a rope never works, it always ends up in a knot. But pulling it creates alignment, and everybody gets to pull more and make more progress.

Gresham Harkless 6:11

That makes perfect sense. And it sounds like when you start with like a story, you have that story to align and bring everybody together. But you don't go all the way as you mentioned in your secret sauce, you go 90%, or I guess whatever around there, it not only becomes the person's story that started the company or has the company but also it starts to become everybody's story, it seems like.

Mike Wittenstein 6:30

You're a wise man.

Gresham Harkless 6:32

I've been listening a little bit. So that helps

Mike Wittenstein 6:34

A great smile for people who are listening only.

Gresham Harkless 6:37

I know, right, I need to be a YouTube celebrity, maybe that'll work out. And so now I wanted to switch gears a little bit and ask you for what I call a CEO hack. And this might be an app or book or habit that you have. But it's something that makes you more effective and efficient.

Mike Wittenstein 6:52

One of the things that makes sense for any business, especially those that provide a service, and super especially for those that see their clients in person, you know, face to face, is to shop your own business, this is really old advice. I think they did this in the 1700s. But it still makes a lot of sense. We are sometimes so separated from our customers, we don't know what their reality is like when you walk in your customer's shoes. When you look at the business from their perspective, and see how easy or how hard it is how friendly or how frustrating it is, you almost know instinctively what needs to change. It's like that TV show Undercover Boss. But without all the drama and the crying. It's just it's common sense.

That is my big thing. The second one is however much technology you have in your business right now double down and get more you can't get behind the curve on technology, lest it swallow you or your competition swallow you or you become irrelevant. In my opinion, one of the most important competitive factors today for every business, especially for CEOs of small business and mid companies is how fast they can learn Learning is not seen as a strategic capability the way I think it should be.

It's usually like a training thing that happens after the fact. But you need to pick the technologies and the tools that you want to use in your business earlier and start your people learning about them so that you can incorporate their goodness or avoid them. But you got to learn first, you can't just take someone else's advice, because then you're going to be doing a best practices thing.

And if you're trying to be first best practices is the worst strategy to follow because it guarantees to get you in second place or third place by the time you get to where your competitors are. Well, that's where your competitors were. They've moved ahead,

Gresham Harkless 7:04

Right, they're already working on the next white paper, I guess. A lot of advice that people say is to follow what somebody else has done so that you can be successful as well. But if you're trying to be like we talked about the unicorn status or innovative status, you can't do that to some degree.

So I guess you're saying that you should really focus on learning what these technologies are and kind of being an innovator within yourself by testing it out. And being the subject matter expert, I guess?

Mike Wittenstein 9:08

You need to be your own subject matter expert so that you can apply it to your business. Let's go back to unicorns for a second Gresh. Nobody can be Bill Gates, Steven Jobs, Isaac Newton, or Joe Namath, or anybody that is achieved, Rockstar status, every one of those people came prepared, and they got lucky. So we can try as hard as we want. But this idea that everybody can be a unicorn, it's just not real, but everybody can be of great value to a certain number of customers.

And if you go down that path, you're guaranteed more success than if you try to imitate because posers always get figured out. There's no value in doing that. We use the word value, which is really cool. It has a couple of meanings. One is like the financial value or the time value or the experience value. But the other has to do with your principles.

And I think you need to move forward with both because brands today make a statement not just by what they do, but by who they are and how they are. From my perspective, my little preview of the world here in Atlanta, I'm seeing more buyers, B2B and B2C look inside of companies to find out how they're wired before they make a decision to buy.

So this idea that your brand is invisible, or transparent if you will, is key. So you need to create value for others. And you need to bring your values with you because that makes it easier for people to shop. And it also makes them easier for them to say yes to you. It also means that people who don't share your values won't be your customers. And you have to be okay with that.

Gresham Harkless 10:45

Now, I wanted to ask you for what I call a CEO nugget. And this is a word of wisdom or piece of advice. Or if you can happen to be a time machine, what would you tell your younger business self?

Mike Wittenstein 10:54

I've used this as a closer-on keynote around the world for the last few years. And I think this is the best answer for your audience. No matter how hard you try, or how much you spend, your brand can't be any better than what your customers experience. And what that means to me is you've got to put in an ordinate amount of attention on the very front lines of your business and understand intimately and in detail how your customers are dealing with that chatbot, with that website, with that call and service with that old fashioned fax machine, with how dirty the lobby is in the waiting room with how fast your delivery, yes, blah, blah, blah. Think about your business, from your customer's perspective, that is your brand. That's the one you earn from them every single day, and your brand is no better than what you give them.

Gresham Harkless 11:42

I love that. And that makes perfect sense. Because I think a lot of times, we sometimes are so close to whatever we build or recreate. And we think it's so great. And it might be great. But the only way to kind of truly measure that is like you said, your clients and your customers, how are they interacting? How are they what is their feedback based on what it is that you're doing, or you're providing?

Mike Wittenstein 12:00

And again, building off of what you just said, I love it. Because what you just implied is if you're there on the front lines, paying careful attention to how your customers react, you are in a position to know what they want next, which means it's easier for you to provide a better experience. And it doesn't cost as much because designing costs less than reacting every single time. So if it's something worth doing, put it into the way you normally work, don't make it an exception to the rule.

Gresham Harkless 12:29

There you go. That makes perfect sense. And now I wanted to ask you my absolute favorite question, which is the definition of what it means to be a CEO. We're hoping to have different quote-unquote, CEOs on the show. And as I know, you've been one from 13 on up. I wanted to ask you, Mike, what is been a CEO means to you.

Mike Wittenstein 12:44

I've also been an employee and a partner. So this answer is coming from a lot of different angles. Yeah, I think the most important thing about being a CEO is to remember that you are first and foremost, an example for other people. It's one thing to lead a great company and to have a wonderful marketing plan and to be an astute financier. And you have to live your values, you've got to be the kind of person that you want other people to see to become to follow. Don't underestimate your role as an Inspire of your employees, your partners of yours, and even your competitors, you need to be yourself.

And everything you do sets an example, the better you do as a CEO, and I'm talking personal values, as well as business processes, following through on your promises, keeping checklists, providing order, whatever is of value to you keep doing that double down, triple down on that, because that's going to create the rhythm, the vibe, the energy inside of your organization, truly being a CEO is a state of mind. And you need to be conscious of that. And you need to be living that fully all the time.

And I know that sounds a little philosophical, especially for folks that are just starting off in their careers. But the things that you master in life, you have to work really hard that you'll dedicate dozens of years to mastering those two things, and they are so worth it. Whether you're young and lucky or old and tried and true. Those are two truths that make up being a CEO.

Gresham Harkless 14:23

Mike, I truly appreciate you for taking some time out. What I wanted to do is pass you the mic so to speak, just to see if there's anything additional. You want to let our readers and listeners know and then also how best they can get ahold of you.

Mike Wittenstein 14:33

I encourage you to experiment but don't experiment at your customer's expense. I see a lot of companies out there trying one thing trying something else trying something else. Take a breath man, walk in your customer's shoes get a chance to know what the market really needs. There's no action in the bustling craziness of your business.

There's no substitute for thinking long and hard and smart about what the world needs. Stay focused on the value that you can create for the world and then do your experimentation. Don't try to like waste everybody's time and effort and money going in a bazillion different directions. Just steal yourself, calm yourself, and think first. To get in touch with StoryMiners, the best way to do that is just to pick up the phone and give us a call we love telephone calls. 770-425-9830 or the website is storyminers.com. You can book time there. Of course, you can send us an email, info, or hi @storyminers.com.

And we welcome chatting with just about everybody. we're big believers that story and experience are two sides of the same coin. You know, the story that your customers want to tell about you, that kind of tells you what kind of experience to create. And building that experience is your strategy. There really is no other strategy, every strategy that you see in the world, whether it's financially operationally or scientifically oriented. It's all aimed at making value through experience for the customers. So that's our perspective and we love that. Gresham, thanks so much for having me on the show. It was really fun, great questions.

Gresham Harkless 14:33

I truly appreciate you again. I hope you have a phenomenal rest of the day and we'll make sure to have all those links in the show notes as well.

Outro 16:17

Thank you for listening to the I AM CEO Podcast powered by Blue 16 Media. Tune in next time and visit us at iamceo.co

I AM CEO is not just a phrase, it's a community. Be sure to follow us on social media and subscribe to our podcast on iTunes Google Play and everywhere you listen to podcasts, SUBSCRIBE, and leave us a five-star rating grab CEO gear at www.ceogear.co. This has been the I AM CEO Podcast with Gresham Harkless. Thank you for listening.

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