Annette Franz

Head of marketing and customer experience initiatives

CX Journey Inc.

Annette Franz, a certified customer experience professional (CCXP), is founder and CEO of CX Journey Inc. She has 25 years of experience in helping companies understand their employees and customers and identifying what drives retention, satisfaction, engagement, and the overall experience—so together we can design a better experience for all constituents. She’s an author (she wrote the book on customer understanding!), a speaker, and a customer experience thought leader and influencer. She serves as vice chairwoman on the board of directors of the Customer Experience Professionals Association (CXPA), is an official member of the Forbes Coaches Council, and is an advisory board member for CX@Rutgers.

Thu, 09/24/2015 - 11:39
Imagine That You’re a Human....Best tip ever for customer experience design?
Tue, 07/03/2018 - 12:03
‘Imagine for a second that you’re a human.... ” Yikes! Now there’s a crazy statement to make during a customer experience design session. However, more companies need to start thinking this way. Sadly, there is no shortage of stories about…
Do Leaders Really Care About Their Employees?The answer is critical to organizational success
Tue, 04/24/2018 - 12:02
I had another column in the hopper, but when this article came across my desk, followed by a phone conversation with Bob Chapman, I knew I needed to write something different, something that is top of mind for me now—and often—as I work with my…
Why Customer Experience Transformations FailA root cause analysis
Tue, 03/13/2018 - 12:02
Do you feel like you’re not making the progress in your customer experience (CX) transformation efforts that you thought or hoped you would by now? You started years (not months—it’s a journey) ago, but you don't think your organization has…
We Have a Crisis in LeadershipMoving toward a we-centric organization
Wed, 01/03/2018 - 12:02
Why is employee engagement at an all-time low? Why is turnover as high as it is? Why are employees constantly looking for better opportunities? Think about those questions, along with what I wrote in my column, “Employee Engagement: A Confluence…
Preparing Employees to Deliver a Great Customer ExperienceServing those who serve
Wed, 11/22/2017 - 12:02
When you think of the phrase “inside-out” relative to the customer experience, you probably cringe. This is not a phrase that customer experience professionals take lightly. “Inside-out” means companies focus on processes that are designed and…
The Problem With Journey MapsAvoiding a disconnect between stages and steps
Tue, 10/03/2017 - 12:02
There’s a problem with journey maps? Well, not with the maps themselves but with how people talk about them. I love attending webinars and reading articles about journey mapping because I’m always curious about how others talk about them, what…
Expectations: The Mother of All FrustrationsPerformance – expectations = (dis)satisfaction
Thu, 09/21/2017 - 12:01
I recently saw an article with an image that included a quote from Antonio Banderas: “Expectation is the mother of all frustration.” Honestly, this is true in life, in all relationships. Think about it for a second: Aren’t relationships much…
Motivated Employees Deliver Great Customer ExperienceWhat motivates <em>your</em> employees?
Mon, 07/03/2017 - 12:02
What motivates you to go to work every morning? What drives you to do good work every day? What motivates you to want to work for your employer every day? What are the things that your manager and your executives do that encourage you to work hard…
The 10 Commandments of Customer ExperienceIs it time for a confession?
Tue, 05/02/2017 - 12:02
In May 2016, I spoke at CallidusCloud Connections (C3); if you’ve never been to this event, be sure to check it out this year. The topic of my session was “The Seven Deadly Sins of Customer Experience.” Given the topic of today’s post, I seem to be…
The Five Phases of Decision Making, Part 2Moving from decision to solution
Mon, 03/27/2017 - 12:01
How well does your decision-making process work for you? Are you able to go from decision to solution to action with ease? This is the second part of my two-part series on Peter Drucker’s five phases of decision making, which he outlines in his…