3 Steps to Exceed Expectations and Turn Your Business Into a “Customer Company” The 21st-century economy isn’t made for complacency. Constant disruption and innovation in business require continual evolution and development. It also demands something personal: a genuine connection to your customer. As Henry Ford said, “If there is any one secret of success, it lies in the ability to get the other person’s point of view and see things from that person’s angle as well as from your own.” Your customers need to know you have their interests, not their wallets, at heart. They need to know that you understand their needs and can help them overcome obstacles, transforming in ways they foresee—as well as in ways they can’t envision yet. In other words, they need you to be a “customer company.” Companies are going to win or lose based on the experiences customers have. What Is a Customer Company? Customer companies aim for a frictionless experience. They want to help customer...
Reimagining the Future of Making: Automation Helps People Live and Work Better Humanity inevitably needs, desires, and demands more. At the same time, it must also confront the reality of less—fewer natural resources, less space, and fewer skilled construction and manufacturing workers than the world needs. But while resources and skilled labor are in short supply, the global population is increasing (to nearly 10 billion people by 2050), and poverty is declining in developing countries. In 1990, less than a quarter of the world’s population earned enough to be defined as middle class. Today, nearly half do, and every day, 400,000 more people join the global middle class. Rising living standards should be celebrated, but consider how consumption impacts design, engineering, building, and manufacturing. Every year, more people desire, demand, and need things like cell phones, cars, food, and housing. According to research firm Statista, as the glo...