A challenging and rapidly changing landscape
Earlier this week, I had the pleasure of addressing 400 business leaders at our Annual Conference. As I noted during my keynote, we are operating in a period of intense…
A transformation in shopping is underway – the customer must remain the priority
UK retail was in the spotlight this week as new data revealed retail spending growth more than doubled last month. This will be welcome news to retailers after a damp December, as…
Sonia Astill
Sonia Astill is the Chief People Officer at Wickes Group, a role she's held since 2019. She brings a diverse background in HR and organisational development, having worked across retail,…
Jayne Wall
Jayne is Director of Central Operations at Marks & Spencer, with accountability for national retail operations and transformation, customer operations, operating models, productivity, and retail safety and security. She leads…
Another rise in customer satisfaction brings encouragement and opportunity
After what has been a whirlwind week for global dialogue and economic data at Davos, it is encouraging to be able to reflect on some positives. Against a backdrop of…
Consumer confidence is the missing piece of the growth puzzle – service can change that
As we step into 2026, many organisations will be eager to put a year of economic uncertainty behind them and seize the opportunities ahead. And despite pessimism in some quarters,…
It’s a Wonderful Life: Service lessons from a Christmas classic
As we prepare for Christmas once again, I settled down to re-watch a real seasonal classic over the weekend – Frank Capra’s 1946 film It's a Wonderful Life. It is…
Expect the unexpected in 2026
2025 has been another helter-skelter year of unpredictable events, geopolitical instability and tough economic trading conditions. Looking forward to 2026, I don’t expect it to be any different. The good…
Resilience is the service watchword for 2026 and beyond
This week, I chaired our annual webinar on our Customer Service Trends and Predictions for the year ahead. Thank you to our exceptional panellists, each of whom brought their unique…
Customer Service Trends and Predictions For 2026
Our Customer Service Trends & Predictions 2026 report highlights the critical issues and likely developments that will impact customer experience, employee engagement, organisation culture and business performance in 2026 and beyond.