An interview with Susan Hash

Susan Hash

B2B Freelance Writer & Editor

Key Topics:Contact Centers, Customer Care, Customer Experience, Employee Engagement/Experience

Location:Seattle, United States

Bio:

Susan Hash is a freelance B2B writer/journalist with 28 years of specialised experience writing about customer care, customer service and contact centers.

How did you get to become an expert in your key topics?

I have been covering contact centers and customer care as a journalist for nearly three decades. Before deciding to freelance full time, I worked for ICMI as publications director and editor of “Call Center Management Review.” I am the former executive editor of “Executive Report on Customer Satisfaction,” “Customer Satisfaction Technology,” “Customer Service Newsletter,” “The Customer Communicator” and “TCC SkillSharpener.” I have been the editor of “Contact Center Pipeline” and the Pipeline blog since 2009.

What sub-topics are you most passionate about?

I enjoy researching and writing about the future of work. It is interesting to track how technology and employee expectations have transformed over the past decade or so. Corporate culture, leadership, remote work, communications and collaboration are all other subtopics that tie into it.

Who influences you within these topics?

I am fortunate to have worked with many CC and CX thought leaders who I respect and admire, and who are always willing to share their insights, including Kathleen Peterson, Lori Bocklund, Mike Aoki, Tiffany LaReau, Paul Stockford, Janet LeBlanc, Tim Montgomery, Jay Minnucci, just to name a few.

What challenges are brands facing in this space?

Keeping pace with rising and rapidly evolving customer expectations. The pandemic has accelerated digital transformation by several years, so many brands have been thrust into that challenge sooner than they had expected or planned. Also, the focus on employee-centric work environments is a welcome change to the traditional top-down hierarchical structure, but it requires a mindset change that can be difficult for conventional leaders and organisations to internalise and put into action.

What do you think the future holds in this space?

Customer care and contact center operations will continue to grow increasingly visible and strategic as more executives recognise the value and complexity of delivering CX seamlessly and consistently across an ever-expanding array of channels and touch points. The skill sets of human customer-facing staff will be upgraded and their roles revised as AI-powered technology steps up to handle the more basic customer transactions.

What brands are leading the way in this space?

There are some obvious leaders like Amazon and Apple that continue to set a high bar for innovation and customer experience. Increasingly, though, I am seeing brands in the healthcare sector like UPMC Health Plan and Blue Cross Blue Shield coming up with very creative strategies for employee engagement and driving passion for service excellence across the organisation.

If a brand wanted to work with you, which activities would you be most interested in collaborating on?

White papers, research, ebooks, articles, blog content—I’m a writer, so that is my preferred medium.

What are your passions outside of work?

Reading, biking. I spend most of my free time just wandering around the city with my dog. We do a lot of urban geocaching.

What would be the best way for a brand to contact you?

Email.

While you’re here, why not signup to our B2B influencer marketplace, MyOnalytica? MyOnalytica is the world’s largest B2B influencer marketplace. Influencers can sign up for free and create their own profiles which will be visible to Onalytica clients which include many of the world’s largest brands. Sign up now to showcase your expertise, influence & how you would like to partner with brands.

Interview with Susan Hash

by Joe Fields | Jun 11, 2021 | Interviews, Tech