The document discusses the importance of empathy at scale for companies in the age of the customer. It argues that an empathetic organization that can cultivate lasting, positive relationships with customers through understanding their feelings, thoughts, and experiences will have long-term business success. However, developing empathy at a large scale is challenging as it requires companies to listen with understanding rather than just replying, contextualize customer feedback regarding importance and impact on satisfaction, and interpret feedback from various inconsistent measures and sources that are often unstructured.

1. Empathy at Scale
Nithi Vivatrat
SXSW 2015

5. : the action of understanding, being aware of,
being sensitive to, and vicariously experiencing the
feelings, thoughts, and experience of another
em· pa· thy
noun ˈem-pə-thē

6. “The state of empathy, or being
empathic, is to perceive the
internal frame of reference of
another with accuracy and with
the emotional components and
meanings which pertain thereto
as if one were the person.”
—Carl Rogers
“Empathetic: An Unappreciated Way of Being”, 1975

9. In the Age of the Customer, a company’s
Empathy will be its primary predictor of
long-term business success.
An empathetic organization will cultivate
lasting, positive relationships with its
customers that transcend momentary
challenges or threats.

10. Companies
Consumers

11. Huge VolumesIt’s Everywhere
8
25
100
It’s
Growing
Empathy is hard: listening

12. Empathy is hard: understanding
I couldn’t get any help
Nopude conseguirninguna ayuda
Cdn’t get hlp #servicefail
Q: How was the service?
Good Fair Poor
Requires
Interpretation
NPS
Promoters
Social Buzz
Likes
Call Volume
CSat
% Resolution
Inconsistent
Measures
Largely
Unstructured
95%
Detractors

13. Empathy is hard: contextualizing
Importance?Significance? Urgency?
Performance
Impact on Satisfaction
Cold Entrée
Rude Service
Frequency

16. “Most people do not listen
with the intent to understand;
STEPHEN R. COVEY
AUTHOR OF “THE 7 HABITS OF HIGHLY EFFECTIVE PEOPLE”
They listen with the intent
to reply.”

20. Thank you!
Nithi Vivatrat
Nithi.vivatrat@clarabridge.com