Chief Customer Officers

Chief customer officers make sure a company’s customers are the business's most important asset. They are part of the executive or “C” (corporate) suite in a company.

Chief customer officers are responsible for the total relationship with an organization’s customers, guaranteeing that the company delivers a positive experience for every customer. This customer-centric approach makes it easy for customers to learn about a company and buy products or services from them.

The CCO's responsibilities depend on the specific structure of their company. In some companies, for example, they handle the functional area of the job. This might include changing how a company's marketing, sales, support, and distribution departments work and how products or services are delivered. In these situations, those departments might report to the CCO. He or she develops policies and protocols for making each of these departments more customer concentric. CCOs in this type of situation may have large budgets and teams to make things happen.

In other companies, a chief customer officer's job duties are more advisory in nature. He or she consults with various areas of a company about how to make the business more customer-centric. These CCOs generally have a smaller budget and team.

All CCOs are responsible for developing the most effective methods to improve the customer experience and for advising the company about changes to operations to improve customer service. CCOs typically report to the president or chief executive officer. They are strategic advisers expected to develop and oversee plans that differentiate their organization from others through excellent customer service and customer-focused sales and marketing.

Individuals in this position need to focus on customer service, growth, and retention. They create and set a vision, objectives, policies, and procedures geared toward customer service. They must find ways to help workers take ownership of a customer-centric culture.