Customer Centricity: It's More Than a Mindset

Becoming a truly customer-centric company requires more than just good intentions or internal discussions—it demands a complete shift in how you operate at every level of your organization.

Customer centricity is a business approach that places the customer literally at the center of all decisions. It differs from other approaches that may prioritize products, finances, or operational efficiency.

Starting Point: A Different Question

In a product-driven business, the main question is, “What can we sell?” In finance-driven companies, it’s, “How can we maximize profits?” For operations-focused businesses, the emphasis is on, “What do we do best?”

But in a customer-centric organization, the question that drives everything is, “What does the market need?” ?Customers’ wants and needs become the starting point for all strategic thinking and execution.

Strategic Focus: The Customer Experience

Product-centric companies focus heavily on customer acquisition, aiming to sell more products to more people. Finance-centric companies prioritize boosting EBITDA through cost-cutting, pricing strategies, and asset optimization. Operationally focused companies look at streamlining processes to become more efficient.

In contrast, customer-centric organizations focus on creating and delivering exceptional customer experiences (CX). Yes, acquisition, retention, and lifetime value are crucial, as are profitability and operational efficiency. But the primary focus is on designing an extraordinary CX that resonates with your customers.

Key Metric: Customer Success

For product-driven companies, sales figures measure success. Finance-driven companies look to shareholder returns, while operations-centric businesses gauge productivity.

In a customer-centric organization, the key metric is customer success. The belief is simple: when your customers succeed, other metrics—like sales, profitability, and efficiency—will naturally follow.

Is Customer Centricity Right for You?

Customer centricity isn’t the right fit for every business. However, if you truly want to be customer-centric, you must position the customer at the very center of everything you do. Every decision, every process, and every strategy must flow from that focus.

You might also be interested in:

• Customer Centricity: What Is It Really and How Do You Get It? -- a Smartbrief on Leadership video from me
• 6 Ways to Build a Customer-Centric Culture -- a Harvard Business Review article I wrote
• Customer Centricity: Focus on the Right Customers for Strategic Advantage – a book by my colleague and Wharton Professor Pete Fader