Chief Evangelist with Ethan Beute

Today’s guest is Kristi Faltorusso, Chief Customer Officer at ClientSuccess and an active evangelist of the practice of customer success (CS). She joins host Ethan Beute to share practical and meaningful insights into change management and behavioral transformation.

Kristi shares her approach to advancing the discipline of CS, which is relatively new and which was lacking in voices, stories, and examples. She explains how she developed her voice and audience (including her struggles along the way) through an approach she describes as sharing selflessly.


Takeaways:
  • The most important role of an evangelist is education. Kristi identified the need for it within the domain of customer success and how she took on the challenge. The need for practical CS guidance extends beyond frontline practitioners or managerial leaders. This encompasses education for all stakeholders.
  • When joining ClientSuccess, Kristi had already earned authority and credibility through her achievements, challenges, and honesty. Her authentic and vulnerable nature connected with a growing audience, which made her interactions with clients genuine, relatable, and human.
  • Kristi created her audience engagement by recognizing the importance of situating herself with a larger community – of taking an “outside-in” approach. She guided her team to replicate her approach through active participation, observation, and introspection.
  • Companies seeking evangelists should consider people within their customer base. This enables a deeper understanding and view of customer needs, wants, motivations, actions, and stories. Kristi believes that the focus should be on identifying who excels at amplifying and using their voices in innovative ways.


Quote of the Show:
  • “I want to be able to drive change in our discipline and I believe that this is the way to do it.”


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Creators & Guests

Host
Ethan Beute
Ethan Beute is the Chief Evangelist at Follow Up Boss, former Chief Evangelist at BombBomb, host of The Customer Experience Podcast, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of Human-Centered Communication and Rehumanize Your Business.

What is Chief Evangelist with Ethan Beute?

Welcome to Chief Evangelist, the podcast that unravels the unique and potent role of Chief Evangelists and the influential movement they lead. Hosted by Ethan Beute, each episode delves into the world of evangelism work, exploring its intricacies and shedding light on what success truly means in this space. From understanding why focusing on a problem is more impactful than a product, to the overlap and divergence with thought leadership, community building, category design, and traditional sales and marketing – this podcast is your go-to resource for insights into innovation and the demand for evangelism. Whether you're aspiring to be a Chief Evangelist or seeking to comprehend its significance, join Ethan for captivating conversations with evangelists across diverse companies, verticals, and industries.