The Modern Customer Podcast has reached a major milestone—its 400th episode! Over the years, this podcast has become a key source of insights from customer-focused leaders around the world. To celebrate, Henrik Werdelin, co-founder of Bark and founding partner of PreHype, returned as a guest. Known for his innovative mindset, Henrik shared fresh insights on the role of AI in leadership and customer experience.
Henrik emphasized that as AI becomes more accessible, leaders must learn to use it effectively. A key concept he discussed is “relationship capital.” While AI can help scale services, it doesn’t replace human connection. Instead, it enhances personalized interactions, allowing businesses to build deeper, lasting relationships with their customers.
One standout example of Henrik’s innovation is BarkAir, the world’s first airline for dogs, designed to create tailored travel experiences for pets and their owners. This focus on personalization is something Henrik believes AI can also help bring to customer interactions at scale.
For leaders, adopting AI begins with personal engagement. Henrik urged CEOs and managers to explore AI tools themselves, allowing them to better understand AI’s potential to improve efficiency, generate new ideas, and streamline communication. By using AI firsthand, leaders can more effectively guide their teams and integrate AI into operations.
Henrik also tackled a common concern: Will AI replace jobs? He offers an optimistic outlook, noting that while AI will automate repetitive tasks, it will create new roles, much like ATMs and self-service kiosks did in the past. He encourages leaders to see AI as a way to free up employees for more strategic, customer-centric work.
Henrik’s practical insights remind us that while AI is a powerful tool, it’s the human element—our ability to build relationships and understand customers—that will always drive long-term success.
Blake Morgan was called “The Queen of CX” by Meta. She is a customer experience futurist and author of three books on customer experience. Don’t miss her new book, “The Eight Laws of Customer-Focused Leadership.” To learn more visit www.8CXLaws.com.
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