The Customer was front and center at the recent corporate governance session of the MVP Group as author John Rossman detailed the 14 leadership principles that catapulted tech giant Amazon into the US’ most recognizable brand.
Rossman’s views on customer-centricity resonated with over 500 leaders from the MVP group in attendance. With the companies catering to millions of customers, the “customer” proves to be the north star in guiding business direction, particularly those in the public utilities sector, like PLDT Inc. (“PLDT”), Smart Communications, Inc. (“Smart”), Manila Electric Company (“Meralco”), and Maynilad Water Services, Inc. (“Maynilad”); in the fintech industry – Voyager Innovations, Inc. (“Voyager”) and Paymaya Philippines, Inc. (“Paymaya”); and the extensive Metro Pacific Investments Corporation (“MPIC”) Hospital Group.
“By constantly improving the customer journey, our customers become more dependent on our brand of service, yet we we give them no reason to contact us. To quote our guest speaker, ‘Best customer service is no customer service - because the best experience happens when the customer never has to ask for help at all’,” said PLDT Inc. and Smart Communications President and CEO Alfredo S. Panlilio.
“They are empowered and they begin to trust that we have their best interest at heart which increases their likelihood of repeat transactions and becoming loyal advocates of our business,” he added.
The Amazon Way, also the title of Rossman’s published book, focuses on “Customer Obsession” or Customer Centricity as a strategy and the driving ethos in the company’s culture.
It is the first principle in Rossman’s list and it shows how leaders start with the customer, and work backwards. They work vigorously to keep customer trust. While they pay attention to competitors, they obsess about customers.
“I think the most interesting word in that leadership principle is the word obsession. We could have chosen a more comfortable word, an easier word like customer focus or in touch with our customers, but instead we chose what we consider to be a very strong word,” shared Rossman.
Rossman further elaborated on how Amazon empowers their company to further build on ideas that could help them better serve their customers.
PLDT Chairman Manuel V Pangilinan, together with Panlilio, Meralco President and CEO Ray C. Espinosa, Voyager and PayMaya President Shailesh Baidwan, and Asian Hospital and Medical Center President and CEO Andres Licaros Jr., joined Rossman for a brief panel discussion moderated by PLDT FVP and Head for Group Corporate Communications Cathy Yap-Yang.
Pangilinan expounded on how customer-centricity has become embedded in the way processes and services are delivered by the MVP companies.
“The idea of customer centricity actually permeates across the group. We don't take our customers for granted. The whole group is changing. So, I'm happy to see that all of our companies are pivoting or has pivoted in that direction. We encourage everybody to keep it up. Do it the way you think is perfect for your institution,” shared Pangilinan.
The Annual Corporate Governance Enhancement Session (ACGES) is a conference of PLDT, MPIC and the MVP Group of Companies for its Directors and Key Officers as a learning session on best practices and trends on good corporate governance. A well-attended event, these sessions focus on relevant topics throughout the years such as digital transformation, data privacy and cybersecurity, technology, crisis leadership, ethics and compliance, Board strategy and oversight, and customer centricity.
