Customer Success 3.0
The burden of a successful technology deployment is shared between the creator and consumer. Customer Success Champions emerged with the need to effectively integrate software solutions into the workplace to ensure customer enablement and retention. Bringing robots into the world of work requires dedicated support not only for the client but for the end-user.
Harmony Robotics
3/21/20242 min read
The Customer Success Champion: Seamless Integration of Robots Into the World of Work.
The emergence of Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) in the late 90s mirrored a crucial shift in how businesses operated. This evolution created the need for a new type of support. The emergence of the Customer Success Specialist, a role designed to ensure seamless software integration and user adoption was created in 1996 by a company called Vantive which believed that an effective technology deployment is shared between the vendor and the client (1). As we step into the era of human-robot collaboration (HRC), a similar need arises – the need for a Customer Success Champion.
Just like SaaS required specialized support, HRC demands a bridge between robotics companies and the human workforce. This champion goes beyond simply selling robots. They become experts in facilitating a smooth transition, maximizing robot potential through expertise in:
Change Management: Guiding companies through cultural and operational shifts that come with robot integration. Helping to understand the hardware, software, and the contextual application of the solutions.
Human-Centered Design: Ensuring robots are seamlessly integrated into existing workflows while prioritizing human well-being and equipping human workers to wield the full capabilities of the robot.
User Enablement: Equipping human workers with the skills and knowledge to collaborate effectively with their robotic counterparts - going beyond the basic interface and delving into the application of the product.
Why is a Customer Champion Essential?
Beyond supporting the customer organization in deployment of technically advanced robots, the Customer Champion offers a holistic approach:
Optimizing Value Creation: They bring on-site robotic expertise to analyze workflows and ensure robots are deployed strategically, maximizing their value within the existing production system.
Empowering the Human Workforce: The champion doesn't just focus on robots. They equip human workers with the skills to manage, oversee, and even override robot actions when necessary, fostering a truly collaborative environment.
Leveraging Best Practices: This role draws upon three decades of customer success expertise, ensuring the integration process incorporates best practices in robotics engineering, safety protocols, adult learning, and user experience, ultimately leading to a more effective human-robot workforce.
Harmony Beyond the Hardware:
The Harmony Robotics Customer Champion model acknowledges that successful HRC goes beyond the robots themselves. It's about fostering a harmonious work environment where humans and robots collaborate effectively in line with the mission, vision and context of the enterprise. By embracing this approach, we create a future where human potential is not replaced, but amplified, by robotic capabilities.