The Path Forward: Empathy, Opportunity and Sustainability
Scott Russell
Chief Revenue Officer & Executive Board Member at SAP for Customer Success
Can it already be the end of summer?
I’m amazed by how quickly the time has flown. It’s been nearly nine months since I was honored to take on the role of Executive Board Member and Head of Customer Success at SAP.
I feel so grateful every day for the opportunity to work alongside the great people all across SAP serving impactful organizations worldwide, collaborating with our partners everywhere, and working towards a simple goal: to drive positive impact in this world. As we embark on the second half of 2021 and look ahead, there are three things I strongly stand by as essential for us to grow together:
- First, and always – act with empathy. We can all work to drive better outcomes for others, in daily life, in business, and everywhere else. I constantly try to understand where others are coming from and how they can be better served. It hasn’t failed me yet.
- Where there’s challenge, there’s opportunity. We’ve been thrown in turbulent waters over the last few years. But there’s been upsides, too. While I’ve terribly missed being in-person with family, friends and colleagues, technology is bringing us closer together and connecting us more vibrantly, every day. To hear a colleague in Ireland describe the view from their window of mist rising off a lake, or to see the twinkling lights of Beijing in the background of a Zoom meeting, or to hear the rush of the city noise from a friend walking and talking on a busy London street – it all opens my world a little wider.
- Sustainability can’t wait. The pandemic, ghastly as it is, has been taking our attention away from the one concern all human beings share: the health and fate of our planet. The good news is that best-run businesses are already focused on reducing their environmental impact and rethinking their operations to be more sustainable. Although some great progress has been made, we have a lot of work to do.
What I have learned since joining SAP’s board is that challenges make us stronger, and through collaboration with our customers and partners, we can move mountains. Our opportunity to create real change in the world is tremendous and the time to act is now.
I cannot wait for the next chapter of journey to ensure our customer’s success and improve the health and wellbeing of our planet. I hope you’ll join me for it.
EY Partner | Americas Technology Consulting Leader | Innovative Transformation | Trusted Insights | Change Agent | Cloud Solutions | Industry Automation | People Strategy | Tech Alliances | Ecosystems
2yA great article, showing real leadership. Thanks, Scott.
Sr. Adviser - Digital Supply Chain Solutions at SAP MENA
2yLove this
Innovative Customer Focused Leader, Board Advisor, Sales Performance Coach, Strategic Revenue Grower, Field Readiness through Design Thinking, Execution and Impact Metrics Measurement, GTM expert
2yInspiring message & very aligned with my passions! Thanks Scott Russell for telling it as it is!
Great points. Thanks for sharing.
Multi Family Investments Specialist. No soliciting, please, except for multi-family real estate
2yCannot agree more, especially with #1. Social skills and empathy are crucial skills for developing healthy relationships with customers. They come in handy during tricky situations that invariably come up during customer conversations. To follow are two examples where the superior emotional intelligence of a vendor resource helps customer relationships. Customer Requests and Ideas Intently listening to customer requests and ideas goes a long way in building strong relationships with customers. In most cases, customer requests are valid. Let customers completely deliver their message. Emotionally Charged Situations Managing a team of passionate and committed team members has its challenges. A person who can mediate effectively becomes key to diffusing the situation.