As we enter the final month of 2024, it’s time to face a tough truth: the playbook that got us here won’t get us where we’re going. For decades, organizations have clung to the comfort of “best practices,” those tried-and-true methods that promise safe results. But let’s be real. In a world that’s constantly evolving, “best” is usually just a nicer way of saying “barely keeping up.”
Transformation isn’t on the horizon anymore. It’s already happening. Technologies are no longer just tools; they are deeply woven into how we deliver service. Workforce upskilling isn’t optional, but defining what that means has never been murkier. Processes and the very scope of control are shifting. The strategies we need to tie it all together? Those haven’t even been written yet. This isn’t the time to cling to yesterday’s playbook.
Why Best Practices Don’t Cut It Anymore
Best practices are like comfort food. They feel safe, predictable, and easy. However, safety doesn’t drive progress. Best practices are built on hindsight—on what worked for someone else, somewhere else, in a different time. In CX, where the game is all about anticipating and exceeding customer expectations, relying on old formulas is a fast track to irrelevance.
Here’s the problem. Too many organizations think best practices are magic bullets. “If we follow Company X’s playbook, we’ll get Company X’s results.” Spoiler alert: you won’t. Your customers, your culture, your challenges—they’re not the same. Blindly adopting someone else’s strategy leads to mediocrity, not mastery.
The real issue is that best practices encourage complacency. They invite us to play it safe, check the boxes, and call it a day. But playing it safe doesn’t win in a world where expectations are constantly being rewritten.
The Case for Next Practices
Next practices are where the magic happens. They are not about following someone else’s formula. Instead, they are about creating your own. It’s a mindset shift—from chasing what worked yesterday to designing what will work tomorrow.
Think of Amazon. They didn’t become a juggernaut by tweaking the best practices of retail. They asked, “What’s next?” and created entirely new standards for convenience and personalization. That’s the power of next practices. They force us to stop looking sideways and start looking forward.
Over the coming weeks and months, I’ll be diving deeper into how organizations can make this shift. Together, we’ll explore topics like rethinking workforce development, integrating technology into service delivery, redefining processes, and crafting strategies built for the future. For now, here are some areas business leaders can start considering:
- How well do we understand the evolving needs and expectations of our customers?
- Are we challenging outdated assumptions about what’s possible in our industry?
- What opportunities are we missing by sticking to what’s always worked?
Getting Comfortable with Uncertainty
Here’s the deal. Moving from best practices to next practices is uncomfortable. It demands more than tweaks and adjustments. It requires a willingness to rewrite the rules. That takes guts. It means risking failure, challenging sacred cows, and embracing the unknown. In a world where change is the only constant, standing still is the riskiest move you can make.
As we look ahead to 2025, my focus is on helping organizations make this leap. It’s about moving past the illusion of “best” and embracing the transformative potential of “next.” The future of CX won’t be built on yesterday’s tools. It will be shaped by leaders who have the courage to design what comes next.
So, let’s stop idolizing best practices as the holy grail of success. They’re not. They are a crutch—a starting point, not the destination. The real opportunity lies in innovation, not imitation.
It’s time to ditch the comfort zone, rip up the old playbook, and ask the question that really matters: what’s next?
