The CX Quantum Leap
Based on her PhD in CX and her 25+ years of experience driving CX transformation programs globally, dr. Zanna van der Aa explains the core concepts of Customer Experience transformation, navigating you through the sense and nonsense, sharing do's and don'ts, lessons learnt and successful, inspiring interventions.
She combines her scientific background with a very no-nonsense, pragmatic, energizing approach that you can apply immediately in your day-to-day work. Always connecting it to her vision of creating more Human Centric organisations by focusing on the three pillars of successful CX transformation: customers, employees and purpose.
The CX Quantum Leap
Richard Stark - The leadership behaviors series | EPS #63
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This is part of our Leadership Behavior Series, where we're diving deeper into some of the 21 behaviors from my new book on human-centric CX transformation: Once You See It.
In this episode, Richard and I talk about something I think is absolutely foundational for any leader navigating transformation: understanding their context. And I don't just mean knowing your stakeholders or your org chart. I mean genuinely understanding the world through the eyes of the people around you — their pressures, their competing tensions, and the invisible forces pulling them away from the change you're trying to create together.
Richard brings such a rich perspective here — from the neuroscience of fight-or-flight to the three levels of adult development to the art of holding polarities. What strikes me most is how he connects the inner work of leadership to the outer results. You can't truly understand someone else's context if you haven't learned to manage your own.
Some things we cover:
- Why empathy isn't about putting yourself in someone else's shoes — and what to do instead
- How imposter syndrome in new CEOs can actually be a leadership asset
- The danger of overconfidence — and how to stay humble as your results improve
- Polarities: why the best leaders hold "both/and" instead of "either/or"
- Why stress and fight-or-flight make you a smaller version of yourself
- The three levels of adult development — and the leap every transformation leader must make
- Viktor Frankl and the power of the pause: choosing your response under pressure
- One practical tip to become more present, starting tomorrow
What I love most about this conversation is how Richard connects self-regulation to empathy. You simply cannot understand someone else's context if you're running on autopilot. The leaders who've done the inner work — who've processed their own adversity, who've learned to notice their triggers — are the ones who create genuine psychological safety around them. Not through a workshop. Through their presence.
Whether you're a CEO navigating a major transformation or a leader who just wants to show up more fully for the people around you, I hope this gives you one small thing to try — and a reminder that slowing down is often the most powerful move you can make.
Timestamps (00:00) – Introduction: Understanding Their Context (01:43) – Why empathy ≠ putting yourself in someone else's
NEW! Once You See It - Executive Guide to Human-Centric CX Transformation by Dr. Zanna van der Aa is out now!
It contains a unique combination of perspectives: the CEO perspective and the CX transformation lead perspective.
And in between these two parts of the book, she also shares a chapter on the role of AI in experience.
Accelerate in Experience Academy
Ready to create more business impact with Customer & Employee Experience? Join the 6-week Accelerate in Experience Academy by Dr. Zanna van der Aa. The proven method for CX transformation that delivers measurable results in just 3 months.
🌍 Trusted in 20+ countries by 11+ global brands such as Randstad, Allianz, Zain and Egon Zehnder. Now available online.
👉 Start your journey: https://academy.zannavanderaa.com/en
More info?
LinkedIn -> https://www.linkedin.com/in/zannavdun/
YouTube -> https://www.youtube.com/@dr.zannavanderaa
Website -> https://zannavanderaa.com/
Dutch version podcast -> https://beleving.buzzsprout.com