Senthamizh Selvan Pandian, Head of Customer Success at SAP South-East Asia, explains how a people-first mindset transforms customer experience. He connects employee engagement to retention and revenue growth. Selvan details customer-centric innovation and proactive success practices. His insights deliver a complete blueprint for modern CX leadership.

“Focus on both the customers’ needs and your own employees' skills development. If you can take care of both together, you will be solving the customers’ problems while keeping people at the core. That becomes your people-first customer experience strategy.” - Senthamizh Selvan Pandian

Senthamizh Selvan Pandian advocates a balanced approach that puts people at the heart of customer experience. He outlines why modern leaders must pair deep customer insight with committed employee upskilling to drive retention and revenue. Listeners gain actionable guidance on adopting customer-centric innovation, building learning cultures, and turning success teams into growth engines.

Sanjeet Kaur Bali, SVP of Global Customer Support, outlines why organizational dysfunction quietly erodes scale, service, and innovation across every function. She explains how support leaders can surface root causes through data and constructive confrontation. She also describes the power of transforming support into a strategic growth engine.

“We need to reassess and thoroughly evaluate what’s ailing our business, then create a culture that encourages critical conversations. Empower problem solvers and constructive critics, and embrace brutal self-assessment. It’s essential for an organization’s survival.” – Sanjeet Kaur Bali

By realigning support from a reactive cost center into a proactive, insight-driven partner, companies unlock both retention and expansion opportunities. When support sits at the table with product, sales, and operations, its frontline perspective becomes a catalyst for innovation. Building these cross-functional bridges ensures that customer feedback drives strategic decisions, turning every support interaction into a step toward sustainable growth.

Kel Kurekgi, Director of Support at Zapier, delves into the transformation of customer support teams, focusing on how to drop the victim mentality and gain a seat at the table. Kel discusses his journey from media to customer experience, sharing insights on overcoming challenges in the customer support sector. He emphasizes collaboration, empathy, and strategic storytelling as key elements in transforming customer support into a recognized business asset.

“We need to stop focusing on why we can’t do things and start focusing on what we can do. When people start realizing that the power is in their hands, to be able to tell the right story, their seat at the table, get their voice heard, that whole victim mentality in support will shift.” - Kel Kurekgi

Kel expands on how internal barriers, such as outdated mindsets or a lack of advocacy, can hinder support teams. By embracing strategic collaboration and owning their narrative, support leaders can redefine their value and influence company-wide impact.