Let's co-create tomorrow's customer reality, today

 Human-centric. Technology powered. Purpose driven.

As a customer-centric executive, you know the game has changed.


The race cannot be won by simply fixing pain points.
​You also need next-level value propositions and experiences that:
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  • ​​differentiate your brand from the competition;
  • inspire your people to focus on the customer;
  • future-proof your business for the customer of 2027+;
  • translate the customer smiles you generate into cash.  

If you recognise these goals, let's have coffee ☕️.​

Hi, I'm Alain Thys


​I can help you create and implement value propositions and experiences that let your business:

  • Differentiate itself with a unique customer promise; 
  • Engage your people around a common purpose;
  • Enrich customer lives by being memorable. Meaningful. Even transformative; 
  • Drive profit ​by monetising its customer experience. 

With my teams, I've influenced the experience of over half a billion customers and >1,000,000 stakeholders world-wide. In the process, creating hundreds of millions in value. And many more smiles 🙂.
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Testimonials

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With his collaborative, commercial and hands-on approach, Alain sparked a fire for customer experience across the company from the moment he started.

Alexandra de Greck

VP, Head of Global Operations & Customer Experience 
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Oriflame

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From our first interactions, I thought: Wow, this guy's sharp - super smart & also super honest. He exemplifies the concept of radical candour.

James Wallman

CEO
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World Experience Organisation

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Alain helped define and form our customer-centricity program. His extraordinary skill to listen, understand and bring everything into the context of his client is amazing.

Dominik Endler

VP Customer & Commercial Excellence and CMO
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Bekaert

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Alain has worked with us on our CX agenda from the beginning. He brings clarity, relevance and a commercial mindset that helps to engage a diverse and international audience.

Paul English

Global Leader - Markets & Clients
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Grant Thornton

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For the first time in my life, I got a more structured way of thinking about customer experience and client satisfaction​​

Nikolaas Tahon

Chairman
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Deloitte Belgium

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Alain brought this experience concept, he showed it, and it just broke us. People were crying, very emotional. That’s the value that Alain brought. It was really outstanding.”

Vladimir Gaspar

Director of Customer Care
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ING/NN CZ

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What clients typically get when working with me

Let's talk customer-centric transformation

Practically, this includes:
  • A practical vision of the next level customer proposition/experience for your business;
  • A roadmap to bring this vision to life at every customer touchpoint;
  • A platform to rally your people around your next level customer-centric agenda; 
  • A checklist for the required capabilities to deliver against your new promises;
  • A framework for continuous improvement
  • Suggestions to turn the customer smiles you generate into cash. 


Want to explore the next level for your business?

Credentials

Brands I worked with

Over three decades, my teams have globally influenced the experience of over half a billion customers and > 1,000,000 stakeholders across 30+ brands. In the process we created hundreds of millions in value. And many more smiles 🙂.
​

Getting started in 1, 2, 3

100% of the successful projects I worked for started with an informal conversation, followed by a small assignment to get to know each other. So rather than lose ourselves in complex pitch processes and proposals, I propose we do just that.

1. Virtual coffee (free)

​In 90 minutes, we discuss your situation and ambitions. To speak freely, I recommend a mutual NDA. 

If, at the end of this conversation, we both feel the 'chemistry', we continue. If not, we stay friends.

2. Roadmapping

​In a 3-4 hour workshop, we deep-dive into your situation. I bring useful practices and ideas. You bring your data and strategy.

Together, we co-create a first roadmap to level-up your company's customer approach.

3. Make things happen

​We build 'one team' that co-creates a clearly defined set of deliverables within jointly managed timelines and budgets. 

I stay around until your business can carry on by itself.

So what 'exactly' do I do?

Cases that may interest you

Strategy talk always sounds a bit abstract. So here are some examples of projects my teams and I have worked on in the past. ​For a more complete list, visit my about page.
Luxury automotive
Since 2006 we have regularly helped Lexus reinvent the luxury automotive experience. The brand's programmes have raised the industry's bar in Europe, LATAM, the Middle East and Asia and drove continuous growth.

​In late 2021, we helped the company with a  Journey of Inspiration to start its next experiential design drive.
STEEL WIRE & COATING 
With a global leader in steel wires and coating we co-created and introduced an internationally aligned set of customer promises linked to their new brand identity.

In spite of a challenging economic climate, these will help the business differentiate by bringing to life its brand promise. 
INSURANCE
When the insurance giant Generali Group decided to establish new customer experience standards, they aimed for more than merely 'meeting expectations'.

So after reviewing global customer voice data and looking at key consumer trends we worked with a global, cross-functional team of experience champions to define a clear Generali difference at every stage of the customer relationship.

Thus creating a platform for short- and long-term differentiation.
BEAUTY & WELLNESS
To enter its next phase of growth and increase customer loyalty, we helped the global beauty and wellness company Oriflame create a set of customer promises that would truly differentiate it from any direct sales company on the planet.

We are currently assisting the different functions and markets to turn these promises into 'customer noticeable' activities.
EMPLOYEE EXPERIENCE
To increase employee engagement with a strategic change, we helped Toyota Motors Europe reconsider its work experience at every stage of the employee relationship.
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The final design balanced the employee's needs with the (behavioural) goals of the business.
WORK AS AN IMMERSIVE EXPERIENCE
For a London based global HQ, we asked a team of architects, experience designers and neuroscientists to reimagine work as an immersive experience.

The resulting mix of spaces, stories and behaviours created an office concept that both attracts talent and encourages it to live the company values.
DEATH CARE
Triggered by a strong societal need, we dug deep into what Gen X consumer needs to reimagine the Western funeral for more meaning, sustainability and mental health.

The concept experience that ensued is currently developed into a series of micro-ventures that can transform key elements of death care. 

Want to talk about co-creating tomorrow's customer reality, today?

​Frequently asked questions

To help you clarify whether we should talk, I'm including a few answers on questions I get frequently.
DO YOU PERSONALLY work on all projects?
YES. I tried the traditional consultancy route, in which I show up as 'senior partner' and then disappear to let teams do the work. But it left both my clients and myself wanting. So I decided to only work with a handful of clients at any given point in time.

Ocasionally, I work alone. Where needed, I involve associates who are specialised in one or more domains of relevance. But I am ALWAYS hands-on, in every project. And I will be there when it matters. 
How long will a project take
I personally prefer sprints of ca. 100-120 days. This is long enough to avoid rushing, but short enough to fit the corporate desire for visible progress. Not to mention in a hundred days, the world can change twice over.

So, even if you're working on a multi-year transformation, I'll typically recommend focusing on getting a next tangible deliverable in the next 3-4 months. 
Which methodology do you use
A friend once called me 'method-agnostic' as I like to mix and match methodologies based on the organisational context and situation. As long as it achieves the result, I'm happy to work with anything. And if at some point we need that data science ninja or agile scaling expert, we'll get them.

how many employees have you got
Zero. While I can activate up to 100 associates in a wide variety of specialisations, I employ no one but myself.

This is a deliberate choice, as I learned the hard way that a fixed payroll gets in the way of doing what is right for the customer (i.e. do I sell you another hour to pay someone's salary, or do I do what adds most value?). 

So I activate associates at variable cost, when they add project value. And deactivate them, when they stop adding value. Or when you can do the work yourself. 
Why should we choose you over another consultancy
Well, maybe you shouldn't. It depends on your needs.

If you seek a traditional consultant who uses a proven methodologies, Gantt-charts, steerco meetings and workshops to get you to a PowerPoint-able result, I can recommend some people who are really good. 

I'm the guy you call if you want to play for results. People tell me I'm great at listening and aligning. At thinking-out of the box. At getting people excited about implementation. At being a maverick, while staying politically correct. At not accepting mediocrity. And yes, if needed, we can make those Gantt-charts and PowerPoints happen.

So get in touch if you want honesty and a no-nonsense, root-cause approach.  I'm convinced that we'll get along just fine. 
How much is the ROADMAPPING & inspiration SESSION?
Each case is a different, but - within Europe - I typically charge €5,000 for a roadmapping & inspiration session (excl. travel costs).

In Europe, I recommend doing this session 'in person', as this allows much more interactivity. Outside of Europe, it may be more practical to work online.

Shall we do this?

If you've made it this far down the page, we should probably talk.
​Let's have that virtual coffee!

Not yet ready to have a conversation?

​Then read my mind

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“The Last Best Experience You Had Anywhere, Becomes Your Expectation Everywhere.”