To celebrate hitting this milestone I asked for lots of you awesome people to come and say hi !

Thanks for always supporting me - whilst I do it on my own, I really don't x

Heres to the next 200 and more amazing people and stories about our great industry.

**One year into Consumer Duty—are we truly putting customers first?**

In our latest podcast episode, I had the pleasure of diving deep with Helen Manahan and Pete Dunn from BPA Quality about the impact of the UK’s Consumer Duty regulation, one year on. We unpacked how this regulation is driving a critical shift towards customer-centricity in the financial sector, highlighting both the successes and the ongoing challenges.

Key takeaways:

- The importance of designing processes that truly serve *all* customers, especially the vulnerable.

- How the FCA is evolving from a punitive regulator to a supportive partner in driving better customer outcomes.

- The vital role of technology and human empathy in navigating the complexities of customer service today.

Whether you're in financial services or another industry, these insights are crucial as we all strive to better serve our customers in an increasingly complex world.

Listen to the full episode for more actionable insights!

The first in a new series of podcasts featuring people from the Team Leader Community.

Jordan Powell in Corporate Sales Team Leader at Gravity and also a big part of the Team Leader Community.

In this episode we chat about the transition from Agent to Team Leader

Omar Paul has been around the world working on contact centre based technology, predominantly CRM. In this episode we talk about Omar's journey including 7 years in Dubai. We talk about his 4 pillars for success. The CRM movement and CX through the salesforce lens. We talk about makepositive and Sabio and how they align and as you will hear Omar is positive about CX & Employee engagement and how they are intrinsically linked.

It's funny what a number can do isn't it, why has the 100th had me thinking and emotional (positive) where the other ones have not ? It's a milestone and one I wanted to recognise by bringing together some of the awesome people who have been such a part of the podcast into one room to chat about our industry - thanks for listening and thanks for all the support, engagement and interactions along the way - love that :)   

Erica Farmer Co-Founder of Quantum Rise was on last week and we chatted about so much stuff and had so much fun we wanted to finish with a part 2 to discuss following your heart and being happy at work. Erica has been there, done it and got the t-shirt so well worth learning from her !

Joining live from Kyiv, Ukraine Iryna tells us what its been like to leave the call centre and take up arms. Iryna is probably known to many of you as she has judged at the European Contact Centre awards and is a good friend of the UK Contact Centre Community. her contact centre community has stopped answering calls from customers and is answering the call to defend their homeland.

Hear what it has been like and you can help by contributing to this fund that will go directly to Iryna.

https://www.collectionpot.com/pot/1394634/

Can you progress in your career whilst not compromising on who you are ? Marianne talks passionately about how you can. In this episode we cover many topics including being true to yourself and how to overcome the challenges you face. Talking of challenges Marianne also talks about the challenges she has faced as woman rising to the top of her game. 

We also talk about Outbound, where we both cut our teeth in this industry and why it is still important today. 

Unique, uncompromising, funny and engaging Marianne is an awesome guest and lovely human.

Stu Dorman has been on twice before and marks his hat-trick appearance with a trademark insightful chat about our industry.  Voice has stood the test of time as the dominant channel in our industry and Stuart shares why its short sighted to try and kill it.

Erica is the co-founder of Quantum Rise Talent Group and is a subject matter expert in L&D - we talk about Erica's career and the birth of Quantum Rise at the start of the pandemic and how progressive L&D practitioners embracing digital techniques have delivered exceptional results - Erica talks passionately about the industry, values and much more.

Lynsay McEwen - Head of Hosted Platforms at Sabio talks about Women in Tech and specifically in the contact centre technology / software environment. Lynsay shares her experiences and talks about why she is so passionate about leading the way for young women to get into technology and is very active in making this happen. An inspiring chat !

John has been on the podcast before in the first year and he is always a great guest, great views and insights on the industry and in this episode talks about Ascensos's expansion into South Africa and Turkey. We also talk about how we need to do a better PR job for our industry and also chat football !

James Hughes talks about one of his passions and that's for ensuring technology supports Agent mental health & wellbeing. We chat about Sabio's positioning here and also trends in the industry around attrition , absence and what other kpi's are important indicators when it comes to agent wellbeing. We also talk about James other passion - can you guess what it is ?

What is on your music playlist ?

What are the top factors that affect Customer Loyalty ?

What are the struggles for agents in our industry when it comes to systems ?

We covered this and much more in the latest episode of Get out of Wrap - join us live next Tuesday on Linkedin Live or watch it on YouTube

How did Chris empower the team on the Boris Bikes scheme ? What are the key things you must do to build great team spirit and what does Chris think about the future of our industry. We cover these and much more talking to industry expert Chris de Souza .

Episode #90 of Get out of Wrap is the kick off episode for a series of behind the scenes look at some exciting stuff going on at Sabio - and who better to give us that first look than the CEO Jonathan Gale.

We of course chat about Jonathan’s career and there is a fascinating insight into the inception of Sabio and the birth of this important company in our industry.

We get to hear about the convergence of the contact centre, CX and CRM, what does this mean and for who ?

In a wide ranging insightful and entertaining chat Jonathan also talks about our industry, innovation, where Sabio have come from and where they are going.

The first of what looks to be a really interesting series of chats.

From starting on the phones in Telemarketing to setting up Call Centres across Europe and running her own successful business Angella is a real role model. We talk about her journey and she shares great advice and insights. We also chatted about Angella's passion & activism for Equality, Diversity & Inclusion and how her own experiences shaped that and how we can be allies. Angella is rightly considered a subject matter and lovely human and I am sure after listening you will think so too.

Whilst working at a fairground style stall at Alton Towers giving teddy bears away a bit too freely David Harrison discovered the magic of customer service.

Hear this and the rest of David’s story as a slightly introverted young man was catapulted into positions he thought he wasn’t ready for, yet thrived.

David has led teams to 7 awards and talks passionately about leaving behind the command & control culture prevalent in a lot of contact centres to ones of purpose driven & trusted teams.

I loved talking to David and he shares tips and insight throughout - this is a must listen/watch for;

- anyone who wants their teams bought into a business & brand in profound ways
- people who might be slightly introverted or who have been anxious
- Leaders who want to engage front line teams in CX & CI
- People who want to learn what it takes to win some great awards

David also talks about the leaders who have had an impact on his career, fruit pastilles and Stoke.

I am so lucky doing the podcast as I get to talk to brilliant people and Sandrea is one of those.
Sandrea shares her inspirational personal story and journey into our world of contact centres and shares her tips and current cutting edge world at Depop. I loved talking to Sandrea about the topics she is passionate about and Sandrea celebrates and leverages difference and diversity within her teams to deliver excellence. A brilliant guest I know you will love listening to this episode.

How do you become a more Emotionally Intelligent leader that leads with empathy ? In this episode myself and Chris discuss our experiences and offer some advice and tips.

Lee and I have started talking every week and I always feel great after speaking to him and I learn something. An expert in Change there are some great lessons and tips shared in this episode and Lee also talks Monkeys, Elephants, Stand Up Comedy and his forthcoming Christmas single - whats not to love ?

I've been trying to get Justin to come on from the outset of the podcast and I finally cornered him. Justin is rightly considered one of the key leaders in our industry and today talks passionately about delivering for your customers and for your employees. he shares Dojo's journey and vision and how the concept of Tribes is going to see their NPS & CSAT continue to grow !

I was recently part of the panel discussing this topic at the UK National Contact Centre Conference and I wanted to share some of the points raised.

Dino first came on the podcast over a year ago and we have a lot to talk about. The challenge facing all contact centres at the moment - recruitment is our first topic. We talk about Dino's views on why returning to our vibrant contact centres is so important. We talk about Ventrica's expansion internationally and their latest investments in technology. Dino rightly is considered one of the nicest guys in our industry and its always a pleasure to speak to him

Join me and everyone who watches Get out of Wrap TV on Linkedin (every Tuesday at 10am UK time) as we chat about contact centres.

In this episode we are joined by Morris Pentel who shares just what we can gain by understanding uncertainty, doubt and confusion in our customer contacts.

This is a new concept where I am taking the audio from the show and sharing here - please do let me know what you think

Being a customer facing team member in our industry is tough, on this podcast we talk about mindset and the factors that are important in helping your agents get and keep the right one.

Brucine Francis is a Uk & International recruiter for the Customer Contact Industry and shares her expertise and journey. Brucine talks about her work in Diversity and Inclusion and recounts her own experiences of dealing with racism in her life. Brucine is amazing and I am so glad I did this podcast so you can hear her too.

Nik is a good mate now having chatted many times both on the podcast and off it. He's a successful business owner, charity champion and Linkedin leader. Today we talk about many many things that were on Niks mind.

James is always a great listen - his knowledge, skills and just the person he is makes for a great episode.

I've known Michael since 2017 when we judged together and he has been someone I have wanted to come on the podcast since I set it up in 2019. Michael is a subject matter expert in call & contact centres, CX and DX and shares his career journey, his passion for customers, start up tips, and shares the journey that Atiom have been on. A great episode and guest - hope you enjoy.

The first GOOW huddle, before we start the working day I will record no more than 10 minutes of industry news, thoughts, top tips, book recommendations and anything else that takes my fancy - this is the first one - let me know what you think.

Martin Pemberton worked hard to live alot of peoples dream for a decade - he was a professional footballer. This career was ended by injury and Martin suffered until he created Just 1 to 11. In a funny, heart warming, real and authentic episode Martin shares his lifes journey and how Just 1 to 11 saved him.

Andrew MacAskill is a job search guru with a following of over 80,000 on Linkedin and is an official Linkedin Changemaker due to his unstinting support and guidance to job seekers. An episode well worth a listen if you are job searching or might be in the future.

In this episode I am joined by the lead of the award winning John Lewis Customer Care team Alice Henderson and she talks about management and governance of change activity within contact centres. How do you govern it across multiple head office stakeholders, manage the volume of change,and prioritise effectively.
She also talks about how the team helped shape the strategy for customer care with our senior leaders, and built the distributed working model last year. Alice is illuminating and insightful and I really enjoyed chatting with her.

David has been in contact centres since starting on the phones some 20 years ago. He found he had a talent in planning and hard work and research has seen him become an SME in this area. In this episode David talks about planning for hybrid workforces, intraday automation, workforce engagement and how real time agility is more beneficial to your business than forecast accuracy. A great episode with a great guy & not just because we have similar beards :)

Part 2 - Sandra Thompson on Emotional Intelligence.

A great episode to see in 5 years of Get Out of Wrap and Sandra demonstrates her own EI by getting me a cake !

In this episode Sandra shares more great tips on deploying Emotional Intelligence in the workplace - a must listen - not just for leaders but for everyone.

Garry is founder of Fab Solutions and also the founder of the Contact Centre Network, prior to that he had a long career at BUPA. In this episode we talk about his career to date, about how to create customer and colleague loyalty in your Contact Centre and Elephants, dead fish & vomit :)

Jimmy Hosang is the CEO of The Modular Analytics Company and he brings the authenticity and engagement you'd expect from that company to this podcast. I loved chatting to Jimmy and found him inspirational as he talked about his journey and his ethos. We also talked about the digitisation of the contact centre and how Jimmy is passionate about people development and their use in contact centres.

Mark Turner is an Operations SME and currently heads up the multi-lingual operation at BPA Quality. He also takes on the task of leading a yearly physical challenge to raise money for charity. The last few years have seen people from BPA complete the 3 Peaks challenge and this year despite Covid is no different with the team taking on the 100km challenge that is the Race to the Stones. In a laughter filled episode Mark shares tips and why you should be organising something for your contact centre.

Rob Wilkinson is very well known in the industry. He has judged at customer experience awards, spoken at business forums, provided content as a subject expert and been twice voted in Call centre Helpers ‘Top 10 Most respected’. Rob shares his journey, top tips and his passions.

In another episode dedicated to sharing tips and advice - this topic is one close to our hearts as Operations people and that is Incentives and Games in the Contact Centre

Nik and I have developed a real friendship from Linkedin and these podcasts. Nik is the founder of Winning Bid Ltd and we talk about his business, his latest charity work and we chat about society - love this future Nicaraguan president like a brother.

Pete Dunn is an expert on QA in Contact Centres and in today's episode on sharing top tips we talk Scorecards. Get this vital part of QA right. As we're mates we have a laugh too.

Daniel is the The Executive Health Coach and runs a very succesful business helping executives lose weight, become healthy and happy. His method is fully holistic and if you want to be the best version of yourself this is the episode for you.

Well known in the industry Mark Conway is the founder of CCP recruitment. In this episode Mark talks about his journey and how contact centres changed his life, recruiting in our industry, setting his own business up, the last crazy year and also top tips for job seekers. Great to chat to Mark and it gave me real hope for the future. Plus Mark is a fellow Spurs fan so some football chat slips in ! COYS

The first of its kind on GOOW this is an episode solely dedicated to sharing tips and will be the start of some mid-week episodes. Joined by my mate & 5 time guest Chris Rainsforth we cover ten top tips for team leaders.

Sandra Thompson is an expert on Emotional Intelligence and Founder of Ei Evolution and is on a mission to equip leaders with this vital skill. Engaging, knowledgeable and fun this is a must listen 💜

Sarah Hunt is well known in the industry and a real all round SME in Contact Centres. Sarah talks about her career in contact centres, her role at the CCMA, her views on what the future has in store for our industry and we talk about a subject that Sarah is passionate about and that is the menopause. A subject that needs more discussion and air time. Sarah is great - always engaging and very informative - a great episode.

Pete Dunn is a great advocate of mental health and I have benefited personally from being his friend and hearing him talk on this subject so as mental health awareness week comes to an end Pete talks about his own experiences and we both share resources and thoughts.
The app Pete mentioned is called reachout worrytime – you stick your worries in a vault type area, then revisit them later when you can unpack them properly - https://au.reachout.com/tools-and-apps/reachout-worrytime
The CBT process Pete uses to challenge his thinking is court case -https://www.getselfhelp.co.uk/CourtCase.htm
Mind – www.mind.org.uk call 0300 123 3393 or text 86463
Samaritans – www.samaritans.org  call 116 123
Shout – www.giveusashout.org text 85258

Stuart Dorman is the Chief Innovation Officer at Sabio and a few weeks ago we talked on this podcast about some elements of technology in the contact centre but today wanted to focus on AI. I found chatting to Stuart illuminating and informative and hope you do too. Linked sites mentioned on the podcast; Free Imposter syndrome course https://members.nowisyourtimeto.com/a/2147487031/rLCfhTVt Naomi House - Jacks Place Childrens Hospice - https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/getoutofwrap-martin-teasdale