For those not familiar with my work, I’m an active author, consultant, researcher and trainer in CX and EX (and also a member of CustomerThink’s Hall of Fame). Let me begin by saying that, though much of my writing and continuous learning is about CX, EX, brand, and enterprise culture subjects, this is an unusual post for me.
A couple of years ago, several colleagues, aware of my writing and content researching background, asked me to compile a comprehensive reading list for anyone either entering professional life as an EX and/or CX practitioner, or for any seasoned practitioner who would find such a list of references to be useful. Anyway, here it is, from most recent to earliest:
– Grant, Adam, Think Again, Viking, 2021
– Scott, David Meerman, Scott, Reiko, Fanocracy, Portfolio/Penguin, 2020
– Whitter, Ben, Bersin, Josh, Employee Experience, Kogen Page, 2019
– Bliss, Jeanne, Would You Do That To Your Mother?, Portfolio, 2018
– Cable, Daniel, Alive At Work, Harvard Business School Press, 2018
– Godin, Seth, This Is Marketing, Portfolio, 2018
– Heath, Chip, Heath, Dan, The Power of Moments, Simon & Schuster, 2017
– Lowenstein, Michael, Employee Ambassadorship, Business Expert Press, 2017
– Chapman, Bob, Sisodia, Raj, Everybody Matters, Portfolio/Penguin, 2016
– Chouinard, Yvon, Let My People Go Surfing, Penguin Books, 2016
– Shapiro, Richard, The Endangered Customer, Jenkins Group, 2016
– Shaw, Colin, Hamilton, Ryan, The Intuitive Customer, Palgrave-Macmillan, 2016
– Bliss, Jeanne, Chief Customer Officer 2.0, Jossey-Bass, 2015
– Keiningham, Timothy, Aksoy, Lerzan, Williams, Luke, The Wallet Allocation Rule, John Wiley & Sons, 2015
– Korschun, Daniel, Welker, Grant, We Are Market Basket, Amacom, 2015
– Thompson, Robert, Hooked On Customers, CreateSpace, 2014
– Baer, Jay, Youtility, Portfolio/Penguin, 2013
– Mackey, John, Sisodia, Raj, Conscious Capitalism, Harvard Business Review Press, 2013
– Malone, Chris, Fiske, Susan, The Human Brand, Jossey-Bass, 2013
– Paharia, Rajat, Loyalty 3.0, McGraw-Hill, 2013
– Siegel, Eric, Predictive Analytics, John Wiley & Sons, 2013
– Hill, Vernon, Fans, Not Customers, Profile Books, 2012
– Keller, Ed, Fay, Brad, The Face-to-Face Book, Free Press, 2012
– Lowenstein, Michael, The Customer Advocate and The Customer Saboteur, ASQ Press, 2012
– Manning, Harley, Bodine, Kerry, Bernoff, Josh, Outside-In, New Harvest, 2012
– Fader, Peter, Customer Centricity, Wharton Digital Press, 2011
– Godin, Seth, Linchpin, Portfolio, 2011
– Kahneman, Daniel, Thinking Fast and Slow, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2011
– Bliss, Jeanne, I Love You More Than My Dog, Portfolio, 2009
– Joel, Mitch, Six Pixels of Separation, Business Plus, 2009
– Kotler, Philip, Caslione, John, Chaotics, Amacom, 2009
– Pink, Daniel, Drive, Riverhead Books, 2009
– Li, Charlene, Bernoff, Josh, Groundswell, Harvard Business Press, 2008
– Michelli, Joseph, The Starbucks Experience, McGraw-Hill, 2007
– Sisodia, Raj, Sheth, Jag, Wolfe, David, Firms of Endearment, Wharton School Publishing, 2007
– Tisch, Jonathan, Chocolates On The Pillow Aren’t Enough, John Wiley & Sons, 2007
– Godin, Seth, Small Is The New Big, Portfolio, 2006
– Senge, Peter, The Fifth Discipline, Random House Business, 2006
– Stubblefield, Al, The Baptist Health Care Journey To Excellence, John Wiley & Sons, 2005
– Humby, Clive, Hunt, Terry, Scoring Points, Kogan-Page, 2003
– Keller, Ed, Berry, Jon, The Influentials, The Free Press, 2003
– Shook, Robert, Jackpot!, McGraw-Hill, 2003
– McKean, John, Customers Are People, John Wiley & Sons, 2002
– Naylor, Mary, Greco, Susan, Customer Chemistry, McGraw-Hill, 2002
– Rosenbluth, Hal, Peters, Diane, The Customer Comes Second, Harper Business, 2002
– Griffin, Jill, Lowenstein, Michael, Customer Winback, Jossey-Bass, 2001
– Walker, Steven, Marr, Jeffrey, Stakeholder Power, Perseus Publishing, 2001
– Putnam, Robert, Bowling Alone, Simon & Schuster, 2000
– Gordon, Ian, Relationship Marketing, John Wiley & Sons, 1998
– Pfeffer, Jeffrey, The Human Equation, Harvard Business School Press, 1998
– Beckwith, Harry, Selling The Invisible, Warner Books, 1997
– Lowenstein, Michael, The Customer Loyalty Pyramid, Quorum,1997
– Lowenstein, Michael, Customer Retention, ASQC, 1995
I’m sure there are many valuable books I’ve missed; but, that said, the list pretty much covers key factors and trends in today’s CX, EX, brand, and enterprise culture landscape.
An important addendum to my curated reference list for CX and EX practitioners. Have just completed the 3rd edition, revised and updated, of Janelle Barlow’s book, A Complaint Is A Gift (Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 2023). An instant classic, the book makes a thorough business case that having, and leveraging, a full inventory of complaints, i.e. expectations that have not been met, is extraordinarily important for every enterprise.