leadership
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Acquisition Transitions in Support – Part 1: The Good Stuff
This is part 1 of a 3-part series about the challenges support teams might face during an acquisition. The link to Part 2: The Bad Stuff is at the bottom of this post. It seems every week another acquisition is announced here in the tech industry*. And while the initial reaction is all dollar signs…
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Managing Through The Fire
I recently had occasion to chat with a few different CS leaders whose teams had gone through fairly dramatic layoffs.* One of them asked me what they could do today to weather the storm and get the boot off their teams in the immediate term and here is a summary of what I said. Embrace…
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Gratitude July 2023
Every once in a while, I like to come here and type up a few things that I enjoyed recently. Here are a few. Bloom I am a sucker for queer YA graphic novels and will pretty much read anyone I can get my hands on. Bloom is nothing mind-blowing; it is just a sweet…
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Obligatory AI Opinion post
Someone on Mastodon posted that Shopify was downsizing their customer support team in favor of leveraging an AI tool instead and I spent several posts sharing my Expert Opinion on the matter and figured I ought to drop it here for posterity. I have been a customer support leader in the tech industry for almost…
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Gratitude April 2023
Spring has sprung here in New York and despite a mild winter it’s still been a welcome change. Here are a few other things I’ve been grateful for as of late. Little Richard: I Am Everything I heard about this new doc the other day and then I was unexpectedly blessed with a free window…
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Gratitude February 2023
South Africa Owing to my humble service on the Whose Knowledge? board, I was graciously invited by the team to join them on their annual retreat in KwaZuluNatal, South Africa. It was a beautiful 10 days and I certainly hope it will not be my last time in South Africa. I have so much more…
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The Three Ds of Product Drops
Ask any CS leader or practitioner in software about releases and you will probably get an eye roll or a groan. The history of software development is littered with new feature and products that launched at random times without supporting teams being enabled…or even informed ! In order to drive more alignment with Product a…
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Gratitude: Late Fall 2022
Cannupa Hanska Luger I don’t remember how I first came across Cannupa Hanska Luger and his thrilling art, but I am glad that I did. His work is energizing and thought provoking and deep and fun. The textile pieces bring to mind the ever-inspiring work of (my other fave!) Nick Cave. Bad Sex by Nona…
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Gratitude August 2022
Speaking Brazilian I have been studying Brazilian Portuguese for over 2.5 years now, but until a few months ago I was mostly using apps and self-study via conversations, podcasts, and a few movies. I discovered Virginia Langhammer while cruising YouTube and appreciated all the free instruction and materials she was offering for beginners; so I…
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Gratitude May 2022
I don’t think I have done one of these in a while. Long overdue! Marc Rebillet with Reggie Watts & (THE QUEEN) Erykah Badu Every once in a while the algo gods smile on you and deliver something to you that you would’ve never found yourself. I had no idea who Marc Rebillet was a…
Camille E. Acey 