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Esteban Kolsky

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President, thinkJar

755 points

Esteban Kolsky is the Principal and Founder of ThinkJar, an advisory and research think-tank focused on Customer Strategies.

He has over 22 years of experience in customer service and CRM consulting, research, and advisory services. Most recently he spent eight ...

Esteban Kolsky is the Principal and Founder of ThinkJar, an advisory and research think-tank focused on Customer Strategies.

He has over 22 years of experience in customer service and CRM consulting, research, and advisory services. Most recently he spent eight years at Gartner, focused on Customer Service and CRM research. While there he coined the terms for EFM (enterprise feedback management) and CIH (customer interaction hub). In addition, he researched and wrote on the social networking topics that led to today’s revolution and assisted Fortune 500 and Global 2,000 organizations in all aspects of their CRM deployments.

Mr. Kolsky is currently advising vendors and organization how to extend customer interactions from the CRM niche to the entire organization in their efforts to become Social Businesses.

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Esteban Kolsky and 5 other people answered this question

Jan. 3, 2012

Enterprise software users prefer Excel... what can vendors do about that?

If you really think about it, Access, Word and Excel were the original "apps" for the enterprise.
I made a living developing Excel VBA apps in the 1990s, and I can do the same cheaper, faster, better with iOS and Android apps today.
Users don't ... more

Information Technology

Enterprise Software

Esteban Kolsky recommends this answer by Robert Keahey

Jan. 1, 2012

How would you explain cloud computing to someone who is unfamiliar with it?

Chris, Andrew and Luke have given great answers. But in an attempt to "dumb it down" even further for those who aren't even "non-tech", I would offer up something like this...
Every day we use resources that enable our daily routines. Things like electricity, water, ... more

Information Technology

Cloud Computing

Esteban Kolsky recommends this answer by Jonathan London

Jan. 1, 2012

How do you determine whether or not to follow a blog?

if you learn someting related to what you are interested in, or focusing on, follow it. Also, if relates to an industry you are trying to sell into, follow it. If there are attractive pictures, follow it. If Esteban Kolsky writes it, follow it -). more

Human Resources

Esteban Kolsky recommends this answer by Debi Rowen

Dec. 28, 2011

Are surveys and polls still a valuable tool for learning from customers?

Esteban, you make some very valid points. I have to admit that I easily feel guilty and once returned a survey for a shiny quarter ! But then again, who uses snail mail anymore? more

Customer Service

Customer Conversations

Customer Experience

Esteban Kolsky published a post

Nov. 16, 2011

What Are Organizations Doing in Social Customer Service?

Customer Service

Social Business

Esteban Kolsky recommends this answer by Guy Stephens (@guy1067)

Nov. 4, 2011

How do you make measuring social ROI as simple as possible while still being meaningful?

Not sure what social ROI is or whether it should be hived off as a separate entity ie. ROI of customer service vs ROI of social media customer servie. But I am trying to understand why working out the ROI is important? Whether you work ... more

Customer Service

Esteban Kolsky is speaking at this roundtable

Oct. 31, 2011

What's Inhibiting Cloud Usage?

Information Technology

Cloud Computing

Mitch Lieberman selected a best answer for

Oct. 31, 2011

Why did Oracle buy RightNow?

Today, it was announced that Oracle agreed to buy RightNow (and RNOW BOD approved) the purchase for 'around' $1.5B. Why did Oracle make the purchase? Is this a catch-up play in Cloud based CRM - or a leapfrog of other vendors. more

Customer Service

Esteban Kolsky answered this question

Oct. 10, 2011

What is a step-by-step methodology for designing a Social CRM strategy in an enterprise?

I got that in my blog, a six-parts series. here are the links. hope this answers it (btw, this is a summary of the workshop i do based on the same materials)
http://estebankolsky.com/2009/10/the-scrm-roadmap-part-1-of-5/
http://estebankolsky.com/2009/11/2009/10/21/the-roadmap-to-scrm-part-2-1-of-5/
http://estebankolsky.com/2009/11/2009/10/25/the-roadmap-to-scrm-part-2-2-of-5/
http://estebankolsky.com/2009/11/2009/11/03/the-roadmap-to-scrm-part-3-of-5/
http://estebankolsky.com/2009/11/the-roadmap-to-scrm-part-4-of-5/
http://estebankolsky.com/2009/11/the-roadmap-to-scrm-part-5-of-5/
Let me know any questions. more

Information Technology

Esteban Kolsky recommends this answer by Guy Stephens (@guy1067)

Sept. 26, 2011

Who is responsible in an organization for ownership of social media implementation? Is it a cross department endeavour?

Let's remember that the question is about 'ownership of social media implementation', not ownership of social media strategy.
Let's take social out of the equation. But then how do we make a distinction between the unique characteristics that social media brings? I do think that ... more

Customer Service

Esteban Kolsky answered this question at this roundtable

Sept. 20, 2011

Simplifying Social Business: The Promise of Social CRM, part 1 [9/21 @ 11 am]

In one paragraph, can you define the "social business model"?

No. But I have a great picture or two. Cannot upload them, already tried. Sorry.

Customer Service

Esteban Kolsky recommends this answer by Steve Christensen

Sept. 20, 2011

When it is time to change enterprise software vendors?

Esteban's response is right on the money. Never.
The legacy system being considered for replacement is likely missing a few critical pieces of functionality, data, process and/or technology. Any new enterprise system is equally going to miss bits and pieces that your business requires. To ... more

Information Technology

Esteban Kolsky answered this question

Sept. 19, 2011

Is it better to be a leader or a visionary in Gartner's Magic Quadrants?

you probably missed some in your search, we all do. the answer is not if you found the best one by any metric, but if you found the one that gives you what you need. in a never-ending world of updates and improvements, you will ... more

Esteban Kolsky answered this question

Sept. 19, 2011

How do I stabilize call center service levels 80/60 across 40 clients?

easy answer (a question actually) why are you rolling KPIs? if there is a way to unroll them, that's your answer - which will then lead you to understand what each client requires to provide steady service.
if there is no way to unroll them, there ... more

Contact Centers

Esteban Kolsky recommends this answer by Paul Greenberg

Sept. 7, 2011

Do #CRMidol semi-finalists have actual customers or just analyst adulation?

They were required to have several paying customers just to participate and be commercially available. I hope that answers your question despite your tone. more

Customer Service

Information Technology

Esteban Kolsky is speaking at this roundtable

Aug. 31, 2011

CRM Idol: In Search of the Best CRMish Programs You've Never Heard Of

Customer Service

Information Technology

Following 5 Topics

Cloud Computing

Customer Service

Customer Service Feedback

Following 0 People

Followed by 73 People

Knowledgeable in 53 Topics

#24 of 1982

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Information Technology

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Social Business

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Customer Service

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Market Research

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Customer Experience

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Human Resources

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Career Development

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Customer Feedback

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Cloud Computing

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Enterprise Software

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Cloud Computing Solutions

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Project Management

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Enterprise Resource Planning

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Customer Experience Management

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Customer Loyalty

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Business Intelligence

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Marketing Automation

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Supply Chain Management

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Public Relations

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Social Customer Care

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Simplifying Social Business

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