Customer Service & Training: The Intersection of Learning and Business Success

Introduction

Nolan: Hello everyone and welcome to the Learning and Development podcast sponsored by Infopro Learning. As always, I’m your host Nolan Hout. Joining me on the podcast today we have Sara Cavallucci, the Director of Customer Service-Training and Development at GS1. Sara is an industry pro, which you’ll soon find out. She has over 20 years of experience across a wide range of learning and development topics.

Today we’re going to be talking about one topic though, and it happens to be a favorite of mine, which is customer service training. It’s a favorite because when I started in the industry, a lot of the projects that I worked on were in that field and I could see the impact that we could have on the people, the business, and everything by getting these training programs developed the correct way.

In our podcast today, we’re going to talk about a little bit of everything from connecting to the business metrics with our training, skill development, what are those skills that these customer service reps need, culture and the importance of that on building a team, and measurement. Let’s go ahead and get into it. Let’s kick things off and meet our guest.

Sara, welcome to the podcast. 

Sara: Hi, Nolan. It’s great meeting you today. I am excited about our discussion.

Nolan: Likewise. Thank you so much for joining on this podcast today. And we’re doing this from afar. We’re doing it from opposite ends of the world and opposite time zones. I’m in Idaho, which is at 6:30 in the morning. And Sara where are you. 

Sara: I am in Brussels and it’s 3:30 PM for me.

Nolan: I’m drinking my coffee. You’re about to go have a drink, maybe of a different kind. Thank you for giving us some of the time at the end of your day for this.

Sara, how we start every podcast is by learning a little bit more about you and particularly how you got to where you are today. Obviously as a leader at GS1, you’ve, you’ve done many great things in your career, but that’s not where you started.

Tell us a little bit about your origin story of how you got into this field that you’re in today.

Sara’s Career Journey

Sara: I am Director for Training and Customer Service and my role is to build capabilities in our organization and also to serve our customers for customer service in general and I have a background in the pharma industry, working there for many years. But I would tell a nice story about me. When I was at, during my university studies, I worked part-time for an Italian telecom operator as a customer service agent. And I remember working there in the evenings because I needed to study and go to the lessons during the day.

But I was hired to handling email support and also creating FAQs and creating content for these websites. It was a lot of years ago in the 20s. It was a very nice experience, but it was a student job to pay my studies. I could never imagine to be now customer service leader in this organization.

Sara’s Passion for Education

Nolan: That’s amazing. What is it that you what attracts you to the education side of it are you do you love to learn yourself or you more of, I love to empower people What is it you that attracts you there.

Sara: It’s empowering, developing and empowering people. This has been wanting constant in my career. I love giving people the tools, the skills, the capabilities and everything they can grow. I am attracted by the coaching methods and I see people growing because, it was also a growth, I’m growing, we grow during our lives. Imagine I was a customer service agent and then I evolved into the pharma industry with many roles and then I evolved into a training and customer service director. It’s about learning skills and doing your best for people and myself.

The Connection Between Training and Customer Service

Nolan:  What a great topic we’re diving into today—the intersection of training and customer service. It’s one of the most fascinating and one of my favorite types of programs to work on with our clients, primarily because it’s so directly connected to the business. In the learning and development space, we often face challenges in clearly linking training investments to business outcomes. Can you talk a little bit about that connection? Why is there such a strong link between training and the outcomes in customer service?

Sara: Customer service starts with people and ends with people—it’s all about people. You can deliver exceptional customer service, and therefore a great customer experience, only when the individuals providing that service feel confident and supported. This is why training is essential. People not only need to know how to do their jobs effectively, but they also need to feel empowered to serve others. That’s what makes training so critical—it forms the bridge between customer service and the field of learning and development.

How Training Programs Drive Business Results

Nolan: And I think you said it well; you said it begins and ends with the people. I completely agree with you. That’s why there’s such a strong connection between training and customer service. Often, customer service reps are the brand that people experience. That’s why it’s so important to get it right.

I often use the example of Nordstrom, a large retailer here in the U.S. known for its impeccable customer service. That reputation didn’t happen by chance—it’s the result of significant investment in customer service training. They put a lot of time and money into making sure their people can deliver that experience, because it has become a core part of their brand.

Other companies like Zappos follow a similar philosophy. And on the flip side, there are organizations I won’t name that are known for not investing in customer service. They rely heavily on their brand to carry them forward, which is a short-sighted strategy. Over time, that lack of investment in people erodes the brand, because it’s the people who interact with your customers that shape their perception and determine the value of the brand.

I absolutely agree—it all comes back to the people. So, with that in mind, how have you seen training programs—whether in your earlier hands-on roles or now in a leadership position—impact the business?

Sara: Training programs that have a big impact on the business today should focus on technology; particularly artificial intelligence. This is a key topic because while technology continues to evolve, customer service remains rooted in human connection. We always come back to that point: it’s people helping people and I love that.

If our customer service professionals are trained to work effectively with AI, they can, for instance, quickly find answers from internal knowledge bases or use chatbots to handle first-line or frequently asked questions 24/7. This gives customers immediate support and frees up our team to focus on more complex issues and strategic projects that require human expertise and empathy.

This is just one example. I’m curious to hear your thoughts on it.

Three Levers Every Chief Learning Officer Needs

Nolan: No, I totally agree. One big idea I had—years ago, I don’t even remember how many years back—was something I captured in an eBook. I can’t recall the exact title off the top of my head, but in it, I outlined three core levers that every CLO, learning leader, or business leader can pull.

You’re always trying to navigate these three levers.

The first is business performance—you always need to ask, “How much impact am I having on the business?”

The second is learning experience—how are we crafting personalized learning journeys? For someone like yourself, your learners are essentially your internal customers, and your Net Promoter Score comes from them.

The third lever is operational efficiency—how are we organizing the L&D team, and how efficiently are we delivering solutions?

That third lever, which ties into what you’re discussing—AI—is particularly interesting in the customer service field. I believe AI pulls on two of those levers simultaneously: the learning experience and operational efficiency.

It naturally helps improve the business because you’re reducing your cost to serve. That cost could be measured in dollars or in time.

Let’s say your customer service reps are constantly asked the same five questions. If you create a bot—a responsive job aid—that sits on their screen or lives within your application and provides immediate answers, then someone else on the back end doesn’t have to step in.

That frees up time for your team to focus on more critical issues. For example, maybe your first call resolution rate is low. Someone now has the time to dig into call recordings, figure out the underlying issue, and develop a training program specifically targeted to improve first call resolution.

Customer Service Metrics that Matter

I totally agree with your point: when we talk about getting better, it can refer to any of those three levers. And AI helps move the needle on all of them.

Now, I want to revisit something I mentioned earlier and get your take on it. One of the hardest challenges in customer service training is identifying which business metric—or internal lever—you’re trying to influence. There’s a lot of interconnection.

For example, we worked with a large telecom provider in the U.S., and they told us, “We don’t care how long it takes to resolve an issue—we just don’t want repeat calls.” Their key metric was first call resolution.

Naturally, that makes call handling time go up because they’re spending more time with each customer. But a lot of companies say, “We want low call handling time.” And when that’s your focus, first call resolution suffers.

So how do you balance all of these competing priorities?

How do you help customer service professionals understand what’s truly valuable when you’re training them? Because if you prioritize getting customers off the phone quickly, your queue time may go down, but your resolution quality likely suffers.

How do you navigate that tension?

Sara: This is a non-profit organization and a federation of 118-member organizations. Our customer service is available 24/7 through email, scheduled calls, and follow-up calls. What is most important for us—as a non-profit—is not the return on investment numbers or training scores, but rather the actual impact of our efforts.

Each company chooses how to measure customer service training. For us, it’s about evaluating impact from various angles. For instance, like many organizations, we track our customer service satisfaction score. When our score is high—as it currently is at 98%—it tells me that our training is effective. It means the team is well-trained, empowered, and equipped with the skills needed to serve customers effectively within our federated model.

We also rely on global service feedback. We ask customers how they felt about the support they received, often in a proactive manner. Since we operate across different countries and time zones, this kind of feedback is invaluable. If the service feedback is positive, it reinforces that our training investments are paying off.

Another aspect I value deeply is informal feedback. These spontaneous conversations can be powerful indicators. For example, at one of our regional events a few months ago—our GS1 event—a participant approached me and asked, “Are you Sara?” When I confirmed, they said they wanted to share feedback about someone on my team who had supported them for an entire month. This person had assisted with emails, sent clear instructions, organized meetings and follow-ups, and ensured the issue was fully resolved. They emphasized how the team member displayed empathy, patience, knowledge, and expertise throughout the process.

That moment meant a lot. It was a spontaneous compliment, and the person was smiling the whole time. I immediately called the team member to share the feedback, and it made them very happy. These kinds of moments are strong indicators of the impact of our training, and how it translates into customer experience. I don’t know what your perspective is, but to me, it’s a truly beautiful thing.

The Importance of Feedback in Customer Service

Nolan: What you touched on is something I often try to communicate: the importance of gathering feedback. Getting feedback from a variety of sources is valuable because you never want to rely on just one perspective. Some of the best insights come from simply asking people directly and listening to their experiences. What did they take away from it? It’s within those stories that you begin to understand the culture behind a training program.

As you mentioned—whether your 98% satisfaction score was real or hypothetical—that’s an amazing result and clearly reflects strong performance. But beyond the numbers, it’s the stories that help you understand whether you’re steering the ship in the right direction.

Speaking of AI, I recently sat next to a gentleman on a flight who had just demoed a new AI feature for a product called AirTable. He explained that they upload all the call recordings from their sales team into the system. Then they ask the AI to identify common themes: which features of the product are most valuable, which require the most explanation, and which ones people rarely mention. He told me that this has significantly improved their ability to manage the product—gaining direct customer insight without manually sifting through hundreds of conversations. That kind of feedback is incredibly powerful.

All types of feedback are useful, especially when someone takes the time to share a positive experience directly—it shows that people genuinely care.

Skills for Modern Customer Service

Nolan: One of the key things you mentioned earlier was empathy. And that’s a perfect segue into a broader conversation that many organizations are having today: moving away from viewing customer service as simply answering phones or handling tickets, and instead focusing on the skills that make great customer service professionals. At GS1 and in other organizations, there’s a shift toward a skills-based approach rather than a task-based one.

So, what are the high-value skills that matter most today? Which ones should professionals—and those who develop them—be prioritizing to excel in today’s customer service environment?

Sara: I hope that people are feeling that. Last year, there was still a sense in some quarters that AI was a flash in the pan, that it might go away at some point. I don’t think anybody feels that anymore. People accept that, for good or for ill, it’s part of how we’ll be doing business from now on. We better get on board with it.

Nolan: Absolutely. As you mentioned, AI almost seems like an umbrella that’s impacting some of these areas. The first one was “return.” What was the next one on the list? I had forgotten.

Sara: We mentioned empathy—and that’s no surprise. The power of empathy is well known in all types of relationships. But something that I believe is equally important today is collaboration.

We often think about customer service agents working independently. And yes, you can work independently as a professional, as an agent, in whatever format you use to serve your customers. But imagine the power of collaboration: when you face a complex problem and you can openly discuss it with a colleague, ask for their perspective, build on each other’s ideas, and co-create a solution. This allows you to resolve the issue, inquiry, or question in less time and with higher quality. That is powerful.

At the same time, you’re learning—you’re leveraging each other’s knowledge. This is peer learning. And if you can foster a collaborative environment where people feel psychologically safe—yes, it’s ambitious—but imagine being able to count on the expertise of your colleagues. Each of us has our own strengths and areas of knowledge; no one knows everything. That’s a fundamental truth. Formal and informal training are important, but peer learning in a safe, collaborative setting can be incredibly impactful.

Another essential skill is problem solving. My team always hears me emphasize the same three steps:

1 Formulate a clear and simple problem statement.

2 Find a fix.

3 Conduct a root cause analysis.

These are critical steps in effective problem solving. None of them is easy. In fact, clearly defining the problem itself can be the hardest part. But developing this ability is key—it’s a skill we must continuously improve.

Nolan: And a quick thought before my follow-up; it’s interesting that you mentioned collaboration. Most of us tend to view customer service as an isolated position: it’s you and the customer, it’s you and me having this conversation. But what does collaboration really mean in that context? Honestly, I’ve never thought about it that way before, but I realize now that when I’m having a bad experience, what I’m truly looking for is collaboration—between me and the representative, and maybe even another person from their side.

Instead, it often plays out like this: I say something, they say something, they can’t figure it out, and then they hand me off to someone else. It’s never, “Let me patch in John. John, I’ve got Nolan here—we’re trying to figure this out. Can you help us?” I’ve never experienced that. But I think you’re onto something there.

Hiring for Empathy, Collaboration & Problem Solving

Nolan: Coming back to what you mentioned—collaboration, problem-solving, and empathy—how do you hire for those skills? How do you determine whether someone possesses them before bringing them into the organization?

Sara: This is a challenge. We have a structured hiring process, as many companies do. It includes an assessment and a presentation of the assessment results, which is reviewed by some team members—those who wish to participate and offer different perspectives.

However, I believe these skills can be developed or improved based on the organization’s culture. So yes, hiring is challenging. We do have a process, but what truly makes a difference is the onboarding process.

Nolan: I recently posted a podcast featuring someone who is really focused on onboarding. One of the big takeaways we discussed was this: if collaboration, problem solving, and empathy are the top three skills we’re looking for—and of course, there are others, but if we agree these three are foundational—then we need to reflect that in every step of the process.

That starts with the job description. We have to be hiring for those skills. It’s the first and most important step: identify the key skills, then ensure you’re selecting talent based on them. The recruiter should be aligned on these priorities, mentioning them in conversations and interviews, and evaluating candidates accordingly.

And when someone joins the organization, onboarding should reinforce these skills. That consistency is critical. Otherwise, the message gets lost. You can’t say at the start, “We value empathy, collaboration, and problem solving,” but then all they hear once they’re on the job is “Get people off the phone as fast as you can.” That kind of mixed messaging is common—and we’re smiling because we’ve seen it happen in a lot of organizations.

Building a Trusting Team Culture

Nolan: You also mentioned how crucial onboarding is. If you don’t reinforce those values early, the culture doesn’t stick. I believe people often underestimate how important culture is—especially in customer service teams. I’ve led several of them, and I’ve found that team culture drives an outsized amount of value. A strong culture can compensate for other gaps or weaknesses in individuals. But if the culture on the floor is bad, it’s nearly impossible to hide any issues.

Sara: Absolutely. I believe culture is incredibly important. At my organization, I work on our “One Culture” initiative in partnership with HR—it’s a key part of my role. Specifically, for customer service teams, culture is something we invest a lot of time in. And it’s something I truly enjoy building.

There’s trust. I like to have a team that trusts each other. Every day, we need to rely on our colleagues because, in the end, we’re all working toward the same goal. We all want to achieve the same results, aligned with our organizational objectives. But most importantly, we want our customers to be happy—and that means we must nurture our relationships.

Be respectful with your colleagues, learn from each other, and create meaningful connections. One thing I truly value is showing that you care about others and that you understand them. There are a couple of key principles I find very important. One is allowing mistakes and embracing a more agile mindset; fail fast, learn, solve, and keep moving forward. Mistakes happen to all of us; they happen to me, and I’m sure to everyone else, too.

Another is embracing continuous improvement. It’s not a destination you reach and then stop. If you’re doing something well, there’s still an opportunity to do it even better. You can improve, experiment, and try new things. Always keep the customer in mind—think “customer first.”

This is something I actively work on with my team. To reinforce this culture, we hold workshops together in a safe environment where we can openly share challenges, find solutions, and decide how to improve as a team. These collaborative moments are powerful—and essential.

Nolan: That’s great. And that leads me to the final topic before we wrap up. Culture, as we’ve discussed, is incredibly valuable—just like everything else. It’s not the only factor, but an important one. So, how do you measure the effectiveness of that kind of training? Especially when we’re talking about things like culture, empathy, and collaboration—those are longer-term outcomes. It’s not like you invest in training today and see change tomorrow. How are you tracking the effectiveness of these programs and all the time spent, in terms of impact on the bottom line?

Sara: We leverage reports and analytics to assess the impact of training. For instance, we examine customer questions and issues both before and after formal training sessions. If we’ve trained agents—our professionals—on a specific service or new initiative they need to support, we track trends from the first month onward. When we start seeing a decrease in tickets and inquiries, it tells us something important: the training worked. It means the support provided was clear, and customers didn’t need to reach out as much. That’s a powerful signal.

We rely on reports and analytics frequently, but it’s not about assigning scores. The goal isn’t to create a scorecard; it’s about understanding whether the training was effective. If we see inquiries about a specific topic decreasing, we know the training had an impact. If not, it may indicate the need for retraining. This approach is especially relevant for technical or product-related training.

For soft skills training, the indicators are different. It’s more about observing the growth and development of the team. In customer service, turnover can be high—many people don’t stay in the field forever, as was the case with me when I started. But if team members stay longer, rely less on their managers or others, and begin taking on more complex tasks—like projects or improvement initiatives—that’s growth. That’s also a measure of collaboration, trust, peer learning, and empathy. Seeing people grow and level up is a sign that the training—and the culture behind it—is truly working.

Nolan:  And I love that answer because there’s something you touched on that we sometimes get a little caught up in. I’m almost afraid to commit—to say, “Yes, if I do this training, it’s going to lead to this outcome,” because if it doesn’t, what does that mean? But it doesn’t have to be that way. If you look at it from the lens of, “What if I don’t see an improvement in customer service?” it’s not that you’ve failed or that the program is a failure. It just means you need to go back and understand why.

You mentioned earlier—and I completely agree—it’s a continual process. I don’t think customer service is something you can jumpstart or shock into immediate change. It’s gradual. Sometimes, you might have to take one step back in order to take two steps forward. So, don’t be too hard on yourself or feel like everything has to create some monumental impact on the bottom line.

The most important thing is understanding the impact—whether it was good or bad—and looking at it holistically, not just as a single project. People often get nervous about that. But honestly, that was one of my favorite answers we’ve had. We ask that question to everyone, and yours really stood out. I’m going to start using that example when people ask me.

What a great way to end—on one of my favorite answers of the whole podcast. Thank you so much, Sara, for joining. This has been an absolute blast. You’re almost done with your day, and I’m probably headed for my second cup of coffee. But truly, thank you. This was wonderful.

Sara: Thank you so much for having me, and have a wonderful day!