Experiential Metrics: Investing in People

Issue #25 - Written by The X-Mentor in collaboration with Kim Flaherty.

Summary

A company gains greater returns on their investments when they invest in people.

But are businesses prioritizing people—or just profit?

And are we truly measuring what matters?

We Understand: businesses exist to make money. That’s the nature of the game. But in the relentless push for ever-greater returns, something essential is getting lost.

Under pressure to deliver short-term gains, senior leaders often chase quick wins at the cost of long-term impact—leaving people lost in the shuffle. The rise of AI threatens to exacerbate this trend, enabling faster decisions driven by data and efficiency while further distancing leaders from the human impact of their choices.

People Drive Corporate Performance—Not Financial Jiu-Jitsu

People have always been, and will always be, the core of business performance. It’s time we stopped pretending otherwise.

Yet today, corporate decisions often prioritize profit over people. In Poverty, by America, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Matthew Desmond shows how corporate subsidies rarely deliver ROI, while public investments in people yield billions in returns. His research challenges the ethics behind business and policy decisions alike.

It’s time to shift the focus. To make better decisions, we must re-center on what truly drives sustainable success: Investing in the Experiences of People. However, to do that we must start measuring performance through a human lens.

Rethinking the Metrics: A New Playbook for Measuring What Matters

“Leadership people are looking for metrics they identify with.” – Peter Bull

Peter Bull is the CTO of River Logic, a leading supply chain analytics firm. In the early 2000s, he was recognized as the top Corporate Performance Management expert within Bill Gates’ then newly formed Microsoft Business Intelligence Group. In his X-Interview on Performance Management, Peter explained that Executive Leaders rely on metrics they identify with because those indicators have consistently guided their past decisions, earning their trust.

Businesses Are Using Lagging Metrics

Until now, businesses attempt at measuring the human experience has been minimal, and fundamentally flawed. The industry standard measurements such as, NPS, and CSAT have long been considered problematic by most in the CX space. They are considered lagging metrics. They measure “What Happened.” I.e., after a product release, a new service update, etc. They are collected through surveys, and by the time the results are analyzed and rolled up for consumption, executives are “looking in the rearview mirror” at what happened weeks or months ago. In short, these are backward looking data that is only reported on a monthly or quarterly basis.

These trusted metrics, (NPS and CSAT) are a familiar context for decision-making for leadership, because they mimic the singular financial metrics these leaders use for other business decisions such as, revenue growth, operating margin, and churn rate.

These singular metrics that measure customer’s general perceptions about their past experience, don’t tell the full story. This is why these lagging metrics are often referred to as proxy metrics, because they are indirect indicators that stand in (as a proxy) for harder-to-measure outcomes such as customer experience and customer satisfaction.

Here’s the thing: Human experience can’t be summed up in a single number the way financial performance can. Moreover, since such numbers reflect what has happened in the past, they are less useful for making strategic decisions about the future.

It's Time to Evolve Beyond Lagging Metrics — Toward a Smarter, More Predictive Approach

Leading Metrics Measure “What Is Happening”

Leading metrics include both operational metrics and data collected by experience designers during the design and testing of products and services.

Leading metrics provide real-time and forward-looking insight on live product and service performance, and at various stages of development. They are crucial for day-to-day operations and short-term decision-making.

Peter Bull asserts that the work Design is doing to optimize customer experiences offers early insight into future performance of the business, I.e., Predictive indicators of business performance.

As Peter aptly points out, “If you jump straight to the financials, you lose the plot.” Which is why he believes that insight from the design process should serve as a leading indicator of performance because it shapes how customers experience a company’s products, services, and brand.

Experiential Metrics Measure “What Will Happen”

Experiential data includes emotional, perceptual, and behavioral themes captured directly within the context of a released, in-market product or service. Such data is collected through real-time feedback from customers. Journey analytics platforms, such as InQuba, specialize in the collection of real-time experiential metrics through messaging with customers as they progress through a journey toward their goal.

Unlike proxy metrics, Experiential Metrics capture authentic human experiences, which offers a more complete view of what truly drives performance. They reveal a new dimension of insight into how people feel, think, and act.

1. Feel – Human Emotions are the #1 driver of business outcomes.

2. Think - Human Emotions influence our thoughts and perceptions of value.

3. Act - Perceived Value drives predictions of customer behavior.

This data is contextually rich and by analyzing the data for clear themes, organizations can get a nuanced and predictive view of how customer experience relates to future financial profitability.

Use of experiential data centers on how people’s perceptions and experiences directly drive business outcomes. Experiential Metrics capture this value exchange between customer and company, measuring performance through a human lens.

Tying Human Experience to the Bottom Line: A New Imperative for Executive Leaders

Savvy executives recognize the link between customer experience and financial performance. Yet few have successfully unlocked growth by managing human experiences with the same rigor as other parts of the business. That’s about to change.

As Howard Tiersky, the Wall Street Journal bestselling author of Winning Digital Customers, explains, emotions are the #1 driving force behind business success. Human emotions shape perceptions, which in turn fuel all economic behavior.

Experiential Metrics show the direct impact of human experience on critical business outcomes, including customer retention, satisfaction, and brand reputation, all of which are vital for long-term success and maximizing customer lifetime value (CLV).

These metrics help drive strategies for improved user adoption, accelerated time-to-value, enhanced product stickiness, and improved growth, engagement, and loyalty. For this reason, they are a far more reliable KPI for predicting human behaviors that result in measurable business outcomes when compared to traditional proxy metrics like NPS and CSAT.

AI is no longer just predicting customer journey patterns—it is on the brink of revolutionizing them. The next wave of AI, with advanced reasoning and planning capabilities, will redefine the business landscape, unlocking unprecedented ROI gains. At the heart of this transformation lies Experiential Metrics, set to become the new currency of competitive advantage. Just as the dot-com era reshaped the digital world, this AI-driven shift will ignite a seismic change in how businesses engage, adapt, and thrive.

Trent Rossini, Managing Director and Co-Founder of Customer Journey Management company, inQuba, says “with journey orchestration, every customer interaction can be costed and tied to outcomes—allowing businesses to measure both the cost and revenue of each journey, ultimately revealing the true profitability of customer experiences”.

Trent coined the phrase “Journey Economics” in reference to this approach to managing journey profitability and stated, “I think this is a Holy Grail of where CX needs to go, you start to associate those human feelings with the revenue that you generate.”

Experts agree.

“I’m aware of that journey economics work that you mentioned. That’s where the business case for CX has to go.” – Maxie Schmidt

In her X-Interview on CX Measurement, Dr. Maxie Schmidt, Vice President, Principal Analyst at Forrester Research, says that tying customer experience to company-wide revenue makes for a compelling story, but real impact happens at the journey level—where success can be clearly measured for both the business and the customer.

The Problem with The Corporate Performance Dashboard

Businesses believe they matter more than their customers. The C-Suite Corporate Performance Dashboard stands as proof.

Most dashboards focus on shareholder value, I.e., Earning Per Share, Return on Equity, Total Shareholder Return. Business Performance focuses on Revenue, Costs, Risk, Profit, Retention, etc.

Meanwhile, the people powering the business are invisible. Metrics like “Headcount” and “Labor” are treated as costs, not as human beings. Decisions, whether in corporations or government, are too often driven by cost savings, not human impact.

Even CEOs are hitting their limits. According to Korn Ferry, 71% of U.S. CEOs face a “confidence crisis” amidst rising investor pressure, economic instability, and global unrest.

• CEO turnover is at Record Highs – 222 CEOs left their roles in January 2025, the highest number in 23 years according to Korn Ferry’s report.

• Mounting Pressures Are Driving CEOs Out – CEOs are facing ongoing disruption from the pandemic recovery, inflation, AI uncertainty, and policy changes. There’s no longer a “reliable playbook” according to the report.

• Boards Are Losing Patience – Boards are under pressure from “activist investors” and are quicker to oust underperforming CEOs. Nearly 40% of CEO exits were involuntary according to the report.

The Solution? Treat People Better and Track How Well We Serve Them

The Golden Rule still applies.

Rarely will you find a corporate dashboard that tracks how effectively a company serves its customers, employees, or society.

Dashboards overflow with metrics on financials, products, and NPS scores, yet lack insight into the human experiences that drive performance. As John Doerr, author of Measure What Matters, points out, Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) must be balanced with CFRs—Conversations, Feedback, and Recognition—to meaningfully improve performance. Why? Because markets are conversations and people matter.

While businesses focus on lagging proxy metrics like EBITA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, and Amortization), net income, and NPS, customers are having honest, often blunt conversations about ditching brands in favor of those that speak their language, align with their values, and make it easy to be their customer.

Case in Point—Tesla: Tesla's stock has plummeted over 40% since January, wiping out the post-Election Day surge that once saw shares soar more than 90%. Market sentiment has soured further as this year’s sales data reveals growing consumer preference for rival EV brands. In February, Tesla’s China shipments plunged 49% year-over-year. Most recently, Elon Musk lost a staggering $29 billion in a single day as Tesla shares crashed 15% — marking the worst trading day since the company’s 21% drop in September 2020.

The Human Experience: Growing frustration and backlash against Elon Musk are not only dragging down Tesla’s stock but also fueling protests across the country. Public outrage has escalated to violence, prompting the Department of Justice to charge three individuals from South Carolina, Colorado, and Oregon in connection with attacks on Tesla vehicles, showrooms, and charging stations. Allegations include the use of Molotov cocktails, possession of incendiary devices, and carrying a suppressed AR-15 rifle. If convicted, they each face between 5 and 20 years in prison.

Human experiences, both good and bad, shows us in no uncertain terms what truly drives performance by revealing how people feel, think, and will predictively act.

Investing in People Isn’t a Cost, It’s a Strategy

Corporate dashboards serve shareholders but stay silent on how well businesses serve people. Better performance isn’t about doing more; it’s about doing what’s right. We must understand, without people, there is no performance.

Modern businesses can now forecast profitability through the customer journey. This is the AI-driven future of the CX business case. Yet friction persists, as unethical innovation prioritizes profit over people, harming those left behind.

Therefore, Experiential Metrics aren’t just about customer value, they’re a path to economic justice.

Overcoming Resistance for Meaningful Change

In The Human Element: Overcoming the Resistance That Awaits New Ideas, Loran Nordgren and David Schonthal uncover why new ideas often struggle to gain traction. The problem isn’t a lack of appeal—it’s friction.

Friction refers to the psychological forces that resist change. Nordgren and Schonthal argue that real progress comes from reducing the hidden barriers to adoption. As outlined in the book, the four frictions include:

• Inertia

• Effort

• Emotion

• Reactance

Let’s look at how we might overcome the challenges of corporate performance management through the lens of the four frictions.

The Essential Change: Experiential Metrics in Corporate Performance Dashboards

We’re advocating for the integration of Experiential Metrics into corporate performance dashboards; not as a replacement, but as a critical addition. What will it take to spark widespread adoption of Experiential Metrics?

The way we look at business problems and measure performance must change. However, to bring about real and meaningful change, we must first detect where friction and resistance reside and take the necessary steps to reduce or eliminate that friction.

Real Change Starts with The CEO, But Design Leaders Must Show Up

CEOs who rely on lagging indicators are essentially steering the ship by watching the wake. This backward-looking approach puts senior leaders at risk of missing emerging market shifts, eroding customer satisfaction, and falling behind faster, data-driven, and more innovative competitors.

The consequences? Missed opportunities, declining investor confidence, and stalled growth to name a few.

Design Leadership Must Champion a New Strategy

For decades, Design Leaders have faced a persistent challenge: translating experiential improvements into measurable business outcomes.

Articulating Design Value is a struggle for most Design Leaders, as their efforts have become increasingly difficult to directly tie to tangible business outcomes in the language executives understand. E.g., Revenue, Cost, Risk, Profitability, Retention, etc.

Part of this challenge comes from the traditional product-centric approach to design. Early in the digital evolution, product solutions were revolutionary and directly impactful to business outcomes. Conversely, in today’s mature digital landscape, small UX tweaks and added features rarely deliver immediate, measurable business impact. Interfaces are already “good enough,” users are well-adapted, and the era of easy wins and high ROI of UX is over.

Further improvements require significant effort, yet yield diminishing returns, as standard design patterns have become the norm, not a differentiator. While user research still adds value, it’s more costly and delivers smaller gains, making incremental changes less impactful on business outcomes.

Adopting a journey-centric design and measurement strategy opens the door to design innovation within the larger customer journey.

Improvements made to journeys can be significant enough and measured in a way that they can be tied directly to business outcomes. The operational performance of any customer journey directly correlates to business performance. So, by focusing design work at this level, we are poised to truly tie design efforts to journey outcomes, through Experiential Metrics.

As Jared Spool noted in his X-Interview, UX is frequently excluded from transformation initiatives because it's seen as a tactical function, not a strategic partner. Yet, every major business decision, Spool argues, has a measurable impact on user experience. As Spool put it, “You damn well better have UX there!”

To unlock the full potential of Design in driving business performance, design leaders must boldly chart their path to the C-suite—articulating a compelling vision, a clear strategy, and measurable outcomes. Doing so requires strategic thinking and the courage to confront and overcome the four key frictions that stand in the way of their most transformative ideas.

Takeaways

True business success begins with people—not just profits. In today’s fast-paced, AI-driven world, companies risk losing sight of what really drives performance: human experience. To prevent AI from deepening this divide, it is critical to establish foundational capabilities now to ensure that AI is deployed with ethical oversight, accountability, and a focus on sustainable value creation. By prioritizing people, businesses can balance profit with purpose, preserving the human element in decision-making while still driving innovation and growth.

Traditional, backward-looking metrics are no longer enough in the Age of AI. To lead with impact, organizations must embrace Experiential Metrics: a forward-looking approach that measures emotions, perceptions, and behaviors to predict and enhance business outcomes. This means:

• Design leaders must speak the language of business—aligning their work with outcomes executives care about.

• Business leaders must evolve their performance frameworks—to include customer experience as a key growth driver on their corporate dashboards.

• Both Must Embrace The Human Element of Performance—leveraging customer-centric data by mapping user journeys and measuring emotion, perception, and behavior through Experiential Metrics.

As AI advances, its ability to drive rapid, data-driven decisions may further accelerate businesses’ focus on short-term gains, which too often happens at the expense of long-term human impact. By investing in the people who power products, services, and brands, companies unlock lasting value, loyalty, and growth.

AI is poised to revolutionize customer journeys with advanced reasoning and planning, unlocking unprecedented ROI, with Experiential Metrics emerging as the new competitive currency in a transformation as disruptive as the dot-com era.

The future belongs to leaders who measure what truly matters. Because when you put people first, profitability follows naturally.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Kim Flaherty is an independent experience design consultant at Resonant XD, specializing in omnichannel customer experiences and customer journey management.

Greg Parrott is The X-Mentor, helping businesses accelerate growth at The X-Mentor and publisher of The X-Mentor on Substack.