Inspiring Women In CX

Discover how Katie Stabler built a thriving CX consultancy through resilience, authentic leadership, and a human-centred approach to customer experience.

In this special edition of the Inspiring Women in CX podcast series, celebrating the winners of the Inspiring Women in CX Awards 2025, Katie Stabler joins Clare Muscutt to explore what it really takes to build a successful customer experience consultancy rooted in humanity, resilience, and authentic leadership.

Named Solopreneur of the Year 2025, Katie reflects on her journey from unexpected redundancy to running a thriving independent CX consultancy for over five years. Together, Clare and Katie unpack the realities of solopreneurship, navigating personal adversity, and maintaining a human-centred CX philosophy in an increasingly AI-driven world.

The conversation also dives into Katie’s book, CXism, which challenges traditional views of customer experience by reframing CX as a cultural belief system rather than simply a business function.

Whether you're a CX consultant, leader, founder, or someone navigating the future of customer experience in the age of AI, this episode offers honest insights into resilience, leadership, and building a values-led business.

Key Insights:

• Building a customer experience consultancy in an AI-driven world requires more human connection – not less.
• Resilience in business is often about continuing to show up through uncertainty and personal adversity.
• Human-centred CX creates stronger long-term customer relationships built on trust and empathy.
• Solopreneurship can feel isolating, but it also creates freedom, adaptability, and authenticity.
• Visibility, relationships, and reputation can become more powerful than traditional marketing strategies.
• CXism reframes customer experience as a mindset and cultural philosophy rather than a department or process.

Timestamps:

02:07: Career Inspiration & Human-Centred CX Leadership
05:48: Staying Human in an AI-Driven Customer Experience Industry
10:03: Why Women in CX Technology Matter More Than Ever
12:19: Starting a CX Consultancy During the Pandemic
19:42: Burnout, Grief & Building Resilience as a Solo Entrepreneur
29:19: Writing “CXism” & Growing a Global CX Brand
37:17: Advice for Women Starting a Business in Customer Experience

About Katie Stabler:

Katie Stabler is an award-winning customer experience consultant, speaker, and author of CXism. As the Inspiring Women in CX Awards 2025 Solopreneur of the Year winner, Katie is passionate about helping organisations create more human-centred customer experiences through culture, empathy, and authentic leadership.

Resources & Links:

• Explore the Women in CX Community
• Learn more about the Inspiring Women in CX Awards
• Discover upcoming Women in CX Events
• Listen to more Inspiring Women in CX Podcast Episodes

TW: Please note, this incredibly courageous episode contains discussions of abuse and childhood trauma, as such, listener discretion is advised.

If empathy isn’t the answer, what is? 🤔

Joined by Andreena Leeanne, a Lived Experience Speaker and the Author of the poetry book ‘Charred’, in episode #704, she and Clare explore the concept of intersectionality and its importance when creating spaces for others to show up as their full, authentic selves, discuss whether it’s truly possible to empathise with someone whose lived experience is different to that of our own and foreground why “not seeing” race, colour, and gender isn’t enough if we’re to create a kinder, more inclusive world for everyone. ❌

To join the world’s first online community for women in customer experience and technology, visit www.womenincx.community/membership and sign up today.

Alex Acosta, CX Quantitative Analyst at DICK's Sporting Goods, joins Clare Muscutt on the Inspiring Women in CX podcast to talk not only about her route into CX, having her sight set on consumer insights and her passion for using data to tell stories and influence senior stakeholders, but also a subject much closer to home, overcoming childhood abuse and living with an eating disorder.

With Monday the 10th of October recognised as World Mental Health Day, in this episode Alex shares a powerful message, not just for leaders, but for everyone, and that is “to lead with empathy”, create a culture of openness and honesty that enables employees – people – to show up each day as their full selves and to feel safe in sharing their challenges.

Because we never know what someone else is going through.

So, this week, and every other, be kind.

For more information on joining the world’s first online community for women in Customer Experience, head over to www.womenincx.community/membership