Robert Spector

Robert Spector is one of America’s leading experts on customer experience and employee experience.

He is the author of the business classic The Nordstrom Way: The Inside Story of America’s Number One Customer Service Company. BusinessWeek says, “For anyone looking to understand customer service at its best, this book bubbles with insights.”

The all-new Third Edition is The Nordstrom Way to Customer Experience Excellence: Creating a Values-Driven Service Culture, which Forbes selected as the “Top Business Book of 2017.”

Robert gives entertaining keynotes to a vast array of companies, organizations, trade associations, conventions, corporate retreats, governmental agencies, non-profits, and special meetings in 27 countries.

He was recently included in the “100 Best Keynote Speakers” by DataBird Research Journal.

His other books include Amazon.com: Get Big Fast—the definitive story of the company, which has been translated into 18 languages, and The Mom & Pop Store: True Stories From the Heart of America, a memoir of practical customer service lessons learned working in his immigrant’s family’s butcher shop.

Robert contributes articles to many publications, including The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. He is a frequent guest on national and local television, radio, and Internet programs, and is quoted in publications throughout the world.

He is currently working on a new book, The Seattle Effect, which catalogs the customer-focus of Seattle-based icons Nordstrom, Amazon, Starbucks, Costco, Boeing, Microsoft, Recreational Equipment Inc. (REI), and Pearl Jam.

Becoming the Nordstrom of Your Industry

Robert Spector shows companies and organizations how to become “The Nordstrom” of their industry. What makes Nordstrom Nordstrom? What are the values and principles that comprise the culture of this most customer-centric company? For more than a century, Nordstrom has succeeded because the company believes that the employee experience determines the customer experience. 

Amazon: How it Became the World’s Most Disruptive and Dangerous Company

How did Jeff Bezos’s company become the powerhouse that it is?  Robert Spector, who wrote the first book about the juggernaut—“Amazon.com: Get Big Fast”—explains how they did it, and offers valuable take-aways for friends and foes alike.

The Seattle Effect: Lessons from America’s Capital of Customer Service

Seattle is home to some of the world’s most customer-focused companies: Amazon, Starbucks, Nordstrom, Costco, and REI, as well as the most customer-focused rock & roll band—Pearl Jam. What’s in the water in the great Northwest? Robert Spector has interviewed the leaders of these organizations and offers valuable lessons for anyone who has a customer.

“You understood our customer issues and were able to provide a framework by which our team could understand the implications for providing outstanding customer service.” — Pfizer Pharmaceuticals Group

“Your brainstorming session was empowering for the managers, many of whom commented about their eagerness to share the outcomes with their teams.” — Charles Schwab Institutional

"When it comes to customer service, Robert practices what he preaches." — McKesson Corporation

“Robert held the audience in the palm of his hand as he guided us through the value of truly outstanding client service! He demonstrated how the principles of the Nordstrom culture can be applied to other industries.” — LanguageLine Solutions