Past Events
-
Inaugural C-CUBES CEO Roundtable Discussion Series: Navigating Strategy (Mis)Alignment Between Executives and Customers
Speaker:
Ashwin Malshe, Ph.D., is a world-renowned authority on linking customer-based strategy to financial outcomes. His research has been published in Harvard Business Review and many other peer-reviewed journals. He uses state-of-the-art statistical and machine-learning algorithms to advise companies about strategy alignment.
Event Highlights:
- Discovered the financial benefits of aligning executives and customers using a science-based approach. The talk showed how alignment can drive sales, margins, cash flow and firm value.
- Learned about the misalignment between executives and customers in B-to-B companies. Research from 127 companies and 17,000 customers shows the misalignment.
- Heard from CEOs who increased executive and customer alignment. CEOs from Houston-based companies discussed their experience driving executive and customer alignment using a science-based strategy.
- Networked with other CEOs of Greater Houston companies. The C-CUBES CEO Roundtable is an exclusive, invitation-only event for CEOs of mid-market companies. CEOs can join the roundtable to expand their network, learn about research-based insights and affiliate with Rice Business.
Customer-Focused Leadership: Serving Students, Families, and EducatorsApril 10, 2025
Website | PhotosHosted by The Center for Customer-Based Execution and Strategy and Leadership Partners, and led by Vikas Mittal, Ph.D., this one-day masterclass was tailored for superintendents and senior K-12 leaders and allowed them to:
- Discover why legacy strategy planning falls short and how it can be enhanced using a science-based approach to refocus and prioritize resources for measurable impact.
- Discover the power of customer focus as a strategy planning framework that benefits students, families and teachers.
- Learn the satisfaction-performance-chain (SPC), a proven, research-validated model linking school leadership actions to family engagement, student retention and academic outcomes.
- Discover how districts can use these principles to drive stronger outcomes, while simplifying execution and reducing costs.
Key Takeaways:
- Enrollment & Funding Are at Risk – Public schools have lost more than 2 million students in recent years. Learn how a customer-focused strategy can increase retention, community trust and financial stability.
- Data-Driven, Not Guesswork – This research analyzed 10,664 K-12 parents and 150 superintendents to uncover the real factors that drive student retention and academic success.
- Stop Initiative Overload, Start Strategic Focus – 67% of district employees believe their schools suffer from too many unfocused initiatives. Learn how to streamline efforts and prioritize what truly moves the needle.
- The Secret of High-Performing Districts – The most successful districts focus on family engagement, academic rigor and strategic leadership. Discover how to implement these insights in your own district.
- Rice Business Benefit – Hear directly from Rice Business faculty on how leading districts are shifting their strategy to improve enrollment, increase outcomes and preserve funding. Dr. Mittal is one of the premier marketing professors in the nation.
Breakfast and Masterclass: “Net Promoter Score: Fact and Fiction in Strategy Planning”January 14, 2025
Website | PhotosAt a recent masterclass at the Ion, Professor Vikas Mittal challenged the common belief that Net Promoter Score (NPS) is the best way to measure customer loyalty. Hosted by Rice Business Executive Education and sponsored by C-CUBES, the session explored why NPS can be misleading and introduced better alternatives, like the Customer Value Index (CVI) and the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI). These tools offer a clearer picture of what drives customer satisfaction and business success, helping companies make smarter, more effective decisions.
-
Breakfast and Masterclass: “Cutting Strategy Clutter”November 14, 2024
WebsiteAn average company’s strategy is cluttered by initiatives that presumably deliver value to customers, employees and shareholders. At these companies, customers are underwhelmed from a commoditized offering, employees are overwhelmed from initiative overload and shareholders face anemic returns.
Professor Vikas Mittal led a discussion on why strategy clutter existed in many companies. The session explored case studies of companies that overcame strategy clutter through a science-based strategy approach and grew relative sales by 10–20% while also increasing margins and EBITA.
Rice Customer-Based Strategy SymposiumMarch 15, 2024
Shell Auditorium, McNair Hall, Rice University
Website | PhotosHosted annually by the Jones Graduate School of Business since 2010, the Rice Customer-Based Strategy Symposium is a premier forum for exchanging innovative ideas on customer-centered strategy planning and execution.
KEYNOTE SPEAKERS
Girish K. Saligram
CEO and President, Weatherford
To put the customer experience at the center of strategy:
- Aim for a value-creation process that has zero waste.
- Embrace company culture as a differentiator.
- Take a holistic approach to metrics.
Simon Seaton
CEO and Executive Vice President, Society of Petroleum Engineers
To excel on your customer’s most important needs:
- Do fewer things but execute them with rigor and fidelity.
- Concentrate on initiatives that drive client value.
- Beware of confirmation bias in your data.
Dr. Rodney Watson
Executive Director, Region 4 Education Service Center
To achieve strategic alignment across your organization:
- Prioritize customer initiatives with the greatest lift potential.
- Don’t just appease customers. Create and deliver value.
- Reduce initiatives so employees can focus on what matters.
AGENDA
Time Description 7:00 a.m. Registration Starts 7:30 – 8:15 a.m. Breakfast 8:15 – 8:30 a.m. Topic: Opening Remarks
Speaker: Peter Rodriguez – Dean, Rice Business8:30 – 9:30 a.m. Topic: Enhancing Member Value Through Strategic Focus at the Society of Petroleum Engineers
Speaker: Simon Seaton – CEO, Society of Petroleum Engineers9:30 – 10:00 a.m. Networking and Coffee Break 10:00 – 11:00 a.m. Topic: District Advancement Champions: Revitalizing K12 Education Through Customer Focus
Speaker: Rodney E. Watson – Executive Director, Region 4 Education Service Center11:00 – 11:15 a.m. Networking and Coffee Break 11:15 a.m. – 12:15 p.m. Topic: Navigating Success at Weatherford: Customers and Employees
Speaker: Girish Saligram – CEO, Weatherford12:15 – 12:20 p.m. Topic: Closing Remarks
Speaker: Vikas Mittal – J. Hugh Liedtke Professor of Marketing, Rice Business12:30 – 1:30 p.m. Lunch 7:00 a.m. – noon (All day) Registration 7:00 a.m. – noon (All day) Coffee