Your values are designed to attract, but also to repel – Interview with Borzou Azabdaftari of The Falcon Lab

May 21, 2021

NOTE: This episode contains some profanity. Not too much but definitely some. You are warned!

Today’s interview is with Borzou Azabdaftari, Boss at The Falcon Lab, a full service marketing agency. Borzou joins me today to talk values, profanity, having profane values, it’s impact on clients and the changing nature of customer experience and what increasingly matters.

Big shout out to Stan Phelps and David Rendall for introducing me to Borzou.

This interview follows on from my recent interview – Are companies on the cusp of a customer relationship crisis? – Interview with David Campbell of SugarCRM — and is number 389 in the series of interviews with authors and business leaders that are doing great things, providing valuable insights, helping businesses innovate and delivering great service and experience to both their customers and their employees.

ADDITIONAL NOTE: A big thank you goes out to the folks at SugarCRM for sponsoring my podcast this month.

SugarCRM, the provider of the #1 rated Customer Experience platform, is trusted by thousands of companies in over 120 countries to help them achieve high-definition CX. Recently they released their new CRM and Sales Impact Report which surveyed 1,000 sales professionals from around the globe on what’s driving (or stalling) revenue and customer engagement. The report also asks a provocative question: Are companies on the cusp of a customer relationship crisis. To find out the answer check out and download the report here.

Here’s the highlights of my chat with Borzou:

The Falcon Lab describes itself thus “we make cool shit”. This is one of their values.
They reevaluated their old values as they realised they didn’t embody them and many of them were just platitudinous/table stakes statements.
If you’re not willing to fire an employee or customer for not adhering to a core value, it’s not a core value.
Their values are now:
- We make cool shit
- Give a f*ck,
- Grow,
- Hustle; and
- Be cool.
Why ‘Give a f*ck’? Why not, in the words of Faith No More.…We Care A Lot……?
Values are designed to attract, but also to repel.
I care about a lot more things that I give a f*ck about, right? And, giving a f*ck is a higher level of involvement.
I want people that give a f*ck about our company, our customers but also about each other and the world.
We know for sure that our values have attracted people and clients. Meanwhile it’s not really turned that many off although some have asked us to not broadcast our values to them or their people.
It’s fascinating how profanity is still taboo in many business circles.
Research shows that there’s a direct connection between profanity and being more honest and straightforward.
Moral indignation is jealousy with a halo.
One of the best exercises I’ve seen for figuring out who to hire is to take your best employees and write down all their attributes. Then, you can say…we want more people like this.
Customer experience is becoming more and more about authenticity and accessibility.
I feel like my satisfaction with an experience is less based on the outcome all the time and more based on how my relationship with the person feels like and how it goes.
You’re increasingly seeing people that are looking to companies to go do the right thing, stand up for things that matter to their customers, their people and their communities.
I don’t remember the last time I saw a Nike Ad that didn’t make me think.
Borzou’s best advice on where to start: The golden rule is a good place to start. Treat people the way you want to be treated.
People in whatever business forget that there is a curse of expert knowledge i.e. people don’t appreciate how much they know and how simple things or their domain seems to them.
Borzou’s Punk CX word: Authenticity and counterculture
Borzou’s Punk CX brand: WeWork and Chick-fil-A

About Borzou

Borzou is the owner, aka Boss at The Falcon Lab, a full service marketing agency, which he founded in 2004. He was born and raised in the Northern Virginia, USA, area but his family is originally from Iran.When he’s not working, he’s either spending time with his family, traveling, or trying to make the world a better place.