CX Spotlight: Giulio Castiglioni on Coaching From the Frontline, Keeping CSAT Above 94%, and Turning Conversations Into Improvements

CX Spotlight is a series where we speak to customer experience leaders from across industries who are rethinking support, building customer-first cultures, and finding clarity in the messiness of real-life CX.

Every edition is a quick, candid conversation. No fluff. No jargon. Just real-world insights from people who’ve been there and done that.

Table of Contents

• In Conversation With Giulio Castiglioni
  • 💬 What would your support alter ego be called — and what would that superpower be?
  • 🎯 How did you find your way into the world of customer experience? Was it intentional or accidental?
  • 🧩 What’s the weirdest or most unexpected support request you’ve handled?
  • 👂 What’s one practical change you’ve implemented to make your team more customer-centric?
  • 🛠 What’s one tool or app you can’t live without at work?
  • 🙌 One piece of advice you’d give someone entering the field of customer support?
  • 🤖 A use case where AI actually improved CX for your team?
  • 📬 Is email underrated or overrated as a support channel?
  • 📚 A book, podcast, or show you’d recommend to other CX pros?
  • 😊 What emoji do you regularly use when interacting with customers?
  • ⚽ If you weren’t working in CX, what would you be doing?

In Conversation With Giulio Castiglioni

Giulio Castiglioni leads global customer care at Playtomic, an app trusted by racket sports lovers across 50+ countries. As the Customer Care Director, he heads a team of over 27 specialists handling more than 25,000 conversations every month in nine languages, for both B2B and B2C customers.

Under his leadership, Playtomic’s support team has kept its CSAT score consistently above 94% and responds to queries in under a minute on average. For Giulio, every conversation is a chance to coach, improve the product, and turn feedback into real change.

Interestingly, Giulio didn’t plan on a career in CX – it happened by chance. But his passion for helping people solve problems quickly turned it into his calling.

In this CX Spotlight, Giulio talks about involving frontline agents in shaping CX projects, the  story of an unexpected day an elderly customer walked in just to fix his email, and how AI now helps his team turn meetings into real resources.

💬 What would your support alter ego be called — and what would that superpower be?

“Strategic Sensei.” I’d turn every support interaction into a chance to improve the product, fix processes, and build better customer relationships, all with calm focus and clear action.

🎯 How did you find your way into the world of customer experience? Was it intentional or accidental?

It was accidental at first. I didn’t set out to work in customer experience, but I’ve always loved helping people. I realized quickly that solving problems and guiding customers through challenges was exactly the kind of work that keeps me motivated.

🧩 What’s the weirdest or most unexpected support request you’ve handled?

Once, an elderly man actually came to our office in person because he couldn’t change his email through the app. He was so kind, and so determined to find a solution. It was a reminder that sometimes you need to adapt your channels to meet people where they are.

👂 What’s one practical change you’ve implemented to make your team more customer-centric?

I started involving our frontline support specialists in leading CX projects. They’re closest to the customers, so their insights are invaluable. This makes sure improvements are driven by people who really understand the day-to-day customer journey.

🛠 What’s one tool or app you can’t live without at work?

Slack. It keeps me connected with the team no matter where they are, from quick updates to deep dives. I even use it as a personal to-do list so I never lose track of what’s next.

🙌 One piece of advice you’d give someone entering the field of customer support?

Solve the customer’s problem first, quickly and clearly. Then, take a minute to ask why the issue happened. The better you understand the root cause, the better you’ll be at preventing it next time.

🤖 A use case where AI actually improved CX for your team?

AI helps us turn meetings into usable resources. It takes notes, builds onboarding guides, writes help articles after customer calls, and even structures action plans after brainstorms. It saves hours and keeps us focused.

📬 Is email underrated or overrated as a support channel?

Partially overrated, but it depends. For complex issues, many people still prefer email. But live conversations and smart chatbots make a huge difference. The next step is smart chatbots that know when to switch to email and hand over context automatically.

📚 A book, podcast, or show you’d recommend to other CX pros?

CXOXO by Mercer Smith is a great intro for anyone starting in CX. For those further along, I always recommend The Effortless Experience by Matthew Dixon — we even turned it into an internal training course.

😊 What emoji do you regularly use when interacting with customers?

A simple smile – 😊. Sometimes that’s all you need to calm things down.

⚽ If you weren’t working in CX, what would you be doing?

I’d probably still be coaching, but on the football field. I love helping people grow, work through challenges, and see their progress.

Enjoyed Giulio’s take on customer experience? Follow him on LinkedIn or check out more stories in the CX Spotlight series.

Are you a CX leader with stories, lessons, or ideas to share? 👉 Answer these questions to get featured!