Experts of Experience: How Engineer-Turned-Exec Creates Personal Experience At A Global Scale

Hosted by Lacey Peace and Rose, presented by Salesforce Customer Success

Introduction

In the July 2, 2025 episode of "Experts of Experience," hosted by Lacey Peace and produced by Rose, Colin Strother, Executive Vice President of Rochester Electronics, delves into his journey from engineering to executive leadership. The discussion centers around creating personalized customer experiences on a global scale, leveraging emerging technologies like AI, and fostering a culture of authenticity and trust within a massive organization.

Colin Strother’s Journey: From Engineer to Executive

Colin Strother begins by sharing his extensive background in the semiconductor industry. With over 34 years of experience and 18 years at Rochester Electronics, Colin provides a comprehensive overview of his career trajectory.

Colin Strother [06:14]: "Rochester Electronics are a global distributor and manufacturer of semiconductor products. We provide a range of products into a variety of different industries, typically focusing on those that have a longer term requirement and a higher reliability."

He recounts his early days in Scotland during the decline of traditional heavy industries and the rise of the electronics sector. This period of transformation fueled his passion for electronics and set the stage for his future leadership roles.

Colin Strother [07:28]: "At one point, there were more multinational electronic companies in Scotland than anywhere else other than Silicon Valley."

His move to Rochester in 2007 marked the beginning of his ascent within the company, transitioning from engineering to field sales, and eventually to managing global sales operations. This diverse experience across different departments—sales, marketing, supply chain, and operations—equipped him with a holistic understanding of the business.

Colin Strother [10:04]: "Today my role really spans everything from how we engage with the semiconductor companies we represent... to how we receive the product, how we market and sell a product... and then how we physically deliver the product from a supply chain."

Embracing the P2P Mindset

A significant portion of the conversation revolves around the concept of P2P (Person-to-Person) business, a philosophy Colin champions to maintain personal connections in a large-scale global operation.

Lacey Peace [01:28]: "P2P sounds a little funny. Sounds a little bit like, inappropriate, to be honest. But P2P means person to person instead of, you know, business business or business to consumer."

Colin emphasizes that regardless of the company's size, business transactions are fundamentally personal interactions based on trust.

Colin Strother [02:35]: "All business is personal, all business is person to person... It's based off trust. It's me buying something from you."

He draws parallels with startup strategies that prioritize unscalable, personal interactions as a foundation for broader, scalable growth. Colin shares his personal commitment to engaging face-to-face with customers, exemplifying the P2P approach.

Lacey Peace [03:44]: "Rochester Electronics is enormous and it's a global enterprise. So if they can manage this P2P mindset, then any company of any size should be able to."

Implementing AI for Personalized Customer Experience

One of the episode's highlights is the integration of AI into Rochester’s customer experience strategy. Colin introduces "Captain Rochester," an AI-driven superhero designed to enhance customer interactions.

Colin Strother [28:05]: "We've introduced him as the industry's first AI superhero. If you go on rockolight.com today and you ask a question, you're able to ask Captain Rochester a question in native language and get a response."

"Captain Rochester" serves as a personalized chatbot that interacts with customers in their native languages, providing relevant and secure information without overwhelming them with irrelevant communications.

Colin Strother [52:39]: "How do you do hyper personalization at scale?... We use that information to personalize the content that we provide by return. We're not marrying it to third party content. We're only replying to you or engaging with you, the customer, on the topics that you have asked to be engaged on and shown interest in."

Additionally, Rochester leverages Salesforce’s Einstein AI for sales processes, helping to score opportunities and guide sales teams through "Pitch IQ," an AI tool that offers feedback during sales pitches.

Colin Strother [32:15]: "We use the Einstein score and opportunity level... It's a unified experience, and it's all in Salesforce. It's all in one place."

Overcoming Data Management Challenges

Colin candidly discusses the complexities of data management in a large, global organization. With over 15 billion parts in stock and 600,000 SKUs in the system, maintaining clean, integrated data is paramount yet challenging.

Colin Strother [25:42]: "We have something like over 250,000 SKUs in the public offer today, over 600,000 in the system and approximately 15 billion parts in stock, all with a range of attributes."

He reflects on past experiences with disparate systems and custom applications that, while effective initially, proved unscalable and difficult to integrate.

Colin Strother [24:07]: "They were not scalable, they still had to integrate to other applications, and in our evolution, we'd perhaps digitized processes that really should have been revised and improved."

The transition to a unified Salesforce platform represents a significant improvement, enabling seamless data flow and enhanced customer interactions.

Colin Strother [21:15]: "So we use Salesforce... a unified commerce platform. So really it's the same thing... all the information is contained in that one place. Your inside salesperson can see what you're doing."

Fostering a Culture of Open Communication

Rochester’s adoption of Slack as a primary communication tool underscores its commitment to unsiloing information and promoting transparency across global teams.

Colin Strother [38:57]: "We took a little bit of a leap of faith and we invested in Slack. So today I've got it on my other monitor here live. I run the entire global business using Slack."

By creating dedicated channels for various issues and ensuring that all team members can communicate openly, Rochester fosters an environment where every voice is heard and collaboration is streamlined.

Colin Strother [41:30]: "Imagine a business like Rochester where everybody's got eyes on everything and everybody's responsible for it."

This approach has been instrumental in addressing challenges swiftly and innovating collaboratively, as illustrated by Colin’s anecdote about a misunderstanding in communication that was quickly resolved through open dialogue.

Leadership Philosophy: Authenticity and Trust

Colin attributes much of his success to his leadership style, which emphasizes authenticity and building trust within his teams. His genuine approach ensures that employees feel valued and understood, which is crucial when implementing new technologies and processes.

Colin Strother [60:34]: "You have to be your authentic self. And that's where it all starts and ends with me... because if you're going to give something of yourself to get something in return, people have got to know who you are."

This philosophy extends to his interactions with customers, where maintaining a personal touch in every engagement fosters deeper relationships and enhances customer loyalty.

Colin Strother [36:48]: "When you're rolling out things such as new systems, processes, tools, training AI... people have got to trust me."

Embracing Change and Managing Resistance

Addressing the inevitable resistance to change, Colin discusses strategies for effective change management. He likens change to ensuring employees "eat their vegetables"—necessary for growth despite initial reluctance.

Colin Strother [47:27]: "Everyone likes change. No one likes change... but sometimes you have to grow up and eat your vegetables."

By building a foundation of trust and clearly communicating the benefits of new technologies, Colin mitigates fears and fosters a culture that embraces innovation.

Lacey Peace [44:49]: "It's not magic. Nothing will happen on its own."

Future Outlook: Human-AI Collaboration

The episode concludes on an optimistic note, emphasizing the synergy between human expertise and AI capabilities. Colin envisions AI as an augmentative tool that empowers employees to focus on meaningful tasks while automating mundane processes.

Lacey Peace [59:35]: "Human plus AI is way more interesting to me than Human or AI instead of human."

Colin reinforces this perspective by highlighting Rochester’s approach to AI integration, ensuring that technology enhances rather than replaces human roles. The introduction of Captain Rochester exemplifies this balance, providing a friendly, reliable interface for customers without threatening the workforce.

Colin Strother [60:03]: "People are using the technology and they're not finding it to be, I guess, something that's going to be troublesome to them."

Notable Quotes

• Colin Strother [00:35]: "Imagine a situation where all the communications you ever got from companies was of relevance to you."

• Lacey Peace [01:28]: "P2P means person to person instead of business business or business to consumer."

• Colin Strother [28:05]: "We've introduced him as the industry's first AI superhero."

• Colin Strother [21:15]: "It's all in Salesforce. It's all in one place."

• Colin Strother [60:34]: "You have to be your authentic self."

• Lacey Peace [59:35]: "Human plus AI is way more interesting to me than Human or AI instead of human."

Conclusion

Colin Strother’s insights offer a compelling narrative on blending human-centric leadership with cutting-edge technology to deliver exceptional customer experiences. His emphasis on authenticity, trust, and personalized interactions serves as a valuable blueprint for organizations aiming to navigate the complexities of global operations and technological advancements. As businesses continue to evolve, the P2P mindset and strategic AI integration championed by Colin exemplify the future of customer experience excellence.

Connect with Colin Strother

For those interested in learning more or connecting with Colin Strother, he is available on LinkedIn. Colin prefers to connect with individuals he knows or has met, ensuring meaningful and authentic interactions.

Colin Strother [66:25]: "You'll be able to in message me and I'll always do my best to provide you a response because I'm traveling all of the time and I get bored easily."

Further Recommendations

As a closing gesture, Colin recommends Alex Ferguson’s autobiography, highlighting its insights on leadership through his illustrious career in soccer management. He also expresses a preference for media where good triumphs over evil, reflecting his own values and the culture at Rochester Electronics.

Colin Strother [67:11]: "The book starts as he's giving a lecture at Harvard and it's all about leadership... that's a fascinating book."

This episode of "Experts of Experience" offers a deep dive into the intersection of personal leadership and technological innovation, providing listeners with actionable strategies and inspirational stories to enhance their own customer experience endeavors.