Thank the Front Line. Then Show Them Why the Small Moments Matter.
Chris Sund is a Customer Service Week speaker for contact centers, service teams and every organization that runs on how people are treated. His keynote, The Power of Small Moments, honors the work your front line does every day and hands them the CARE framework for the ordinary interactions that customers remember. It is a celebration with something real to take back to the next call.
When Is Customer Service Week?
Customer Service Week is celebrated every year during the first full week in October, and the Customer Service Group has sponsored it since 1991, according to the official Customer Service Week site at CSWeek.com. The 2026 dates are October 5 to 9. In 2027 the first full week in October runs Monday, October 4 to Friday, October 8, 2027.
Because the week lands on the same part of the calendar every year, teams that want a live keynote can plan and book it well ahead.
Customer Service Week Events Chris Speaks At
Most companies mark the week with a mix of thank-yous, contests and food. A keynote gives the week a center: one moment where the whole service team hears that what they do matters, and why.
Kickoff Keynote
Open the week on Monday with a talk that celebrates the team and sets the theme for everything that follows.
Contact Center All-Hands
A session for agents, team leads and supervisors together, scheduled around shifts so the phones stay covered.
Service Leader Breakout
A deeper session for supervisors and managers on coaching the small behaviors that change how customers feel.
Recognition Lunch or Awards
A short, upbeat talk before you honor your top service people. See employee recognition events.
Customer Service Week Ideas That Last Past Friday
Most Customer Service Week ideas are about appreciation, and they should be. The trouble is that a gift card and a pizza lunch are forgotten by the next busy Monday. The ideas that last give people something to use.
Chris builds the keynote around The Power of Small Moments and the CARE framework: the idea that service is won or lost in ordinary interactions, the greeting, the name, the follow-through, the moment someone feels heard. Your team gets thanked for the work they already do and leaves with a shared language for doing it even better.
- A real thank-you, specific enough that people feel it
- The CARE framework for everyday customer moments
- True stories about the small things customers remember
- Why how employees are treated shows up in how customers are treated
- One habit each person can try on their next interaction
- A common language for team leads to coach all year
Planning the Week Around the Keynote
Chris will work to your schedule. These are the slots that tend to land best during Customer Service Week.
Monday Kickoff
Set the theme on day one so the rest of the week, the contests, the shout-outs and the lunches, builds on the same message.
Midweek Rally
A Wednesday session gives the week a second lift when the early energy starts to fade.
Supervisor Breakout
Pair the keynote with a breakout or half-day workshop for team leads who will coach the ideas after the week ends.
Repeat Sessions
For contact centers that cannot pull everyone off the phones at once, plan more than one session in the same day.
Proof: Rooms Full of People Who Serve Others
Chris spoke at the Crawford County Memorial Hospital Patient Experience Recognition Dinner in Denison, Iowa, an evening for staff in every role, and opened the Definitive Healthcare sales kickoff for more than 800 people.
Chris was an outstanding speaker and a highlight of our 2025 Patient Experience Recognition Dinner. He took the time to deeply understand our organization, our culture, and our specific goals — and thoughtfully personalized his presentation. His message resonated across all roles. Our staff genuinely loved his delivery. We could not recommend him highly enough.
Chris Sund’s speaking engagements are truly powerful. His engaging style draws the audience into the conversation, creating a relaxed atmosphere that encourages learning and reflection. You leave not only inspired but equipped with practical leadership insights you’re eager to implement. Chris is a thoughtful, intentional leader who uses his influence to positively impact everyone he encounters.
Programs for Customer Service Week
Each one can run as a keynote, a breakout, or a half-day or full-day workshop.
The Power of Small Moments
The natural pick for the week. The CARE framework for the small, everyday moments that make customers and employees want to stay.
You Are Capable of More
For service teams ready to raise their own bar, built on the ideas in Chris’s book.
Your Team Is Capable of More
For a service department that wants to celebrate the team and work better together.
You Are Capable of a Better Culture
For leaders who know the customer experience starts with the employee experience, using SPARK.
Who Books a Customer Service Week Speaker
Related pages: Customer Service Keynote Speaker · Customer Appreciation Event Speaker · Employee Appreciation Week Ideas · Employee Recognition Event Speaker · Patient Experience Keynote Speaker
What Customer Service Week Planners Ask
When is Customer Service Week 2027?
Customer Service Week is held during the first full week in October, according to CSWeek.com. In 2027 that is Monday, October 4 through Friday, October 8.
What should a Customer Service Week keynote cover?
Two things: a genuine thank-you to the people who serve your customers, and something they can use the following week. Chris’s keynote does both with The Power of Small Moments and the CARE framework.
When during the week should the speaker go on?
Monday is the strongest slot because it sets the theme for the whole week. A midweek session also works well when you want a second lift. Contact centers often schedule repeat sessions so phones stay covered.
What formats are available?
A keynote, a breakout, or a half-day or full-day workshop. Many teams pair a keynote for everyone with a workshop for supervisors and team leads.
Can we give the team the book as a Customer Service Week gift?
Yes. A signed copy of You Are Capable of More is a thank-you people keep. See bulk book orders for signed editions and volume pricing.
You Are Capable of More
The bestselling, award-winning book behind the talk: an Amazon Bestseller and the 2026 Paris Book Festival winner in the How-To category. It is built on one idea, that most people have far more in them than they are using right now.
Handed out during Customer Service Week, it turns the thank-you into something your team takes home and keeps. Chris can sign copies after the program.
An Executive Who Knows Service Is the Business
Chris runs service businesses. In healthcare staffing, the customer experience and the employee experience are the same thing, and he has built teams around that idea for years.
Chris is President & COO of Uniti Med and GQR Healthcare and COO of Nebula. He helped grow Uniti Med 10x in revenue in two years, earning #3 on the Inc. Regionals list of the fastest-growing companies in the Midwest. The company was named to Fortune Best Workplaces and has earned Best Places to Work recognition across multiple programs.
He is the bestselling, award-winning author of You Are Capable of More, an Amazon Bestseller and the 2026 Paris Book Festival How-To winner, and he writes for Forbes and Inc. Audiences have also seen him on WOWT, 10/11, WFLA’s Bloom, KXAN, KCTV5, WOI and Dakota News Now.
Stages I Have Spoken On
Where Service Teams Have Heard Chris
Recognition dinners, company meetings and kickoffs for organizations whose people serve others every day.
Crawford Memorial Recognition DinnerDenison, IADefinitive Healthcare SKOBoston, MA · 800+ sellersBeatStars Company MeetingMay 2026POWER ConferenceOmaha, NEDisruptHR Omaha 6.0Stop Building FencesGreater Omaha ChamberLeadership ExchangeAlso: Customer Service Keynote Speaker · Employee Engagement Speaker · All Corporate Events · See all speaking engagements →
Bring Chris to Your Customer Service Week
Tell Chris your dates, your team and what you want the week to leave behind. You’ll get a fast, straight answer on fit and availability.
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