A fresh approach to putting customers first

By Sarah Acton, Chief Customer Officer at BILL 

BILL is, and always will be, a company that puts customers first. 

We are proud to serve small and midsize businesses (SMBs) and accountants because we believe in the power they have to impact not just our economy, but also our communities. Our customers inspire us everyday with their creativity, resilience and grit. They inspire us with their contribution to families, communities and economies everywhere. And they inspire us to build, innovate, and deliver impactful and transformative financial automation. 

As BILL’s first Chief Customer Officer, my job is to help our customers succeed. Whether you are hearing about BILL for the first time, or if you have been with us for years, we are bringing a fresh approach to strengthening and streamlining your customer experience throughout your financial automation journey. 

Here’s how we will do this. 

What it means to put customers first  

The landscape for businesses and firms is changing. SMBs and accountants are more time and resource constrained than ever, and technology and automation are more critical to success than ever.

Technology is also evolving rapidly. Customers want solutions that are integrated, deliver high ROI, and help them both manage and optimize their business. We also know they have different choices for how they manage their finances. Which is why businesses and firms need technology partners who will meet them where they are. 

Our goal at BILL is to not only help leaders make the right technology choice for their business or firm, but to also build and nurture a true partnership with them throughout the customer journey. This is what it means to be a champion of SMBs, and it’s what sets BILL apart. 

How we help customers win 

BILL is at the center of the financial operations for more than 450,000 SMBs and 8,000 accounting firms. Our engagement and support for customers should reflect the depth and breadth of our partnership with them. This is why we’ve made some organizational changes to help us deliver more for customers.  

As Chief Customer Officer, I’m excited to bring together all of our go-to-market functions, which include the Sales and Marketing organizations.  In doing so, we’re adapting and strengthening the capabilities of our go-to-market teams in a more customer-centric way.  

These changes will enable us to create a more seamless experience for the SMBs and accountants we serve. Our goal is to reach more businesses and firms to help build awareness of the benefits of financial automation. We want to make it easier for a business or firm to signal their interest in automating their finances. And once they do, we want to nurture a long-term partnership with customers to help them adopt an integrated platform, and continually find new ways to optimize financial automation to help them thrive. 

With a more streamlined and customer-first approach, we can accelerate our ability to attract and onboard customers. With greater organizational alignment, we can reduce friction or missed opportunities in responding to customer needs. And with deeper relationships, we can better understand customers’ needs and pain points, so we can deliver more tailored and transformative innovation for them.  

This is just the beginning 

The creation of a Chief Customer Officer role and bringing together these teams is more than an organizational change. It’s a demonstration of the promises we make to every BILL customer:  We will always seek out ways to better serve you. We are constantly driven to innovate and improve to help you succeed. And we will do this as a true partner. 

To our customers, thank you for your trust in us. We’re excited to continue delivering for you. 

Sarah Acton was named as the first BILL Chief Customer Officer in June 2024.