Capturing the stories behind the numbers

Microsoft has no shortage of customer data.

With a massive global customer base and established listening programs, they have a variety of ways to understand what their customers think about their products and services.

But there's a difference between collecting feedback and understanding the reasons behind it.

For Sheila Rue, Microsoft’s director of customer voice, the ultimate goal is to build lasting relationships.

“I have a deep investment in the client experience, ideally turning them into advocates,” she said. “It’s not just getting customers—it’s keeping customers and understanding what their journey truly is and what they intend it to be.”

Sheila’s work focuses on the small and medium business (SMB) segment, where more than 80% of the revenue comes through partners—meaning her team doesn't always have a direct connection to the customers using Microsoft’s products.

This makes understanding their experiences and needs even more challenging. And while Microsoft's surveys are easy to scale, they often fail to uncover the real context behind customer decisions.

"Our surveys give us quantitative feedback, and some of that can be interesting,” Sheila said. “But they don't have the depth."

That's where Clozd comes in.

By adding candid customer interviews to their existing feedback programs, Microsoft is getting a clearer picture of what their customers need, what they're experiencing, and why they're making certain decisions.

“When we think about turning those insights into actions, that’s where solutions like Clozd really fill the gap,” Sheila said. “Those interviews give us the why behind the numbers—in the actual voice of our customers.”

Uncovering unexpected insights—and opportunities for growth

For Microsoft, some of the most valuable insights from Clozd interviews have been the ones nobody saw coming.

“It’s really important to be clear about what our customers’ challenges are and not fall into the trap of assuming we know the answers that they’re going to provide,” Sheila said. “One of the most meaningful takeaways is the candid nature of the feedback and the unexpected nuggets that are uncovered.”

One specific Clozd interview revealed a potential opportunity to expand an existing account.

During the conversation, a Microsoft customer shared plans to quadruple its revenue over the next year. Clozd surfaced this signal through an Insight Gem—an actionable insight that:

• Highlights an opportunity or risk tied to a deal
• Explains why it matters
• Provides supporting quotes from the customer
• Assigns an owner responsible for taking action

It was the kind of insight that rarely appears in a survey or traditional customer feedback report.

“If we hadn’t had that conversation, I don’t think we would have recognized this particular client as having potential for expansion,” Sheila said. “It’s really valuable to have that extra layer of insight and specificity to act on.”

Turning customer feedback into meaningful action

Uncovering valuable insights is only the beginning. For Sheila, what matters most is making sure those insights reach the right people—and lead to the right actions.

“I think that’s really what the correct combination is—doing the right listening, asking the right questions, and then paying attention to what those findings are, so we can ideally affect change at scale,” she said.

She approaches that process through a simple framework:

Signals → Insights → Action → Outcome → Impact

Decision Intelligence is about understanding why customers make decisions—and then using those insights to make better business decisions. At Microsoft, that means getting candid customer feedback directly into the hands of the people who can act on it.

In practice, each time a Clozd interview is published, Sheila shares it with the relevant sales rep and manager, along with three observations about what the customer shared and three suggestions for how that team could respond.

This gives the sales team clear takeaways and suggested next steps, rather than leaving them to sort through the findings on their own.

“Communicating often and broadly is one of the keys to success with our program,” Sheila said. “And what's been really cool is that our sales reps are coming back and acknowledging what they've done—both to address customer challenges and to celebrate the positive feedback they're receiving.”

For Sheila, Microsoft's work with Clozd is part of a larger shift in how companies use customer feedback.

"When I think about voice of the customer, I do think that the future of it really is trending toward customer intelligence and decision intelligence," she said.

As new capabilities like AI-powered interviews make it easier to hear from customers at scale, Sheila sees an opportunity to turn more of those conversations into meaningful business decisions.

"It's listening with intention," she said. "This is the future I see—leveraging the technology to really understand more fully what our customers need by using new capabilities."

For Microsoft, the goal is to make every customer conversation count, using what their customers share to strengthen those relationships, uncover opportunities for growth, and guide what happens next.

Get to know: Microsoft

Founded in 1975 and headquartered in Redmond, Washington, Microsoft is one of the world's largest technology companies, with more than 220,000 employees and over $330 billion in annual revenue. Best known for products like Windows, Microsoft 365, and Azure, the company has grown into a global leader in cloud computing, enterprise software, and artificial intelligence. Today, Microsoft's technology powers businesses of all sizes around the world, helping them improve productivity, accelerate innovation, and achieve more through digital transformation.

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