Today we’d like to introduce you to Keith Hessel.
Hi Keith, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I help businesses create places people love—customers who come back and employees who want to stay. I’m Keith Hessel, a customer and employee experience consultant with nearly 20 years in customer service, retention, sales, and operations. I’ve built teams, launched departments, and learned firsthand why people stay loyal—or walk away.
Coming out of the pandemic, I saw businesses struggling to reconnect with both customers and staff. I founded Serve Business Consulting LLC to help them do more than recover—to thrive. I created the SERVE model—Smile, Engage, Relate, Verify, Extra Mile—a practical framework that turns everyday interactions into lasting relationships.
I focus on small, locally owned businesses because they power our communities and can create change fast. When leaders truly listen, marketing costs drop and loyalty grows. I believe success comes from serving others with excellence and integrity.
Outside of work, I volunteer at church, support my wife and our six kids, and proudly nerd out over Star Trek.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
The biggest struggle along my journey has been building credibility while building systems—often at the same time, and usually from scratch.
Early in my career, I worked on the front lines of customer service and sales. I saw problems clearly, but I didn’t always have the authority to fix them. I had to influence change without titles, convince leaders to listen to customers, and prove that empathy and structure could coexist in high-volume environments.
Later, as part of founding and scaling retention and customer experience functions, the challenge shifted. I was no longer just solving problems—I was designing playbooks, training teams, and holding the line when growth threatened quality. High expectations, emotional conversations, and constant escalation came with the territory. Burnout was a real risk, especially when customer trust and business outcomes were both on the line.
Starting Serve Business Consulting LLC brought a different kind of struggle. I stepped out of established organizations and into entrepreneurship during a post-pandemic reset. Businesses were overwhelmed, skeptical, and stretched thin. I had to translate long-term customer experience strategy into immediate, practical wins—or risk being dismissed as “nice, but not necessary.” Earning trust quickly became non-negotiable.
Across every role, one challenge stayed constant: change is uncomfortable. Whether I was leading volunteers, supporting members through complex healthcare decisions, or advising business owners, progress required patience, persistence, and the willingness to sit in tension. Real improvement rarely comes from quick fixes. It comes from listening longer than feels efficient and acting with consistency when it would be easier not to.
Those struggles shaped how I work today. I build systems that support people under pressure. I focus on retention because churn is often a symptom, not the problem. And I help leaders face the hard truths—because sustainable success starts there.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Serve Business Consulting LLC?
Since launching ServeBC in 2021, I’ve helped organizations not only recover from the Covid-19 pandemic’s impact but exceed their pre-pandemic performance. My diverse background spans customer retention, sales, retail, food service, management, and volunteer coordination. I’ve guided non-profits in expanding volunteer and donor bases, assisted companies in developing SOPs for improved customer and employee retention, and established departments focused on enhancing customer experience. Recently, I introduced training and fractional CXO programs for businesses committed to delivering a “Kingdom Class” experience to all stakeholders. My approach, rooted in “Living to Serve,” is passionately shared with clients. At Serve Business Consulting, we tailor solutions to meet each organization’s unique needs, whether implementing customer retention strategies, improving employee satisfaction, or optimizing service quality. My goal is to empower businesses to create meaningful, lasting relationships with both customers and employees. We specialize in helping organizations create exceptional experiences that drive loyalty and growth. With a focus on practical, results-driven strategies, I work closely with clients to identify areas for improvement and implement effective solutions. My consulting approach combines data-driven insights with a deep understanding of human behavior and customer psychology. By fostering a culture of service excellence, I help businesses stand out in competitive markets and build strong, sustainable relationships with their stakeholders.
Do you any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
One of my favorite childhood memories is growing up in Monument, CO. We always had the best 4th of July parade, and I would often participate as a member of the Monument Police Explorers. I got to help people through crowd control, and I got a prime seat to the “largest small-town parade” in Colorado! Even today, I still go to that parade with my own family, and one of my biggest thrills is watching my own children participate in grabbing the candy and forming the memories that I cherish myself.
Pricing:
- Customer Satisfaction Snapshot Program – $750
- Employee Engagement Snapshot Program – $1000
- Hourly Engagement – $175/hr.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.servebc.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/servebcllc
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/100403615451934
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/serve-business-consulting-llc
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/ServeBCLLC
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtRsbcaRzoLEgMreNlNJd4Q
