According to Rachel Dorfman, being a member of Bounteous’ customer relationship management strategy team is like being on a team of rowers.
“We will not get where we’re going unless we all pull together,” she shared.
Just like rowers work in tandem to cross the finish line, Bounteous’ CRM team tackle assignments in lockstep, leaning on one another’s expertise and guidance. Even though they work on different client accounts and day-to-day tasks, everyone regularly comes together as one cohesive team.
For the past three years, Dorfman has sat at the helm of Bounteous’ CRM team, helping it grow from a unit of three to 13. The CRM team provides strategic services to Bounteous’ clients, including owned channel strategy, marketing tech optimization, customer experience development, and data collection and activation.
As the team has evolved over time, so have the ways in which they support their clients. Campaign managers have successfully transitioned into strategy roles, combining intelligence with thoughtfulness to deliver the most value to clients.
Dorfman shared the many factors that help her team succeed, from a universal desire for discovery to a focus on constructive feedback. But perhaps the most important element of her team’s culture comes down to the fact that they genuinely enjoy working together — and championing each other in the process.
“First and foremost, we have fun,” Dorfman said.
About Bounteous
Bounteous is an end-to-end digital transformation consultancy delivering innovative and strategic solutions in strategy, analytics, digital engineering, cloud, data and AI, experience design, and marketing. By partnering with leading technology providers, Bounteous crafts digital experiences that enhance customer engagement and drive business success.
Unpacking the Culture on Dorfman’s Team
Dorfman has learned many things about her team members over the past three years, but what stands out to her the most is their sense of intellectual curiosity.
CRM team members continuously ask questions, whether they’re related to campaign results, marketing strategies, or another critical component of the work they do. This curiosity is fostered by the team’s culture, which encourages everyone to speak up.
“I really appreciate being in an environment where new ideas are not only encouraged, but valued,” Dorfman said.
“I really appreciate being in an environment where new ideas are not only encouraged, but valued.”
Her team is driven by Bounteous’ core values: customer success, allyship, results and excellence. Dorfman believes that results and excellence shine through in her team’s daily work — from investing in certifications across clients’ tech stacks to delivering tailored, high-impact recommendations that maximize ROI.
Leaning on these values, Dorfman’s team collaborates frequently with nearly every department at Bounteous, including data and analytics, marketing tech operations, account management, and creative services.
“Strategy thrives on partnership, and our success is a testament to that,” she said.
Partnership is central to Bounteous’ CRM team members, which is why they engage in a “Collab Hour” twice every month, where they share insights, troubleshoot challenges, and host guest speakers from other departments to support continuous learning and growth.
During one of these recent gatherings, everyone came together to help a client manage message overload during a busy holiday season. They brainstormed segmentation and personalization strategies to balance communications effectively. Dorfman noted that another session featured a guest speaker from the Bounteous’ social media team, which sparked creative ideas for cross-team collaboration.
While the CRM team stays busy supporting customers, they take time to acknowledge each other’s achievements, too. Dorfman shared that the team nominates one another for awards such as “The Human Encyclopedia” award and the “Tough as Nails” award, which makes it easy for everyone to see their impact — and help others do the same.
“I included kudos for each team member from colleagues across the company,” she said. “It was truly heartwarming and invigorating.”
All Eyes on the Future
Bounteous’ CRM team is driven by a desire to stay one step ahead, which requires that everyone embrace a “progress over perfection” approach to their work.
“Instead of fixating on every detail, we prioritize testing and learning to drive results,” Dorfman said.
Even the ways in which team members exchange feedback is future-focused. “We don’t dwell on the past — instead, we analyze challenges for key takeaways and apply those insights moving forward,” Dorfman shared.
“We don’t dwell on the past — instead, we analyze challenges for key takeaways and apply those insights moving forward.”
In order to maintain this forward-thinking mindset, Dorfman strives to cultivate trust, which empowers everyone to ask for help freely. Dorfman shared that this came into play recently when a strategist sought guidance on visually mapping a customer journey with success metrics. After a quick Slack post, the strategist acquired enough strong suggestions to come up with a solution.
Dorfman notes that as her team continues to grow each year, maintaining a tight-knit, supportive culture remains a top priority. While she’s excited about the company’s expansion into new verticals like financial services and healthcare, she’s most eager to see how these changes will empower her team to develop tailored solutions that meet the unique needs of customers in these industries.
“Most of all, I look forward to seeing our team continue to expand their own knowledge and grow at Bounteous,” Dorfman said.
