How Currys Transformed Its Coaching Strategy into Revenue Growth
By creating a unified hub for performance, learning, and coaching, Currys transformed leadership at every level and drove hundreds of thousands of pounds in additional revenue, earning the 2025 SELECT Captain Award.
By: Simone Somekh, Content Marketing Manager at Centrical
Currys plc, a leading omnichannel retailer of technology products and services operating online and through 708 stores in six countries, reimagined what effective leadership looks like in a retail environment. The company moved beyond fragmented systems and disconnected coaching conversations to create an integrated approach where managers lead with data-driven insights and agents take ownership of their own professional development.
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The results speak volumes: hundreds of thousands of pounds in additional revenue, more impactful coaching conversations, and a culture where agents actively drive their own performance. Team leaders now conduct in-platform evaluations that guide tailored performance and well-being conversations. Agents have real-time visibility into their progress and access to department-specific knowledge hubs, including gamified manufacturer learning initiatives that make product expertise immediately actionable.
We spoke with Melissa Eaglestone, CLC Gamification Champion, and Olivia Lyngam, Sales Team Manager at Currys, who shared the company’s journey and the innovations that earned them the 2025 Centrical SELECT Award in the Captain category. This award celebrates organizations that mastered leadership and coaching.
The Challenge: When Coaching Conversations Lack Context
Managers at Currys conducted regular evaluations and coaching sessions, but these conversations happened in isolation from the daily tools and data agents actually used. Performance metrics lived in one system, learning resources in another, and recognition happened separately. This fragmentation meant agents lacked a unified view of their own performance and development trajectory.
Team leaders wanted more meaningful coaching conversations but needed integrated data and tools to guide those discussions effectively. The real challenge was creating a system that would support both manager-led coaching and agent-driven development simultaneously.
Key Innovation: Building Leadership Through Integrated Performance Management
How Currys Centralized Coaching and Development
Currys made Centrical the central hub for all performance management, learning, and coaching activities. This integration transformed how managers and agents interact with performance data and development opportunities.
Empowering managers with in-platform evaluations: Team leaders now conduct evaluations directly within Centrical, allowing them to have performance and well-being conversations that are data-informed and tailored to each agent’s specific needs. The platform provides visibility into skill gaps and learning progress, enabling more targeted and effective coaching.
“With Centrical, we’ve empowered our managers to lead with confidence and our agents to take ownership of their development,”said Melissa Eaglestone. “These changes have fostered deeper, more impactful conversations and eliminated inefficiencies in the coaching process.”
Creating agent ownership through visibility: Agents gained unprecedented visibility into their own performance through real-time dashboards, leaderboards, and personalized feedback. Rather than waiting for periodic reviews, they can track their progress daily and understand exactly where they stand.
Knowledge hubs: The platform includes department-specific knowledge hubs that agents can access on demand, ensuring they have the information they need when they need it.
Gamified Learning and Manufacturer Partnerships
Currys leveraged Centrical’s gamification capabilities to drive engagement with learning content and manufacturer initiatives.
When new products launch, for instance, learning resources are deployed immediately as missions.
“We’ve just had an iPhone launch this year. On launch weekend, we [uploaded] mission content straight away. So the agents felt confident on what they were selling,” Eaglestone explained.
Manufacturer partners recognized the platform’s value and began creating their own branded incentive programs within Centrical. Agents can earn manufacturer-specific coins for selling certain items, which they can then spend in the Centrical store on prizes ranging from phone handsets to weekend getaway vouchers.
“We have manufacturers now that have their own coins on our store,” Eaglestone said. “The agents get allocated these coins automatically through our KPIs, and in our Centrical store, these manufacturers have their own items branded where agents can spend those specific coins.”
The prizes create tangible motivation. Agents have won PlayStations, air fryers, tablets, Airbnb vouchers, and more by earning points and entering raffles.
Fostering competition and recognition: The platform’s leaderboards and kudos system created friendly competition while building a culture of recognition. Managers and peers send kudos for achievements, and agents can see themselves move up leaderboards and levels in real time.
One agent became so invested in a sales challenge that he approached his manager frustrated that he was only four sales behind the top performer. This level of engagement drives performance naturally.
The Results: Leadership Excellence Driving Business Impact
Currys achieved meaningful outcomes across multiple dimensions:
Hundreds of thousands of pounds in additional revenue generated through the platform
More effective coaching conversations with data-driven insights and integrated evaluations
Increased agent ownership of performance and development
Faster product knowledge deployment with immediate mission content for new launches ]
Strong manufacturer partnerships contributing funding and branded incentives
Culture of recognition with regular kudos exchanges between managers and peers
The platform also impacted agent engagement and team leader support. Agents now feel more connected to their performance and development. Team leaders can have more meaningful, tailored conversations. The platform became part of the daily routine: when agents log in each morning, Centrical is on their list of essential systems.
“When an agent comes in the morning and they log onto their laptop, they know they’ve got certain systems to do their actual job,”Eaglestone said. “Centrical is included in that list. It’s the forefront of their mind when they log in at the beginning of the morning and at the end of the day, so they can track their performance, receive their reward and recognition, and see themselves improve.”
What’s Next: Expanding Leadership Capabilities
Unlocking More Manager and Agent Capabilities
Currys plans to give more power to team managers by enabling them to create custom badges for shout-outs and send micro-coaching recognition directly through the platform. This will allow managers to provide more immediate, specific recognition for positive behaviors and achievements.
The company also plans to activate the contributions feature, allowing trusted agents to mentor others through the platform. These “team leads” can share their experience and best practices within their teams or departments, creating peer-to-peer learning opportunities.
Integrating Development Pathways
Currys runs development courses for agents on career progression pathways. The company plans to bring these resources onto Centrical, automatically allocating learning materials to agents enrolled in the program through missions.
Leveraging AI for Coaching
Looking ahead, Currys is exploring Centrical’s AI capabilities to provide managers with personalized coaching recommendations. The platform can analyze performance data and suggest where managers should focus their coaching efforts for maximum impact.
Additionally, the company is considering gamified KPIs to measure coaching, recognition, and evaluation activity. These KPIs are designed to give team leaders more visual measures of their own performance as coaches and leaders, and they incentivize coaching consistency.
Currys exemplifies how organizations can transform leadership and coaching by providing the right tools and creating a culture of ownership and recognition. Their approach demonstrates that when managers have integrated data and agents have clear visibility into their own performance, coaching conversations become more meaningful and development becomes a shared responsibility.
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Madeleine Freind
VP, Customer Success
Madeleine Freind is a senior Customer Success leader with deep experience building and scaling SaaS and managed services businesses. At Centrical, she leads the Customer Success teams across North and South America, partnering with clients to drive measurable business impact through the platform.
Before joining Centrical, Madeleine was Head of Customer Success at Quantifind, an AI-powered analytics company, where she led strategic relationships with brands like Hershey’s, KFC, J.P. Morgan Chase, and Dunkin’ Brands. Her ability to translate complex data into clear, actionable solutions consistently helped customers achieve their goals.
Earlier in her career, Madeleine spent over a decade on the agency side, managing CRM and digital marketing programs for Fortune 500 companies through smart, data-driven strategies.
Michael Ciancio
CMO
Michael Ciancio serves as the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) at Centrical, bringing decades of experience in marketing and go-to-market strategy. In this role, he leads the company’s global marketing efforts to drive brand growth and market expansion.
Prior to joining Centrical, Michael held marketing leadership positions at notable technology companies, including IntelePeer, Infor, and Vonage. Throughout his career, he has successfully guided teams in scaling products, strengthening brands, and significantly expanding market presence.
Michael’s expertise lies in scaling high-growth software companies, particularly in AI, performance management, and employee engagement solutions for customer experience teams. His strategic vision and leadership continue to be instrumental in advancing Centrical’s mission to transform how organizations engage and motivate their frontline teams.
Michael holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics from Gettysburg College and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Marketing from Montclair State University.
Natalie Roth VP, Corporate Marketing
Natalie Roth brings over 15 years of experience in brand and product marketing for SaaS solutions. Before joining Centrical, she was Senior Product Marketing Manager at Frontline Education, where she led go-to-market strategies for enterprise K-12 solutions and played a key role in integrating and positioning products following multiple acquisitions.
Previously, Natalie served as Director of Marketing at Accelify Solutions, where she drove marketing strategy, new product launches, and customer communications. She played a pivotal role in business growth, expanding market presence, and deepening client engagement, contributing to the company’s success and eventual acquisition by Frontline Education.
Natalie holds a BA in Creative Writing and Digital Media from New York University, graduating magna cum laude.
Linat Mart
VP, Product Management
Linat Polak Mart has more than 15 years of expertise in managing product strategy and operations in high-volume organizations.Previously, she held the role of Head of Product Experience and Communications for LivePerson, a leading Conversational AI platform, where she played crucial part in delivering significant product innovation and customer growth. Prior to her time at LivePerson, she held multiple senior product roles at NICE, a leading enterprise customer experience (CX) software provider, including Director of Product Portfolio and Director of Product Management.
Linat holds an MBA from Tel Aviv University and a BA in Computer Science from Reichman University (IDC Herzliya). She graduated magna cum laude from both institutions.
“CX leaders should stop isolating contact centers from other departments. Customer experience is increasingly cross-functional. In 2025, integrating CX insights across the organization will be critical to delivering seamless and cohesive experiences.”
Tompkins comes to Centrical with more than 25 years of experience in software and hardware sales. Prior to joining his role as Chief Revenue Officer at Centrical, he was CEO at Workspot. He held the position of Chief Revenue Officer at IGEL as well as senior sales leadership positions with Red Hat, Hewlett Packard (now Hewlett Packard Enterprise), and Citrix.
Tompkins holds an MBA in Business Administration and Management from the University of Virginia, Darden Graduate School of Business Administration and served in the US Navy as a Nuclear Propulsion Technician.
“To start, give customers a choice: digital or live support. And if they go digital first and can’t get what they want, make it super-easy for them to connect to a live agent.”
“Knowledge Management: It is not exactly underrated but it will be bigger than what it is in 2025. Vendors are likely to boost R&D investment in knowledge management for contact centers in 2025.”
“Human-centered AI, where AI is used not just to automate and drop money to the bottom line, but used to service up insights to support team members and delight customers. I see generative AI with conversational context and tonal analysis as pretty critical here.”
“The future? Goodness, there’s so much, but I really believe 2025 is the year of community. We’re not just taking tickets anymore—folks we’re drawing people in, getting proactive, and co-creating with customers. Community will become a normal service channel, with customer service workers facilitating and adding value.”
“The myth that technology/AI is a quickly implemented CX superpower. Companies will realize that we can’t harness a lot of these gains without quality data that is clean and well-organized.”
“By 2025 the buzzword omnichannel may be on its’ last leg. Customers want their issues resolved quickly and accurately and they would prefer not to need to contact us in multiple channels that we can see at one time.”
“For 2025, the main trend I’m watching is ‘AI agents’—bots powered by AI that are becoming more autonomous. Unlike basic responses, these AI agents can handle end-to-end customer interactions, reducing the need for human intervention. Expect significant developments from vendors.”
“Stop talking about AI. It’s like talking about the internet being a thing. It’s here. The better focus is start thinking about how AI enhances the lives of your team. So stop talking about AI and start doing something about it.”
“AI and CX will drive hyper-personalization, using consumer data to segment customers, deliver key messages, and provide fast, accurate responses. Technologies like chatbots and predictive analytics will close the gap between brands and consumers.”
“The blending of CX and EX will accelerate. The days of reducing friction for customers at the expense of employees are over. Indeed, because AI-enabled customer experiences often require AI usage by customer-facing employees, leaders will have to ensure a frictionless work experience to drive AI adoption and deliver value.”
One myth that will be debunked in 2025?: “Customers are on the edge of their seat waiting to hear what you have to say. We need to learn about what’s important to customers by asking more questions.”
Doron is a seasoned R&D professional with a a deep expertise in SaaS and enterprise software. He leads product development at Centrical. Prior to joining the company, he was Director of R&D at Tipalti, where he was part of the team that designed and developed the Tiplati product and the infrastructure it uses. Prior to that he was Director of R&D Sensor Management, which joined from Orsus, which was acquired by Nice Systems. Prior to that he held various R&D positions at Orsus. Doron holds a B.Sc in Computer Science from the Tel Aviv Yafo Academic College and a MBA degree from the University of Tel Aviv.
Gal Rimon
Founder and CEO
Gal founded Centrical (previously GamEffective) in 2013, with the vision of helping companies empower their employees’ performance, making them the center of business success.Prior to that he was CEO of Gilon-Synergy Business Insight, a national leader in Business Intelligence. In 2010, Gilon-Synergy was acquired by Ness Technologies (NASDAQ:NSTC) and Gal went on to serve as Senior VP at Ness, and was member of its executive management.
Prior to that he was VP customer relations and operations at Deloitte Consulting. He also worked at EDS and Bashan. He holds a MBA degree in Marketing and Information Technologies from the Tel Aviv University.
Daphne Saragosti
Chief Customer Officer
Daphne has over 15 years of experience in Customer Relations and Retention in both B2B and B2C environments. Her area of expertise is leading customer success, consulting and global professional services teams within public and private sector companies. She is focused on leading teams to grow the partnership with our clients.
Prior to Centrical, Daphne worked software and service companies in the online marketing and gaming industry.
Daphne holds MA in Statistics – Specialization in Operations Research and a MBA degree, both from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
Ella Davidson
VP Global HR
Ella Davidson is responsible for managing Centrical’s employee relations worldwide, including organizational development, talent management, benefits and recruitment. Ella has more than 18 years of human resources management experience. Prior to joining Centrical she was vice president of human resources at myThings and OpTier – leading SW companies, and consulted numerous entrepreneurs and startups in the Israeli hi-tech industry and Israel and in the US.Ella holds a B.A in Psychology from the Hebrew University and MSc in Organizational Behavior from Recanati Business School at Tel Aviv University.
Ariel Herman
VP Research and Development
Ariel has over 16 years’ experience in a wide variety of R&D leadership roles. He is highly experienced at building R&D teams from the ground up, driving high levels of accountability and ownership and setting up automation infrastructures. For the past 10 years Ariel has managed both in-house and offshore development teams at companies ranging from startups to enterprise organizations.
Prior to joining Centrical, Ariel served as VP of R&D at Worthy.com where his team dramatically improved product stability, quality and execution. Before that, he was VP R&D at Applicaster where he led infrastructure changes from project to product. Ariel has also held various R&D positions at Retalix (later acquired by NCR).
Ariel holds B.sc in Computer science & Math, and MBA degree in Information Technologies, both from Bar Ilan University
Ronen Botzer
CFO
Ronen is a Finance and Business Development executive with 20+ years of leadership experience in startups and global companies across all aspects of management. He has direct experience with companies in the areas of software, services and capital equipment, including fund raising as well as M&As across different continents. Ronen is a CPA and holds an LLM degree from Bar Ilan university and B.A in business administration from the College of Business Management.
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Madeleine Freind
Natalie Roth
Linat Mart
Doron Neumann
Gal Rimon
Daphne Saragosti
Ella Davidson
Ariel Herman
Ronen Botzer