The Acushnet brands have underlined their commitment to customer service excellence with the appointment of new department head.
Laura Able has joined Titleist and FootJoy at their Acushnet Europe Ltd headquarters in St Ives, Cambridgeshire, as the new Head of Customer Service.
With extensive knowledge and experience in the field, Able has outlined plans to further improve all customer interactions and ultimately make Acushnet even easier to do business with.
Tell us a little about your background?
I’ve spent more than 20 years in customer operations and customer experience leadership, including time as a Chief Experience Officer (CXO) and Global CX Manager. My work has been about driving operational excellence with one goal in mind, to improve the customer experience.
What is your philosophy for doing that?
I believe that the best processes are the ones you design backwards - from the customer’s needs to the way the work gets done. But I also believe that great processes alone don’t create great experiences - PEOPLE DO. It’s only when you have talented, committed teams who take ownership, solve problems and go the extra mile that customers truly feel valued.
I’ve led transformations that brought in new digital tools and channels, but the real impact came from freeing people up to focus on what matters - taking care of customers in a way that feels personal and genuine.
What is your philosophy for doing that?
I believe that the best processes are the ones you design backwards - from the customer’s needs to the way the work gets done. But I also believe that great processes alone don’t create great experiences - PEOPLE DO. It’s only when you have talented, committed teams who take ownership, solve problems and go the extra mile that customers truly feel valued.
I’ve led transformations that brought in new digital tools and channels, but the real impact came from freeing people up to focus on what matters - taking care of customers in a way that feels personal and genuine.
What excited you about the role at Acushnet?
The brands were, of course, a big draw - influencing the experience for premium names like Titleist and FootJoy is a huge privilege. But what really caught my attention was a single line in the job posting about our credo; “Autograph your work with excellence.”
That resonated instantly. And during the hiring process, I saw it wasn’t just a slogan. From product managers to the assembly colleagues building clubs, you could feel the pride and passion for quality. That passion is lived every day here, and it’s what drives us to keep improving both products and services. I am delighted to be part of that.
As someone who’s passionate about CX, it’s rare to find an organisation where the intent and the environment are so aligned. Here, I feel like I’m pushing on an open door.
What have been some of the short-term success in improving the customer experience?
Even in just three months, we’ve made real progress. We carried out a thorough review of our returns process and have already managed to take several days out of the turnaround time which means our dedicated golfers can get back to playing sooner.
We’re also rolling out a new Case Management solution. That means customers will have one point of contact for all their needs, and internally we can collaborate better to create solutions faster. Importantly, this won’t change the way customers contact us - they’ll still have the choice - but it will make the experience smoother and resolutions quicker.
On the digital side, our teams continue to evolve Acushnet Hub and SureFit, making ordering simpler, improving delivery, and expanding the range of products and services available on the platforms. And we’re strengthening our team through a recruitment campaign, bringing in new associates who will join our development programmes so we can continue to deliver excellent customer experiences.
What can Acushnet customers expect in the future?
Our goal is simple: seamless customer experiences. That means making Acushnet easy to do business with, with fit-for-purpose tools that make accessing our products and service straightforward anytime, anywhere - supported by associates who go out of their way to delight our dedicated golfers.
We’ll keep refining our processes, adding digital capabilities, and making sure our people have the time and tools to focus on customers, not just systems. We won’t change for the sake of it - our aim is to enhance what’s already great and make it even more effortless for customers to enjoy our brands.
What does success look like for you in this role?
For me, success is when customers feel the same level of excellence in our service that they feel in our products. It’s when our teams have everything they need to deliver that experience confidently and consistently. And it’s when the processes we’ve built - starting with the customer - become so natural that great service just happens.
At a premium brand, excellence is the baseline. My role is to make sure every touchpoint, every interaction, lives up to that standard.
