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An intelligent cloud contact center provider with a robust partner ecosystem is key for companies looking to add incremental value to their implementations.

Jake Butterbaugh, Five9

February 17, 2020

2 Min Read
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With the nimbleness that comes as a result of migrating to a cloud platform, the days of the set it-and-forget it contact center are long gone. A constant flow of innovation isn’t just a chief benefit of the contact center-as-a-services (CCaaS) model but an imperative for staying ahead of the curve on customer experience.

 

Likewise, the days of the simple standalone contact center have disappeared. The modern contact center environment involves so much more than inbound and outbound calling. There are a host of digital channels to support, as well as a range of integrations to accommodate. The opportunities are truly endless — on top of core contact center functions, one organization might want to facilitate a team chat among agents and the business, another might want to weave in workforce management and quality management tools, while a third wants all that plus a customer relationship management integration, artificial intelligence-fueled agent assist, and much more.

 

Being able to weave together the piece parts comprising a contact center today means being able to tap into the right technology; industry vertical and line-of-business; and regional expertise. Only then can a contact center provider deliver value consistently and efficiently among a diverse customer set. Having a strong services arm is a must, as is a go-to set of strategic partners.

 

When evaluating a CCaaS provider’s partner ecosystem, you might be tempted by volume. But don’t be drawn in by the sheer number. Lots of choice is great, yes, but more important is knowing that a provider together with its partners is going to be able to deliver the improved agent and customer experience you need. And the plural “partners” is crucial. Your next-generation, business-differentiating use case might best be addressed by a systems integrator working in tandem with a referral partner and an ISV — or some such combination!

 

Through the Five9 Partner Ecosystem, we understand how critical it is to be able to move in lockstep with our partners. Indeed, we think of partners as an extension of ourselves, and with them we’re able to deliver key business outcomes such as improved customer satisfaction scores, reduced time to resolution, and better revenue/customer growth. We all work together to optimize the agent and customer experiences.

 

As a customer, your key is knowing that partners can help add incremental value to a contact center implementation. Is automation a goal? Does lead management need an overhaul? What might the contact center do to align with the enterprise’s overall mission of building a collaborative culture? Do agents need better real-time guidance as they’re working with customers? Are chatbots behaving in human enough fashion? Oftentimes, these will fall in the purview of a partner or partners that will facilitate an implementation that yields desired results.

 

That’s why Five9 has placed a premium on forging strategic alliances and building out the industry’s most complete partner ecosystem. To learn more about the Five9 partner ecosystem, click here.

About the Author

Jake Butterbaugh, Five9

Jake Butterbaugh leads the Global Channel Sales team at Five9. He and his team are responsible for building and managing a growing Customer Experience Partner Ecosystem, opening new routes to market, and helping partners expand their practices to jointly take the Customer Experience industry to exciting new heights.

 

Jake has nearly 20 years’ experience bringing innovative software solutions to new markets and establishing jointly beneficial partnerships. He is passionate about the role business outcomes focused technologies can play to transform the businesses and lives of our customers and he recognizes the opportunities for Five9 as we transition to the next generation of outcome enabling software solutions sales and partnerships.

 

Prior to Five9, Jake worked for Cisco, whom he joined Cisco in 2008 as part of the Cloud and Managed Services team, where he helped build Cisco’s global strategy for cloud and hosted collaboration solutions (HCS). Following this launch, Jake helped Cisco shift its collaboration business to software and subscription sales, launching the Cisco Collaboration Flex Plan, the industry’s first collaboration suite subscription to combine cloud, hosted and on-premises solutions in a single offer. Before Cisco, Jake worked at EMC & Accenture where he focused on consultative customer relationships and large engagement sales to deliver transformational business outcomes.