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Sippio Beacon Aims to Improve the Process of Producing and Quoting OrdersSippio Beacon Aims to Improve the Process of Producing and Quoting Orders

The new feature uses AI to process tasks, provides insights, and makes changes using natural language interactions.

Zeus Kerravala

December 2, 2024

4 Min Read
Sippio Beacon Aims to Improve the Process of Producing and Quoting Orders

SIPPIO, a voice enablement provider for resellers, recently announced an AI-based business intelligence tool built into the SIPPIO Portal. It is the first use of AI I have seen to improve the process of producing and quoting orders. The tool processes tasks, provides insights, and makes changes using natural language interactions. The new offering, SIPPIO Beacon, is in preview with select partners and will be available early next year.

In its announcement, the Annapolis, Maryland-based company called Beacon a significant leap in its mission to “make communications fast, easy, and flexible.” SIPPIO Beacon will use generative AI to “transform clicks into conversations.” When a partner needs an answer for a customer proposal, insights for upsell opportunities, or to make changes to customer accounts, SIPPIO says they can ask Beacon for the information. 

George Tarzi, director of development and innovation for SIPPIO, calls the product a breakthrough. “Instead of doing activities with clicks, remembering where to go, training on a new platform, etc., the goal with SIPPIO Beacon is to make all of those activities just as easy as having a conversation.”

Leveraging GenAI to Simplify Processes

SIPPIO’s business is to make unified communications more accessible and efficient while enhancing the value resellers and service providers offer their customers. Generative AI's power lies in its ability to simplify complex, manually intensive processes using natural language processing, analytics, and automation. SIPPIO Beacon is an excellent example of AI in action. It’s designed to deliver faster results and significantly reduce human errors.

“Our goal with Beacon is for it to be your assistant in the portal for placing orders and things like that, but it can be your own personal business analyst and sales analyst,” said Tarzi. “It can go through, for example, your customers, look at the subscriptions and licenses they have, and you can ask it to recommend customers that could take advantage of other add-on services.” 

Designed to Drive Efficiency and Improve Customer Service

SIPPIO created Beacon so service providers and resellers can use the new tool to find the appropriate information to respond to customer inquiries, and Beacon can help them make changes using the SIPPIO Portal, Microsoft Teams Admin Center, or Zoom.

SIPPIO Beacon users can create quotes, activate services, or change configuration via voice prompts. The tool can deliver business insights based on customer data, such as suggesting which accounts to contact for upsell opportunities. It will also pull from public and private data to provide business analysis.

“Because we’re giving it access not only to the internet but also to internal documents and data, it already has the understanding and the context of what you're asking it,” Tarzi said. “So if you're having trouble getting started on a project, you can simply tell Beacon what you want to do and the end goal and ask for recommendations on how to get started. It will go through not only information on the internet but also all the internal documentation we've given it access to and give you the most complete and best start on any telecommunication project.”

Company Promises Ongoing Innovation

Once the product goes live, SIPPIO is committed to continued iteration. “As 2025 progresses, we're going to be adding feature after feature to make SIPPIO Beacon the most robust AI on the market,” Tarzi said. “As it answers more questions and understands more context, it will learn based on those questions. If it gives you a bad response, tell it that wasn't the answer you sought, and it will remember. So the next time you ask, it will know how you want it to answer.” 

Final Thoughts

I look at generative AI as the most transformative technology since the Internet. Early in the Internet cycle, Cisco CEO John Chambers repeatedly stated that the Internet would change how we work, live, learn and play, and I believe generative AI will also change how we work, live, learn and play. To date, the use cases for the technology have revolved around copilots and assistants, but generative AI can be much more – an actual co-worker. SIPPIO Beacon is an excellent example of this where generative AI is not just consolidating and summarizing information, but rather taking a series of complex tasks and taking action, enabling people to focus on less routine and replicable workplace tasks.

About the Author

Zeus Kerravala

Zeus Kerravala is the founder and principal analyst with ZK Research.

Kerravala provides a mix of tactical advice to help his clients in the current business climate and long term strategic advice. Kerravala provides research and advice to the following constituents: End user IT and network managers, vendors of IT hardware, software and services and the financial community looking to invest in the companies that he covers.

Kerravala does research through a mix of end user and channel interviews, surveys of IT buyers, investor interviews as well as briefings from the IT vendor community. This gives Kerravala a 360 degree view of the technologies he covers from buyers of technology, investors, resellers and manufacturers.

Kerravala uses the traditional on line and email distribution channel for the research but heavily augments opinion and insight through social media including LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Blogs. Kerravala is also heavily quoted in business press and the technology press and is a regular speaker at events such as Interop and Enterprise Connect.

Prior to ZK Research, Zeus Kerravala spent 10 years as an analyst at Yankee Group. He joined Yankee Group in March of 2001 as a Director and left Yankee Group as a Senior Vice President and Distinguished Research Fellow, the firm's most senior research analyst. Before Yankee Group, Kerravala had a number of technical roles including a senior technical position at Greenwich Technology Partners (GTP). Prior to GTP, Kerravala had numerous internal IT positions including VP of IT and Deputy CIO of Ferris, Baker Watts and Senior Project Manager at Alex. Brown and Sons, Inc.

Kerravala holds a Bachelor of Science in Physics and Mathematics from the University of Victoria in British Columbia, Canada.