Monday Morning Impact – June 21

Avant Analytics Underscores the Vast Acceleration of Contact Center as a Service

Avant Analytics, the market research division of Avant, a Chicago-based master agent, has released its fourth AVANT 6-12 Report focusing on Contact Center as a Service (CCaaS). The AVANT 6-12 Reports are designed to help IT decision makers assess whether a technology solution is a viable option for their company over the next 6 to 12 months.

CCaaS currently accounts for more than $3 billion in global sales, with some predictions anticipating sales to reach $10.5 billion by 2027.

The report’s findings show that customers are most likely to make a decision on CCaaS technology when a current contract nears its expiration date (30% of respondents) or when a legacy system’s warranty expires (30%), inferring that customers want to offload management of conventional contact center solutions and pursue more advanced technological solutions like AI to improve the customer experience. This is especially important for companies implementing permanent remote work options for their customer service agents in light of the fact that many companies plan for at least 40% of employees to work remotely.

Other key takeaways include:

• 32% of IT decision makers are looking to CCaaS to enable or expand their remote workforce.
• 51% are planning to invest in a new contact center system because their current setup lacks functionality.
• Artificial Intelligence (AI) has emerged as a key factor in energizing broader adoption.
• In addition to AI, CCaaS systems often include a call distributor, interactive voice response (CDIVR), outbound predictive dialers (OPDs) and analytics capabilities.
• 68% of respondents listed voice to text as a required AI capability when considering a new contact center solution.
• 69% of respondents require PCI compliance for a contact center solution, highlighting the need for effective security to be interwoven with every CCaaS migration.
• The report features interviews and insights from C-suite executives throughout AVANT’s partner network and key IT decision makers. The report also includes analysis on AI utilization, multichannel and omnichannel distinctions and security integrations within CCaaS systems.

Channel Impact^®
The study shows substantial opportunity for the partner base given that more than half of IT leaders investigating CCaaS through Avant plan to invest in a new contact center platform in 2021.

Nutanix Launches Service Provider Partner Program for Hybrid and Multicloud Solutions

Nutanix, a San Jose-based company specializing in private, hybrid and multicloud computing, has launched a new partner program designed to meet the needs of allied managed and cloud service providers on a global basis.

“As the demand for managed and cloud services surges, service providers are uniquely positioned to assist an organization’s growth, optimization initiatives, and digital transformation needs,” said Christian Alvarez, SVP Worldwide Channels at Nutanix. “Through the Nutanix Elevate Service Provider Program, we are rewarding our partners’ commitment in delivering high value IT cloud service offerings​ and helping them maximize profitability and increase their revenue growth potential through premium offerings.”

The new service provider program adds two partnership levels to the overarching Nutanix Elevate program. Authorized Service Providers will include partners new to Nutanix or those delivering Nutanix services to small to mid-market organizations. Professional Service Provider will deliver differentiated services for enterprise organizations. Partners who join the program will be able to take advantage of all the benefits outlined in the Elevate Service Provider Program Guide including training, Not For Resale (NFR) and Nutanix XLAB software licenses, and enablement support. Professional Service Provider partners will be able to take advantage of expanded support from Nutanix including marketing materials, potential market development funds, sales tools, goal-based financial incentives and rebates, and personalized insights in Nutanix’s Partner Portal.

The program features simplified pricing options without minimum commitment levels. Additionally, Nutanix software licenses can be used by service providers at their customer site, in the service provider’s environment, or on Nutanix Clusters running in public cloud environments, including AWS, and AWS GovCloud. Support for Microsoft Azure is said to be forthcoming.

A promotional offer for new partners joining the Elevate Service Provider Program is also under way, featuring training and certification.

Channel Impact^®
The Nutanix Elevate Service Provider Program is intended to further extend the benefits of the Elevate Partner Program to now include service providers globally. The program empowers managed and cloud service providers to build hybrid and multicloud services delivering increased profitability and faster time-to-market.

ServiceMax Rolls Out New Extensions to Partner Program

ServiceMax, a San Francisco Bay Area-based field service management, today announced its updated ServiceMax Partner Xcellence Program focused on its ServiceMax Asset 360 for Salesforce offering.

ServiceMax Asset 360 for Salesforce gives organizations enhanced visibility into assets in the field so companies can maximize asset performance and equipment uptime, reduce maintenance costs and monetize service as a revenue stream.

“Companies across industries are recognizing that service is the catalyst of resilient revenues, and therefore are looking for effective ways to digitize their field service operations to better tap into that revenue stream,” said Toby Donald, VP of Professional Services & Global Alliances at ServiceMax. “We’re excited to create an ecosystem of channel partners that can work together to transform an organization’s service business with ServiceMax Asset 360 for Salesforce.”

Under the revised program partners have access to training/certification, dedicated support, implementation services, and access to the partner community for sharing ideas, suggestions, best practices and general tips.

Channel Impact^®
In the last year, field service organizations have seen rapidly changing business models, a shift toward digital-first customer engagement and remote work. Channel partners are increasingly tasked with helping customers navigate this new environment. The updated program is expected to provide the tools, resources and category expertise necessary to take partners and their customers to the next level.