Part of our Ultimate Fuze Buyer’s Guide
Any business that wants to compete in today's agile environment needs a communication strategy that's secure, flexible, and innovative.
As trends like digital transformation, customer experience, and remote working continue to transform the way we interact, leading vendors in the communication environment are re-thinking the products and services they deliver. Two particularly forward-thinking organisations in 2018 are Fuze and Cisco.
Fuze is unified communications-as-a-service business that focuses on delivering state-of-the-art global communication services through the cloud. Fuze also has a strong reputation for delivering real-time intelligence and analytics to the contact centre environment. Cisco, or "Cisco Systems" is a multinational technology company known for developing and selling networking hardware, communications equipment, and UC solutions.
Here's everything you need to know about each vendor.
The Financials
Since launching under the name "Thinking Phones" in 2006, Fuze has seen phenomenal success as a world-leader in Unified Communications as a Service. The company has achieved numerous major accolades with leading publications like Forbes, Gartner, and Deloitte. As a private company, Fuze doesn't publish revenue information and financial results online. However, in 2018, the company announced that it had seen an increase of 500% in active users.
Cisco was established in 1984, making it a much older company than Fuze. When it first began, Cisco created state-of-the-art telecommunications equipment and networking hardware - something it still specialises in today. Cisco became a public company in 1990, and in 2018 they achieved:
- A revenue of $49.3 billion
- A non-GAAP income of $3.3 billion
Gartner Says:
Many companies searching for the perfect communications vendor search for insights from one of the world's leading industry reports the Gartner Magic Quadrant. Fuze has appeared multiple times within the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Unified Communications as a Service. In 2018, the company appeared in the report as a "Visionary." The company was positioned at the highest point of the segment, for their ability to execute, and completeness of vision.
On the other hand, Cisco is a leader in the Magic Quadrant for Unified Communications. Cisco's unified communication solutions combine innovative, disruptive technology with flexible deployment options and easy accessibility for end-to-end customer satisfaction.
Glassdoor Says:
As an employer, Cisco is a much larger company than Fuze. Though both organisations trade worldwide, Fuze's cloud-based as-a-service approach allows for fewer staff members. Cisco has around 72,790 employees around the globe, while Fuze had 700 as per their last publicised account in 2016. Glassdoor members rate the companies the following out of 5 for employee satisfaction:
- Fuze: 4.4
- Cisco: 4.0
Portfolio Comparison
Fuze's portfolio of products is far more focused than Cisco's, which also means that it's a lot smaller. Additionally, while Cisco manufacture and sell their own communication endpoints, Fuze exclusively deals in solutions that can be delivered over the cloud.
