With the topic of artificial intelligence (AI) hot topic almost everywhere, I wanted to get Fuze's view on whether we were still talking about actionable insights or genuine artificial intelligence. I met with Eric Hanson, VP Product Marketing at Fuze to get his view on where the market was and what Fuze's take was. Rather than zooming in on the Fuze portfolio and talking about what products and features Fuze could offer in the AI world, Eric spoke around the philosophy of Fuze, and how their platform is an AI enabler, rather than an AI provider.
Fuze consultancy
Eric walked me through a typical sales cycle with Fuze, and explained how their approach differs to their competitors and even non-traditional players like Microsoft and Cisco.
"Fuze puts the user experience first"
"We're different because we focus on usability and let the users call the shots every differing day. They dictate how they interact with their peers, not the technology".
Getting into a consultancy phase before contract signature is key to getting to know your customer. Eric said, "Every customer is different. That's why we aren't just providing a SaaS platform, but the professional services too. We know it's a real change for businesses and we have to help them overcome the challenges".
Crossing the chasm
Eric likened the Fuze philosophy to the chasm referenced by Geoffrey Moore in his book, Crossing the Chasm. "Typically, customers need to migrate across the chasm from their legacy, on-premises estate with multiple boxes of iron to an agile, productive working environment". Eric ran me through an example of an American retailer who is going through exactly this today. Fragmented voice strategies still exist despite the upward trajectory of UCaaS.
