Thanks to an incredible opportunity to attend UC EXPO 2017 this year, I was given the chance to learn more about the developing unified communications industry from some of the leaders in the market place. Not only did I have a chance to attend some amazing presentations, but I also got to sit down with some of the market-leaders who are leading the way for communication and collaboration changes today.
As part of my exploration into Cisco, and the development of this world-leading brand, I sat down with Andy Brocklehurst, Head of Collaboration for EMEAR at Cisco to talk about Cisco Spark, and where the company is headed next. Andy has been working with Cisco for more than 11 years, and comes from a rich PBX background, linked to other leading companies like Avaya.
What Does Collaboration Mean to Cisco?
Following a recent presentation made by Cisco at the UC EXPO, I was keen to learn more about what the term "collaboration" really means to Cisco, and why the brand is focusing on moving away from UC, and into the world of Collab.
Andy Brocklehurst told me that recently, the company has been focusing less on the over-arching theme of Unified Communications, and more on what collaboration means in the eyes of the customer. To Cisco, that means creating a more delightful, seamless, and simple experience in the meeting space. "The move to collaboration is about focusing on how people meet, talk, and share information. We're bringing our attention to people, not just technology."
For Cisco, the vision for this more connected world began around four years ago, developing on top of a need for a "common collaboration experience that spans all different modes of communication." The company are hoping to make meeting experiences more consistent, regardless of which device you access a conference from. Very few vendors up until now have been able to offer a UCC solution that truly unifies all resources for a more seamless working solution.
For Cisco, it was Spark that took the brand to a place where true collaboration became more possible. According to Andy, the Cisco strategy for collaboration is based on three key pillars that are all about the user:
- The first pillar is User Experience (UX): Andy noted that other big-name brands in the industry do well when they deliver simplicity. When applications are clunky, user experience and adoption suffer
- The second pillar is cloud connectivity: Andy pointed out that this doesn't mean that everything Cisco does is moving to the cloud, instead, it's about offering cloud, premise, and hybrid solutions based on what their customer needs. "If a user buys a perpetual license with on-premise solutions then moves to the cloud, their license moves with them."
- The third pillar focuses on value extension: For Cisco, value extension is about embedding applications into business processes. If customers are using Salesforce, their Spark apps are already inserted into the Salesforce process, and vice versa
The Mission
As Andy was keen to point out, the world of UC has moved beyond complex solutions to complicated problems. Today, we're all about focusing on simplicity, that's why for Cisco, value extension has evolved into things like adoption services, training, and helping people to understand ways to make the most of their collaboration.
"The mission is to deliver a simple collaboration experience into every room, desk, and pocket. The big emphasis continues to be on offering a delightful user experience. If the user likes what we provide, and sees value in it, then they're happy."
