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.
Fuze vs Cisco: UC and Collaboration
Both Fuze and Cisco offer a broad range of unified communication and collaboration services for their customers. While Fuze delivers, it’s solutions as “as a service” offerings, Cisco offers a range of flexible deployment options. The Fuze unified communication and collaboration portfolio includes:
- Fuze Enterprise Voice
- Fuze Enterprise Voice and Modern Messaging
- Fuze HD Audio and Video Conferencing
- Fuze Real-time Content Sharing and Collaboration
- Fuze Web (WebRTC communication)
Cisco’s options for unified communication and collaboration include:
- Cisco Webex (Teams, Meetings)
- Cisco Unified Communications Manager
- Cisco Business Edition
Fuze vs. Cisco: Customer Contact
Cisco and Fuze also have solutions for the customer contact centre. Although Fuze’s specialty is UC, they also offer a range of ways to make sure that you deliver the best possible experience for your customer, including a partnership with inContact to provide a broader range of contact centre services.
The Fuze Contact Centre offering comes with features like Workforce Management, and Intelligent routing to help companies achieve first-time resolution as often as possible.
Cisco’s contact centre options include:
- Cisco Customer Journey Platform
- Cisco Unified Contact Centre Express
- Cisco Unified Contact Centre Enterprise
Target Market and Regional Availability
Fuze and Avaya both sell their services worldwide, both directly, and through partnerships with leading local companies. While Fuze focuses primarily on mid-sized and large enterprise organisations, Cisco offers solutions for companies of any size.
Pricing
The bespoke nature of the products that Fuze and Cisco sell means that if you want to get an accurate price, you’ll need to contact the sales team for each respective company. You can also look at the pricing available for Cisco’s endpoints through their partners.
Finishing Thoughts
Cisco and Fuze both offer fantastic solutions for modern communication. If you’re looking for a simple cloud-based solution that will unify your workforce and involves absolutely no on-premise installation, then Fuze could be the perfect choice for you. On the other hand, if you want innovative software combined with state-of-the-art hardware, Cisco can provide everything from your contact centre to your desk phone endpoints.
