Channel Manager’s Playbook Volume 18: AI & the Channel Sponsored by Stop by booth #1419 to hear why savvy technology advisors across the industry are making the switch.
CONTENTS Martin Vilaboy Editor-in-Chief martin@bekabusinessmedia.com Brady Hicks Contributing Editor brady@bekabusinessmedia.com Gerald Baldino Contributing Editor gerald@bekabusinessmedia.com Percy Zamora Art Director percy@bekabusinessmedia.com Rob Schubel Digital Manager rob@bekabusinessmedia.com Jen Vilaboy Ad Production Director jen@bekabusinessmedia.com Berge Kaprelian Group Publisher berge@bekabusinessmedia.com (480) 503-0770 Michael Burns National Account Executive michael@bekabusinessmedia.com (262) 993-9116 Beka Business Media Berge Kaprelian President and CEO Corporate Headquarters 10115 E Bell Road, Suite 107 – #517 Scottsdale, Arizona 85260 Voice: 480.503.0770 Email: berge@bekabusinessmedia.com ADVERTISER INDEX AireSpring (www.airespring.com) 13 C3 Complete (www.c3cloud.com) 31 CELLSMART (cellsmart.io) 15 Clarus Communications (www.clarusco.com) 2 ConectUS Wireless (www.conectUS.com) 7 CVxEXPO24 (www.cvxexpo.com) 29 FaxSIPit (www.faxsipit.com) 30 Granite Telecommunications (www.granitenet.com) 21 Intermedia (www.intermedia.com) 19 Nextiva (www.nextiva.com) 23 NHC (nhcgrp.com) Back cover QuestBlue (questblue.com) 9 Ritalia Funding (ritaliafinding.com) 27 Snom (snomamerica.com) 3 Telarus (www.telarus.com) 16-17 Telesystem (www.telesystem.com) 5 Windstream Enterprise (www.windstreamenterprise.com) 11 Disclaimer: This index is provided as a free service to our advertisers. Every effort is made for accuracy, but we cannot be held liable for any errors or omissions. THE CHANNEL MANAGER’S PLAYBOOK 6 A Place for AI AI & automation close contact center ‘soft skills’ disconnect By Martin Vilaboy 12 A Responsible Approach to AI Overcoming skepticism and building customer trust By Rebecca Jones 18 Meeting Intelligence How AI can uplift the video conferencing experience By Robyn Rawlings 24 Conversational Starters Mosaicx’s co-sales program provides agents with an entry into AI By Martin Vilaboy 26 AI ICYMI Volume 18: AI & the Channel © 2024 Beka Business Media, All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in any form or medium without express written permission of Beka Business Media is prohibited. ChannelVision and the ChannelVision logo are trademarks of Beka Business Media 4
A PLACE FOR AI By Martin Vilaboy AI & automation close contact center ‘soft skills’ disconnect According to McKinsey & Company senior partner Eric Lamarre, current conversations around AI all too often “make it feel like a technology in search of a problem.” For a transformational technology such as AI, perhaps that’s not so surprising. After all, it’s understandable for the mind to go to “Where else could I apply this?”, continued Lamarre. A better way to begin a conversation around implementing AI, for both the seller and the buyer, is to “always start with the business problem you want to solve,” advised Lamarre, in a recent McKinsey podcast. “When business leaders say, ‘That’s the problem I want to solve with technology,’ it becomes easier to develop the technology road map to solve that problem.” One brooding problem that contact center managers currently face – and AI is increasingly being applied toward – is inadequate quality management of the all-important customer experience (CX). Legacy analytics can limit contact center agent monitoring to experiences that are solely reactive, one-size-fits-all and stuck in single or siloed channels, say proponents of infusing AI into contact center operations. That’s opposed to a scenario in which AI instantly informs interactions, enabling businesses to be more proactive, personalized and optimized for the types of cross-channel, digitally centered conversations that today’s consumers increasingly expect. It’s why a recent survey of 400 decision-makers who work in customer care, customer service or the contact center department found that nearly all (99 percent) of companies have plans to invest in AI analyt6 THE CHANNEL MANAGER’S PLAYBOOK
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ics-driven quality management within the next few years. And the quality management problem is particularly relevant to the measurement of agent “soft skills,” which lately have become a top priority to those responsible for hiring and evaluating employees. Unlike technical skills or acquired knowledge, soft skills tend to include somewhat esoteric qualities, traits and behaviors such as personality, emotional intelligence, adaptability, interpersonal communications and understanding. These types of skills, the thinking goes, are indicators of an ability to lead, creatively problem solve, understand the bigger picture and be persuasive influencers, among other advantages. As one tech executive in charge of talent acquisition recently told Fox Business News in an article on the importance of soft skills, “There is no point in being the smartest person in the room if no one wants to listen to you.” In the contact center environment, strong soft skills, such as empathy, effective communications, active listening and problem-solving, directly impact customer experience, argue executives at NICE, a provider of AI-powered self-service and agentassisted CX software for the contact center, which also recently released the aforementioned survey on contact center quality management. “When agents exhibit these positive behaviors, customers feel valued, understood and are more likely to maintain a long-lasting relationship with the brand,” stated the survey report. Consider, for example, a complex technical support interaction or a follow-up call in which the customer already is frustrated before picking up the phone. “In these situations, soft skills such as empathy can make all the difference to customer experience,” continued the study. Indeed, as much as 94 percent of respondents agree that agent soft skills are a very important factor to positive CSAT customer satisfaction scores, a top CX metric being measured today and where organizations currently are competing, said NICE researchers. However, only 41 percent of companies said that they assess agents based on any type of soft skills. That’s largely because soft skills – without AI and automation – aren’t easy to accurately measure. Due to the subjective nature of soft skills assessments and an inability to be consistent when applying descriptions and measurements, soft skills scores, up to this point, have been easily disregarded and often disputed by managers and employees, suggest the survey findings. When asked to name their greatest challenges in assessing contact center agent soft skills, nearly half of respondents cited “subjective analysis,” followed by “lack of buy-in from operations” (41 percent), “a driver of quality score disputes” (39 percent), and “agents think it is unfair” (37 percent). The larger the company, and the more stakeholders involved, the harder obtaining operational buy-in becomes, said NICE researchers. mployee work schedule? Subjective analysis Lack of buy-in from operations Driver of quality score disputes Agents think it is unfair Skills that are important agreement Lag time between interaction & feedback Calibration alignment Creating good definitions like empathy We don’t have any challenges Manual processes QA team’s goals don’t align with the company’s goals Not measuring across all channels Lack of dedicated resources Random sampling is not representative of agent performance Sample size not representative of agent performance Agent buy-in to feedback Inconsistent application of quality management eaders % % % CX leaders % % % Greatest Challenge in Assessing Agent Soft Skills Source: NICE benchmark survey, 2023 42% 41% 39% 37% 36% 35% 31% 28% 2% Top Challenges of Effective Quality Management Source: NICE benchmark survey, 2023 42% 42% 38% 38% 36% 35% 31% 30% Source: YouGov, November 2023 I would want to quit My morale would be negatively impacted My productivity would be negative impacted I would accept it grudgingly It wouldn’t make a difference to me I would be happy about the change Percentage of Funds Used Source: Brandmuscle HIGHEST SPENDERS HIGH SPENDERS MID SPENDERS LOW SPENDERS FUND UTILIZATION 90%+ = HIGHEST SPENDERS 75-89% = HIGH SPENDERS 50-74% = MID SPENDERS 25-49% = LOW SPENDERS <25% = LOWEST SPENDERS LOWEST SPENDERS NONE NOT SURE Plans to Invest in AI Analytics-Driven Quality Management Source: NICE benchmark survey, 2023 We already have it We’ll have it within 6 months We’ll have it within 7 to 12 month We’ll have in 12+ months No immediate plans 29% 28% 28% 22% 20% 14% 36% 10% 7% 16% 9% 9% 13% 14% 12% 29% 45% 1% 8 THE CHANNEL MANAGER’S PLAYBOOK
The issue of agent buy-in, or what NICE researchers call “the trust deficit,” is a top challenge for supervisors when it comes to contact center quality management, in general. According to the NICE survey results, 42 percent of respondents cited the likelihood of agents buying into the feedback they receive as the number one barrier to effective quality management, tied for first among the barriers listed with “the inconsistent application of quality management.” As it turns out, both of these challenges are directly related to the third challenge on this list: “random sampling that is not representative of agent performance.” If there is one take away from the NICE survey, it’s that contact center measurements and evaluations tend to rely on inadequate, skewed or random data. And that’s a big problem because that data is being used to make critical decisions. On average, as few as six digital interactions and 13 voice interactions per agent are being sampled every month by CX quality control programs. About a quarter of contact centers are measuring less than 10 voice and digital interactions combined each month, according to the survey data. Considering that all respondents work for contact centers with more than 200 agents, “this is statistically an insignificant sample size and not representative of agent performance,” stated the survey report. Meanwhile, 65 percent of respondents choose samples based on post interaction customer satisfaction surveys, which are known for attracting either highly satisfied or highly unsatisfied customers, potentially skewing the sample, argued NICE researchers. CSAT surveys also tend to have a low response rate, representing an insufficient sample of customers. Collecting CX data on digital interactions is particularly complex, and the technology is still maturing, which likely explains why 60 percent of companies don’t know what percentage of their customer digital interactions are being sampled, compared with just 9 percent for voice interactions. About half of companies target interactions based on speech analytics (55 percent). According to NICE executives, speech analytics tend to be used to check if the contact center staff followed a process or to make sure they said key phrases or didn’t use specific terms. This may be useful for checking processes but doesn’t necessarily drive improvements in customer satisfaction. In 51 percent of cases, control samples are chosen completely at random. Yet despite the lack of a statistically significant or holistic view, 85 percent of stakeholders said quality management programs influence business decisions across their organizations. That certainly sounds like a widespread problem. AI-driven quality management removes some of the subjectivity by automating the scoring of a wider array of agent soft skills across close to 100 percent of interactions, rather than just samples, providing a more holistic view of the customer experience, while at the same time reducing the influences of perceived human bias that create skepticism in scores. As with all computing breakthroughs, AI takes a once impossible, or at least impractical, level of data gathering and analysis and moves it toward the mundane. “As contact centers don’t have a truly holistic view of agent performance data, and are relying on small samples and inconsistent analysis, you cannot call decisions based on current quality management programs data driven,” said NICE executives. “Without being able to judge soft skills, organizations are viewing an incomplete picture.” The soft skills disconnect certainly is not a hidden problem or one that’s difficult to comprehend. After all, when it comes to assessing agent soft skills, 98 percent of respondents admit to challenges. And with the quality of the customer experience becoming a top area of focus among businesses the past few years, managing the quality of the call center is more critical than ever. Perhaps that’s why nearly all stakeholders surveyed for the NICE research report have plans to invest in AI analytics-driven quality management within the next 12 months or so, including the 14 percent that have done so already. o me employee work schedule? Manual processes QA team’s goals don’t align with the company’s goals Not measuring across all channels Lack of dedicated resources Random sampling is not representative of agent performance Sample size not representative of agent performance Agent buy-in to feedback Inconsistent application of quality management Top IoT Industries Based on Market Share CX leaders 41% 17% 31% 5% 6% ers CX leaders 38% 24% 9% 31% Source: NICE benchmark survey, 2023 Top Challenges of Effective Quality Management Source: NICE benchmark survey, 2023 42% 42% 38% 38% 36% 35% 31% 30% 10 THE CHANNEL MANAGER’S PLAYBOOK
Artificial intelligence (AI) has emerged as a transformative force in the ever-evolving technology landscape, promising unparalleled advancements and innovation across industries. Headlines are ablaze with the potential of AI to revolutionize business operations, yet many remain cautious of its reliability and credibility. In fact, three in five people hesitate to trust AI systems, showed a recent study by KPMG on the topic. As AI’s impact becomes increasingly evident and demand for its implementation skyrockets, AI governance and overall management framework seem to lag behind. Businesses face a crucial balancing act of keeping pace with rapid innovation, building trust with skeptical users and implementing AI responsibly. Striking a balance requires a strategic approach. Where to Start? Tips for AI Implementation Knowing how to approach AI for business operations can feel intimidating for decision-makers. Channel partners can help alleviate pressure by offering AI expertise to decision-makers and guiding them through the AI selection and implementation process. Experienced providers can help businesses navigate the complexities of AI adoption, ensuring a tailored approach that aligns with business objectives and drives sustainable impact. Before investing resources into AI implementation, companies should identify what processes and tasks best suit AI and note how it will impact their customers. A channel partner can guide the business in identifying these processes. One best practice is to align AI initiatives with real-world customer needs, focusing on practical applications that enhance user experiences. A Responsible Approach to AI By Rebecca Jones Overcoming skepticism and building customer trust 12 THE CHANNEL MANAGER’S PLAYBOOK
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For example, implementing AI tools to streamline processes such as data entry and analysis is a beneficial use case for the technology. Automating these processes saves team members time and enables them to allocate bandwidth strategically on work that supports customers, benefiting both the customer and the company. Additionally, it’s important to establish clear benchmarks for success to leverage AI solutions impactfully. Channel partners can guide this process by defining measurable objectives that move the needle for the business and demonstrate effective use of the investment required to adopt and maintain the technology. It’s also recommend relying on legal counsel to ensure the company’s AI usage aligns seamlessly with its values, industry regulations and emerging guidelines. The Role of Data In the intricate landscape of AI implementation, data is a critical factor for success, underscoring the integrity of AI frameworks. Effective AI solutions rely heavily on robust and representative data sets. Channel partners, serving as guides and strategic allies, play a pivotal part in ensuring that the data chosen for AI applications is comprehensive and inclusive. One challenge businesses face in developing AI solutions is determining what data sets will enable the AI system to work effectively. Greater data quality and diversity directly result in a more accurate and reliable AI solution. With the support of appropriate and comprehensive data sets, an AI tool can be directed through its machine learning processes, resulting in unbiased and precise intelligence generation. Foster Transparency Building and maintaining customer trust and a brand’s credibility is a fundamental and critical element of AI implementation. Transparent communication about AI use cases fosters openness and understanding while empowering modern organizations to leverage advanced technology to drive business results. Businesses position AI as a valuable tool rather than a mysterious force by articulating the specific ways in which AI enhances processes and benefits customers. It’s also important to set customer expectations by educating them about how AI works and what it can and cannot do. Communication channels such as FAQs, webinars or blog posts can help businesses disclose their AI applications to customers effectively and clearly. This clarity is instrumental in fostering positive customer relationships and establishing vendors as reliable and responsible AI stewards. Ongoing Evaluation & Continued Research Responsibly deploying AI extends far beyond initial implementation – it’s an ongoing process. Solution providers are pivotal in evaluating AI tools and ensuring their continued effectiveness. Continuous testing requires organizations to adopt proactive testing methodologies that promptly identify and address issues before they affect customers. Additionally, continual monitoring serves as a safeguard, helping detect biases and ensuring that an organization’s use of AI remains aligned with evolving business needs. Regular checkins with customers are equally essential to confirm that the tools don’t disrupt or create confusion for end users. It’s also necessary for businesses to stay informed about the latest trends and advancements in AI. Organizations must actively seek information about emerging AI use cases and potential risks, which channel partners can help with. Proactive measures, such as subscribing to industry news sources and tracking issues other companies experience, contribute significantly to effective risk management. Legal counsel is also a great resource to support this process. The responsible integration of AI requires commitment, adaptability and a community with a shared vision for a future where technology aligns seamlessly with societal values. AI is a powerful tool with the potential to revolutionize business operations and elevate user experiences. An ethical and legally informed approach to AI secures today’s success and paves the way for a responsible and sustainable AI roadmap that prioritizes trust. o Rebecca Jones is the general manager of Mosaicx, a leading provider of customer service AI and cloudbased technology solutions for enterprise companies and institutions. Rebecca joined the West Technology Group, owner of Mosaicx, in January 2021, after a 25+ year career focused on growing businesses, people and client success. Willingness to trust and accept AI systems Source: KPMG By 2030, how do you expect your organization’s office space to change? Source: 8x8 Future of Work: 2030 Vision Report What do you believe the future of work will predominantly be? Source: 8x8 Future of Work: 2030 Vision Report By 2030 which of the following do you think will most closely reflect your organization’s average full-time em Source: 8x8 Future of Work: 2030 Vision Report Remote/hybrid workers’ reactions to a full transition back to the office How would you feel if your company made a shift to full-time office-based work? Please select all that apply. (% of US working adults that work remote or hybrid) ‘How willing are you to trust AI [specific application]?’ [8 items] % Unwilling to trust % Ambivalent % Willing to trust % Low acceptance % Unwilling = ‘Somewhat unwilling’, ‘Unwilling’, or Completely unwilling’ % Willing = ‘Somewhat willing’, ‘Willing’, or Completely willing’ % Ambivalent = ‘Neither willing nor unwilling’ % Low acceptance = ‘Not at all’ or ‘Slightly’ % High acceptance = ‘Highly’, or Completely’ % Moderate acceptance = ‘Moderately’ % Moderate % High acceptance Trust Acceptance ‘To what extent do you accept the use of AI [specific application]?’ [3 items] 29 29 38 33 32 39 Overall survey IT leaders CX le Reduced office space, used primarily as hybrid work deskshare Reduced office space, used primarily for client/team meetings No change, used as a 9-to-5 workplace By 2030, my organization could operate without a physical office By 2030, most organizations could operate without a physical office 42% 43% 41% 18% 19% 17% 22% 13% 31% 10% 15% 5% 8% 10% 6% Overall survey IT leaders CX leaders Hybrid Work-from-anywhere Remote In-person/office 60% 56% 63% 22% 23% 22% 11% 15% 7% 7% 6% 8% Overall survey IT leaders C Daily flexible/asynchronous Weekly flexible/asynchronous Task oriented Company schedule/traditional 9-to-5 38% 40% 38% 27% 30% 24% 9% 8% 9% 26% 21% 31% 14 THE CHANNEL MANAGER’S PLAYBOOK
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18 THE CHANNEL MANAGER’S PLAYBOOK Meeting Intelligence Artificial Intelligence (AI) is quickly becoming a mainstay in our everyday lives. Whether it be text-to-image generators including DALL-E or language processing tools such as ChatGPT, sophisticated AI tools are revolutionizing the way we work. That’s especially true in the hybrid workplace, where organizations are searching for new ways to bridge the gap between distributed employees. Given this challenge, it’s no wonder that video conferencing has emerged as AI’s next step in revolutionizing how we live and work. In turn, it’s worth exploring AI’s role in video conferencing and how its latest innovations are improving the meeting experience. It should come as no surprise that demand for video conferencing apps has grown exponentially since the start of the pandemic in spring 2020. Without question, virtual meetings are the bedrock of hybrid work, enabling organizations to seamlessly connect and collaborate across a distributed workforce. This uptick in demand runs parallel with the emergence of several new competitors in the video conferencing market. In turn, vendors have been compelled to improve their services by releasing feature-rich additions to their existing applications. How AI can uplift the video conferencing experience By Robyn Rawlings
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20 THE CHANNEL MANAGER’S PLAYBOOK AI technologies also have advanced in leaps and bounds during the same period. In fact, reports show that AI adoption is 2.5 times greater now than it was in 2017. The market is projected to skyrocket twentyfold by 2030 to nearly $2 trillion, according to research from Next Move Strategy Consulting. Now, the two worlds are converging. Leading platforms are weaving AI capabilities into their video conferencing tools to enhance the meeting experience for maximum productivity and performance. Gone are the days when organizing, running and managing your virtual meetings was a clunky, cumbersome endeavor. Thanks to AI’s advantages, video conferencing platforms are empowering organizations to kick up their internal and external meetings several notches. Here are four of the most impactful ways AI-driven solutions can improve the meeting experience. 1. Natural Language Processing (NLP) Natural language processing is a branch of AI that enables computers to understand text and spoken words in the same way a real person can. In other words, it’s about giving AI programs the power of conversational intelligence. Modern video conferencing tools are leveraging NLP across a host of innovative capabilities, including: • Voice-to-text transcription: Using NLP, an AI-enabled platform can recognize and process complete sentences as they’re spoken during the meeting. This allows the system to automatically capture meeting notes, summarize conversations, and generate searchable transcripts. When machine learning tools are incorporated, video conferencing platforms can even identify who is speaking during the meeting. • Real-time translation: Global enterprises may be holding internal or external meetings that stretch beyond borders and include attendees who speak different languages. With AI, the meeting software can give everyone an equitable experience by automatically translating live audio into the language of any user’s choice. • Closed captions: Likewise, NLP capabilities can analyze audio and generate closed captions to make the meeting experience more inclusive for all participants. • Noise removal: From cars and pets to housemates and more, there’s no telling what sounds might suddenly disrupt and derail a meeting. Machine learning can be used to train AI to identify and remove those noises before they’re picked up. For hybrid teams, this is especially useful, as automatic background noise removal and acoustic fencing filters out distractions in different locations to keep meetings running smoothly. • Sentiment analysis: Consider the customer experience use case for video conferencing: contact center agents working on resolutions in real time. One major benefit for agents is AI’s ability to understand sentiment and tone during a conversation. Programs can analyze a speaker’s voice to uncover pain points and frustrations during the interaction. This allows managers to evaluate both customer experience and agent performance for future improvements. Rank the following communication tools that you expect your organization to use in the year 2030. (1 most prevalent to 7 least prevalent) Rank Video Meetings Messaging Email Virtual Reality In-person Meeting Softphone Desk Phone 1 21% 13% 18% 22% 14% 7% 6% 2 26% 17% 16% 11% 12% 9% 9% 3 15% 23% 16% 12% 15% 12% 8% 4 13% 15% 18% 12% 13% 16% 13% 5 10% 15% 13% 11% 15% 21% 15% 6 9% 8% 11% 10% 15% 23% 24% 7 6% 9% 10% 22% 16% 12% 26% Mean 3.15 3.61 3.63 3.98 4.14 4.51 4.98 Source: 8x8 Future of Work Report
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22 THE CHANNEL MANAGER’S PLAYBOOK 2. Conversational AI Although they’re also built on NLP, conversational AI programs stand on their own. In simple terms, conversational AI refers to platforms that can chat and interact with users. That said, their capabilities stretch far beyond simple backand-forth communication. For example, voice-based virtual assistants can be used to streamline meeting management. Users can simply speak to their endpoints and apps to kickstart a meeting, turn on their camera, capture important items and control the experience from start to finish. Chatbots can also be asked to schedule follow-up meetings with attendees, assign action items, send automated reminders, and more. 3. Computer Vision (CV) According to Aragon Research, computer vision will have the biggest impact on intelligent video conferencing in the future. This type of AI uses algorithms to understand, analyze and reconstruct visual inputs from image or video data. This has several innovative use cases for meetings: • Optimized framing: CV can help participants stay in their cameras’ frame when presenting to colleagues and customers. By automatically tracking the speaker’s movements, the system keeps you centered in your video to eliminate unwanted distractions. In addition, multiple cameras in a room can now work together by switching cameras views to focus on the active speaker. The result? A cinematic video experience that follows the conversation from one speaker to the next. • Adaptive tracking: For meetings with multiple speakers, CV programs can ensure everyone is equally represented on screen. During webinars, cameras can adaptively track speakers as they move across the room or auditorium stage, ensuring that they’re always in everyone’s view. • Immersive presentations: Virtual presentations are challenging in hybrid settings. CV allows presenters to deliver more immersive content by automatically screen sharing in front of presentation materials. • Meeting zones: AI will soon use machine learning to automatically learn and frame your space based on predefined boundaries. This will ensure that distraction from passers-by are removed from the meeting in glass-walled rooms or open space. 4. Productivity Analytics People spend a lot of time in meetings these days. So, it’s important for organizations to ensure that time is well spent on valueadded activities and core business processes. Fortunately, AI-powered solutions are helping businesses capture meeting data and leverage it to their advantage. AI enhances data collection and offers users the power to evaluate key metrics. For example, platforms can record time spent on certain agenda items and activities, back-to-back meetings, and other real-time insights that can be delivered directly to employees to help improve their productivity. In truth, we are only scratching the surface when it comes to what AI can bring to the table. But, with the video conferencing market expected to double by 2030, it’s safe to say that AI-powered meetings will be a major asset for years to come. o Robyn Rawlings is director of campaigns & content marketing for Webex by Cisco. Source: Enterprise Management Associates (EMA) Biggest challenges to using the internet for primary WAN connectivity Artificial intelligence (AI) market size worldwide in 2021 with forecast until 2030 (in million U.S. dollars) Source: Next Move Strategy Consulting; Statista 250,000 500,000 750,000 1,000,000 1,250,000 1,500,000 1,750,000 2,000,000 2,250,000 0 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 Security risk Complexity of managing multiple ISP relationships (procuring, managing connectivity Lack of effective monitoring/visibility Overall application performance Instability across multipe internet service providers Skills gaps Inconsistent global performance across geographies (i.e., middle mile) Hardware complexity Lack of traditional service-level agreements None - we perceive no significant challenges 25.9% 19.2% 18.5% 17.3% 17.3% 16.3% 14.7% 13.1% 6.1%
It’s more than likely a good chunk of your customers and prospects currently are considering how they and their competitors can apply AI capabilities to reduce costs, create efficiencies and drive improved business outcomes. It’s also likely that they still have lots to figure out. Maybe the same can be said about many channel partners selling communications and network services. After all, the eventual adoption of AI technology might be a no-brainer for most companies – and AI could prove as transformational to healthcare, manufacturing, logistics, supply chain management, service operations, etc., as electricity was in the first part of the 20th Century. But how and where to initially apply AI, as well as where to find the greatest returns are questions most businesses still struggle with. To help partners help businesses find those places when it comes to opportunities to upgrade from a simple IVR to a conversational AI-enabled intelligent virtual agent (IVA), Mosaicx recently introduced a co-selling program called Mosaicx Agent. Through the program, Mosaicx’s sales team collaborates with agents that have identified companies struggling to understand their AI options and together present the best Mosaicx conversational AI solution to fit the customer’s needs. “We know a lot of our agent partners are out in the market space and having some interesting conversations with their prospects around the use of conversational AI,” said Rebecca Jones, general manager of Mosaicx. “We want to give them a spot to land that deal and, in partnership, bring that opportunity in.” In other words, Jones continued, “We’ve got an intake and investigative process.” In short, Mosaicx’s sales team empowers agents with the resources they need to effectively convey the value of AI in enhancing customer experience and achieving long-term success – while reinforcing their role as a trusted advisor on a key technology. The prospect, meanwhile, gets help identifying the specific AI solutions that can decrease operational expenses and/or improve customer experience. “We’ll evaluate the opportunity and make sure that it makes sense. And then reach out and do the collaborative sell,” said Jones. In some cases, once the process moves along, secondary deals emerge providing agents with a land-and-expand opportunity. Jones, for example, pointed to a growing trend in which HR directors within larger firms look to deploy tools such as chat bots, IVAs and generative AI for internal communications and to improve employee experience. Of course, sales conversations in this space still tend to start with operational and customer experience executives, but HR departments, along with IT departments, have been faced with abnormally high turnover rates, said Jones, and in turn are overwhelmed with the onboarding process and a firehouse of support calls regarding repeated questions about benefits, problems with passwords, or other mundane items covered in the employee handbook. “The sell motion could start with operations or a customer experience person externally but then could quickly shift to an internal system by simply adding on modules,” said Jones. Once a deal closes, Mosaicx continues to partner with agents and their prospects to adapt deployments to market changes and optimize return on AI investments. “We’ll handle all of the implementation components, make sure we’re optimizing for the client as the deployment process goes through and the customer is realizing the full value of their investment,” said Jones. The lowest hanging fruit for the program, as well as for Mosaicx’s IVA and AI solutions are mid-market to By Martin Vilaboy Mosaicx’s co-sales program provides agents with an entry into AI CONVERSATIONAL STARTERS 24 THE CHANNEL MANAGER’S PLAYBOOK
smaller enterprises with 100 seats or more that have made little or no investment into customer experience tools such as chatbots, SMS bots and IVR systems. The desired outcome here is typically the cost containment that comes with intelligently automating processes, said Jones, as these companies deal with high levels of employee churn and increasingly demanding customer bases. Larger enterprises that may have some degree of an IVR or IVA system in place tend to be looking to the next level of optimization and cost realization, as well as raising the level of customer and brand experience. “We have offerings on that side that are less about cost containment and more about the flow of the customer experience, the value of how human the interaction is and how easy it is to engage in our solution,” Jones explained. Ideal partners for the program include agents with an understanding of the applicable technology and technical selling that can speak to C-level executives and rather quickly comprehend the business strategies and goals of the varied members of a buying circle. “Deals can be a little bit complex,” said Jones. “We’re finding it’s not usually one person that we’re selling to inside of an organization.” Few areas of technology are currently garnering more attention and investment than conversation AI. The Mosaicx collaborative selling Agent program allows partners to gain a foothold as trusted advisors within what is arguably the most transformational technology since at least the switch from analog to digital. o Source: Vanson Bourne, WEBCON Has your organization increased, or does it plan to increase, its use of the internet as a primary option for connecting sites to your WAN? Source: Enterprise Management Associates (EMA) Which of the following technology categories has your organization already invested in? Source: Info-Tech Research Group Which of those same technologies does your organization plan to invest in by the end of 2023 We rely on consultant partners or system integrators to develop our solutions Yes, we have implemented this Yes, we are amid this change Yes, we are planning to do this No 17% 0 5 10 15 20 26.2% 9.6% 1.3% 62.9% 82% 64% 54% 44% 36% 36% 58% 44% 41% 41% 39% 31% Cloud Cumputing Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) Next-Gen Cybersecurity Workforce Management Solutions Data Lake/Lakehouse Artificial Intelligence (AI) or Machine Learning Cloud Computing Artificial Intelligence (AI) or Machine Learning Data Lake/Lakehouse Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) Next-Gen Cybersecurity No-Code/Low-Code Platforms 25 THE CHANNEL MANAGER’S PLAYBOOK
ICYMI Unlike the businessto-consumer (B2C) space, enterprise deployment of AI brings significant risks that need to be weighed against potential rewards prior to investment, warn analysts at ABI Research. The risks have led to bans in some cases on third-party, “black box” generative AI services such as ChatGPT. “While generative AI enterprise use cases continue to emerge, delivering business value cannot rely on large, generalized models as they are slow, insecure, expensive, not adapted for the tasks they service, and subject to dangerous hallucinations,” said the research firm. Rather, smaller, contextualized models fine-tuned on specific datasets will offer a much greater ROI, ABI researchers continued. As examples, they point to an investment firm on Wall Street looking to develop an AI-based tool to analyze the stock market and inform users of key trends or a utility provider wanting a generative AI model that can predict future energy demands. Of course, a lack of smaller, contextualized models is not the only challenge for enterprise generative AI adoption. ABI pointed to other significant barriers that exist, including but not limited to a skills gap, data privacy, intellectual property protection, fear of vendor lock-in, trustworthiness and operational change. Holding Back Generative AI in the Enterprise Source: 451 Alliance: S&P Global Market Intelligence Generative AI Vertical Creation World Markets: 2023 to 2030 Source: ABI Research Which of the following IT processes at your organization would benefit the most from automation technology? Increased productivity Increased efficiency Faster response times Better servicing of IT customers Increased scalability Increased agiliy and responsisveness Improved compliance and governance Reduced manual effor and human error Consistency/standardized process 40% 39% 34% 31% 29% 27% 24% 23% 21% 160 140 120 100 80 60 2023 2030 40 20 0 Financial Services Law Manufacturing Automotive Education US$ Billions Marketing Advertising & Creative Entertainment & Multi-media Healthcare Energy, Utilities, and Mining Retail & E-commerce Telecoms Pharmaceuticals Cloud database platform company Couchbase Inc. recently unveiled its AI Accelerate Partner Program designed to make it easier for customers to build AI-powered applications with Couchbase Capella databases-as-aservice and support integrations with the broader AI and data ecosystem. According to the company, the program provides organizations with resources to integrate their platforms and tools with the Capella, reducing friction for customers that build and deploy models for AI-driven applications. The AI Accelerate Program is part of Couchbase PartnerEngage, with benefits’ that span go-to-market, technical and enablement categories, including eligibility for early access to beta programs and to the Couchbase AI roadmap; customized, hands-on AI-focused workshops; accelerated path to integration with Couchbase Capella, including eligibility for extended Capella trials; access to the Couchbase PartnerEngage portal; and marketing co-investments. “In order to make it easier for customers to build applications that are powered by AI on Capella, we are partnering, building integrations and aligning with others in the ecosystem,” said Matt McDonough, senior vice president of business development and strategy at Couchbase. “The new Accelerate AI Partner Program will ensure that our cloud database platform is well positioned to be a key part of the rapidly emerging AI landscape.” Couchbase announced that MindsDB and Dataworkz are the first companies to join the program. Couchbase Launches AI Accelerate Partner Program 26 THE CHANNEL MANAGER’S PLAYBOOK
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ICYMI Microsoft is rolling out new enhancements for its AI-driven products and introducing new offers, including Copilot Pro and the expansion of Copilot for Microsoft 365 to a broader range of customers. The company also announced that it is extending its Copilot for Microsoft 365 offering, previously available primarily for large enterprises, to businesses of all sizes. This expansion includes Microsoft 365 Business Premium and Business Standard, with options for small businesses to purchase between one and 299 seats. The update removes the 300-seat purchase minimum for commercial plans and makes Copilot accessible for Office 365 E3 and E5 customers. Copilot for Microsoft 365 integrates AI capabilities across a user’s data environment, including emails, meetings, documents and web content. It offers features such as generating status updates from daily interactions and streamlining tasks in Microsoft Teams and other Microsoft applications. Microsoft Expands Copilot Access to SMBs While 2023 represented a down year for the endpoint and device market, a rebound could be on the horizon, argue executives at TD SYNNEX. In the coming year, we’re likely to see an emergence of AI PCs, where AI and ML capabilities are built directly into the processor for faster speeds and the smartest computing we’ve ever had available at the consumer level. The launch of AI PCs could represent the much-needed reboot that the device market needs, said TD SYNNEX in its recent 2024 tech predictions. “As we see AI at the desktop, that may open up more opportunities around AI devices, better networking and more innovation in mobility,” executive vice president of sales at TD SYNNEX. It could also open up monetization opportunities for the channel. “The introduction of AI is likely to accelerate the growth of hyperscaler services, the launch of AI PCs, and significantly increase service opportunities for partners in managed services, adoption and implementation,” said Sergio Farache, TD SYNNEX chief strategy officer. AI Could Bring Endpoint Device Market Rebound Partners offering AI/ML solutions have increased 625 percent in just one year, according to a new study from TD SYNNEX, from 4 percent in 2022 to 29 percent in 2023. Future plans to invest in AI/ML are also growing exponentially. In 2022, 14 percent of partners planned to offer AI/ML by 2025, with that number jumping to 34 percent in 2023. The growth is supported by findings on the demand side, as well. TD SYNNEX cited research from S&P Global Market Intelligence showing nearly 70 percent of responding large businesses have at least one AI project in production. However, 31 percent reported that those projects were still in pilot or proof-of-concept stage, and only 28 percent said they’ve reached enterprise scale with an AI project. The global survey gathered responses from more than 550 technology resellers, revealing that these businesses are recalibrating their priorities and services in response to the evolving landscape, said the report. “The business partner ecosystem is a bellwether for the global technology landscape,” said Rich Hume, CEO at TD SYNNEX. “It’s encouraging to see that our channel partners are demonstrating flexibility in their business models by focusing on emerging technologies and responding to changing customer demands.” Study Shows Surge in AI Interest Among Resellers Technology Solutions Resellers Plan to Offer Within 24 Months Security 46% Networking 46% Data analytics 35% AI/ML 34% Hybrid cloud 34% Servers and storage 34% Automation 33% Collaboration 29% Source: TD SYNNEX 28 THE CHANNEL MANAGER’S PLAYBOOK
ICYMI Technology solutions distributor Clarus Communications has launched “Charlie,” a copyrighted AI chatbot built on the Falcon AI Large Language Model and designed exclusively for technology distribution. The AI chatbot aims to transform how agents interact with their customers, boosting productivity and service delivery, said the company. “Our mission at Clarus has always been to empower our agents to serve their customers better,” said Chris Torbit, managing partner at Clarus Communications. “With Charlie, we’re taking a giant leap in that direction. This technology not only demonstrates our un inching commitment to our agents but also stands as a testament to our dedication toward agents and their customers’ success.” Built with the agent partner in mind, Charlie reportedly can perform an array of instant tasks including serviceability checks, channel manager lookups, quoting, order tracking, commission rate and sales performance incentive fund (SPIF) lookups, and more. Agents now can manage these tasks seamlessly and instantly, giving them more time to focus on customer interactions and service delivery. If an agent uses Clarus’s proprietary inventory management product for back-office support, the agent can place Charlie into the client’s environment, helping the agent provide additional value to the customer and relieve competitive pressure. Charlie would validate the client and provide speci c inventory data including location information, circuit IDs, supplier customer service information and authorized users, as an example. “This is invaluable information when there is an outage, and up-to-date and instant data is needed to work on a service issue,” said Clarus executives. A highlight of the Charlie AI chatbot is its ability to integrate with Salesforce, providing agents with unlimited scalability options. This integration enables agents to leverage Charlie to efficiently manage customer data and help their internal and external stakeholders nd data quickly and drive data-driven decisions. Exclusive to Clarus agents, Charlie is available on multiple platforms, including Microsoft Teams, SMS, or a web chat interface. Clarus Unveils AI Chatbot for the Channel 30 THE CHANNEL MANAGER’S PLAYBOOK
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