Accomplished customer experience leader with track record of driving industry-best gross retention rates joins leading digital conversations company

LivePerson, the enterprise leader in digital customer conversations, today announced the appointment of Chief Customer Officer Kevin Meeks. An established customer experience leader with a track record of success driving revenue and improvements in gross retention, Meeks will be the company's first Chief Customer Officer, responsible for helping customer brands fully realize the value of their investments in LivePerson's award-winning platform for AI-empowered digital customer conversations.

Over the past two decades, Meeks has led winning customer-centric organizations at high-growth companies, including building and scaling both pre-sales and customer success teams. Most recently, he served as Senior Vice President, Customer Success at VMware, where he led a 1,400-person global success organization. During Meek's tenure, VMware achieved annual recurring revenue of over $4 billion and double digit improvement in gross retention rates.

Prior to VMware, Meeks led customer success, experience, and renewals organizations in roles including Vice President, Customer Success at DocuSign, Chief Customer Officer at Apptio, and Senior Vice President, Global Customer Success and Renewals at Splunk, where he drove double-digit improvement in both net and gross retention rates. He has also served as a consultant to chief customer officers and leadership teams at the world's top enterprises — working hand-in-hand with them to develop highly effective customer experience roadmaps — including as a member of the Strategic Advisory Board at Gainsight, the world's leading customer success platform.

"Kevin is a tried-and-true leader with a proven track record helping customers get the most out of their investments in enterprise software. I can think of no better fit for LivePerson's first-ever Chief Customer Officer role, and am confident that with his guidance, we will expedite success for both our customers and the teams that support them," said John Sabino, CEO of LivePerson. "On a personal note, this marks the third time I've worked with Kevin, and I've experienced firsthand his expertise and commitment to adding value to every touchpoint with  customers. It's a true pleasure to welcome him to LivePerson's team of experts."

"Having admired LivePerson's innovation leading an entire industry forward, I'm excited to join the company at this pivotal time in its history, and to team up again with John as he leads us to a new period of high performance and growth." said Meeks. "As a customer success leader, I'm particularly impressed by the caliber of LivePerson's enterprise customers — and I'm especially looking forward to spending time in the field with them."

StreamAlive empowers webinar, meeting, training and other presenters using Zoom with a fun and frictionless way to acknowledge and engage with all attendees via visual interactions

Enterprises doing "good, but not great" when it comes to implementing digital trust, according to annual State of Digital Trust survey

DigiCert, Inc., a leading global provider of digital trust, today released its 2024 State of Digital Trust Survey that checks in on how enterprises around the world are managing digital trust in their organizations. While digital trust overwhelmingly remains a critical focus for all enterprises, the latest report shines a light on the growing divide between the 'leaders' -- those who are getting it right, and the 'laggards' -- those who are struggling.

The difference between leaders and laggards revealed some clues and potential best practices when it comes to digital trust. The top 33% digital 'trust leaders' enjoyed higher revenue, better digital innovation and higher employee productivity. They could respond more effectively to outages and incidents, were generally better prepared for Post Quantum Cryptography and were more readily taking advantage of the benefits of the IoT. Meanwhile, the bottom 33% 'laggards' performed comparatively poorly in all those categories and found it harder to reap the benefits of digital innovation. In addition, the leaders were more likely to centrally manage their certificates, more likely to employ email authentication and encryption (S/MIME) technology, and generally employed more mature practices in digital trust management.

The 2024 survey included a series of questions to determine how well (or poorly) each respondent was doing across a wide range of digital trust metrics. After the scores were totaled, the respondents were split into three groups: leaders, laggards, and those in the middle. Comparing the results between leaders, laggards, and those in the middle, notable differences emerged:

Leaders exhibit far fewer issues on core enterprise systems (no system outages, few data breaches, and no compliance or legal issues) and experienced no IoT compliance issues, whereas half (50%) of the laggards did so. Leaders also have significantly fewer issues due to software trust mishaps--for example, none of the leaders experienced compliance issues or software supply chain compromises, compared to 23% and 77% of the laggards, respectively.

"As the threat landscape continues to expand, so does the gap between organizations who are leading the way in digital trust and those who are falling behind," said Jason Sabin, CTO at DigiCert. "Those who fall within the 'leaders' group and those who are a 'laggard' are well aware of who they are. The danger, however, is those organizations who fall in the middle and are not taking action due to a false sense of security."

"For organizations to be champions of digital trust, they must understand and actively implement the structure, processes, and activities that make it possible," said Jennifer Glenn, Research Director, Security and Trust Group, IDC. "This includes keeping up with changes to industry standards, maintaining compliance with regulatory requirements in each geography, managing the life cycle of digital trust technologies, and extending trust into digital ecosystems. Companies that focus their efforts on digital trust — and make it a strategic imperative for the business  the benefits are notable, including reliable uptime, reduced risk of data compromise, and improved user trust."

Third annual “State of Business Communication” report illuminates how businesses can tangibly harness AI to enhance communication, efficiency, and performance

Grammarly, the company helping over 30 million people and 70,000 teams work smarter and faster wherever they write, today announced its third annual “State of Business Communication: AI’s Potential to Turn Overload Into Impact” report, uncovering the potential of generative AI to save a staggering $1.6 trillion in U.S. communication productivity each year. In partnership with The Harris Poll, the study exposes how generative AI brings both new solutions and challenges to the problem of poor communication that plagues U.S. businesses.

New AI gaps and risks pose serious threats to businesses, jeopardizing their ability to reap the benefits of the technology. The data shows that leaders and workers have been communicating more (78%) and in more channels (73%) this past year, and it’s causing more stress than ever, particularly among workers (+16% over last year). At the same time, both groups are seeing early benefits from using generative AI, including saving a day a workweek—which adds up to around $16,455 per worker per year. But even though it’s helping, most workers still wish their companies were more open to implementing AI (58%) and don’t know how to use AI well (52%).

“Companies not using generative AI for communication are already way behind, and those that are, are far from realizing its full potential,” said Matt Rosenberg, Grammarly Chief Revenue Officer and Head of Grammarly Business. “The data is clear that generative AI offers monumental benefits, but can also add more distractions at a time when teams need ways to communicate better, not add more to the mix. Our report should be a wake-up call for businesses to stop with the piecemeal approaches, get aligned with their employees, and hone a clear strategy that empowers their entire workforce with AI if they are to realize its impact.”

The study of U.S. business leaders and knowledge workers underscores the changing nature of workplace communication and the ways that generative AI is impacting how we work and interact. Additional findings include:

• Workers spend nearly half of their workweek on writing tasks (19.08 hours), and time spent reviewing and editing especially increased (+11% year-over-year)
• 92% of leaders and 84% of workers who use generative AI do so at least weekly, and it’s already delivering business results for leaders like increased efficiency (52%), higher productivity (50%), saved costs (38%), and higher customer engagement (37%)
• Workers using generative AI say that it makes them better at their job (77%) and has transformed how they communicate at work (71%), and that they ultimately believe AI will enhance their work, not replace them (66%)

Leaders, your communication problem is worse than you think: There’s a 24% gap between workers’ (63%) and leaders’ (87%) perceived effectiveness of their organization’s overall communication. Fewer workers this year also say their senior leadership communicates effectively (64%, down 8%)—compared to 90% of leaders who say the same. With leaders reporting that communication directly drives business outcomes like productivity (64%), customer satisfaction (51%), and brand reputation (45%), it’s time for a reality check to tackle the problem.

Focus on better, not more, to address communications overload: Most leaders and workers find constant work notifications challenging (56%), struggle to manage all of the communications they receive (54%), and spend too much time trying to get messages across in the right way (55%). Despite the AI deluge, more workers this year also wish they had better tools to help them be more effective (66%, vs. 58% last year). Facing an overwhelming surge of communication in more places, teams need ways to improve the quality of communication, not simply pile on more.

Chart a clear course to close AI gaps and move past the hype: Despite extensive generative AI use and promising early benefits, poor communication remains a pervasive problem, and leaders and workers are at odds with each other in their use of AI. 89% of leaders report using generative AI for professional purposes, but only 53% of workers say the same—a symptom of the lack of a cohesive AI approach. While 82% of leaders are planning investments in AI, those investments will go to waste if not paired with a company-wide AI strategy that focuses on literacy, education, and training.

For more findings and insights on the state of workplace communication and the role of generative AI in reshaping it—including breakdowns by demographic, function (customer support, marketing/sales, HR), and more—download the full Grammarly report: “State of Business Communication: AI’s Potential to Turn Overload Into Impact.”

Additional resources:

• Read our blog post: The 2024 State of Business Communication Report: What You Need to Know
• Join the webinar today, Wednesday, Feb. 21, at 10 a.m. PT/1 p.m. ET for a deep dive into the research findings
• Learn more about Grammarly and how its generative AI features change how businesses run

Methodology

This study was conducted by The Harris Poll on behalf of Grammarly from September 29, 2023, to October 3, 2023, among 1,002 knowledge workers and 253 business leaders. It also references findings from a similar study conducted from October 14 to 31, 2022, among 1,001 knowledge workers and 251 business leaders, as well as a prior study fielded from October 1 to 12, 2021, among 1,001 knowledge workers and 251 business leaders. This online survey is not based on a probability sample, and therefore, no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated.

“Gen AI” or “generative AI” refers to artificial intelligence capable of generating text and other types of content.

Year-over-year percentage changes and percentage gaps between groups should be interpreted as percent point changes and are statistically significant.

Tagado, the AI analytics provider of high-res CX data intelligence, has announced the launch of its new feedback trends monitor, that automatically allows CX, service and product teams to segment feedback into issues so evolving trends can be instantly prioritized, assigned, resolved and monitored over time.

Traditional planning and task management solutions used by CX, service and product professionals are disconnected from direct customer feedback, but Tagado's new monitor bridges this gap by bringing customer insights directly to the forefront of CX and product management. It features intelligent recognition of similarities in feedback, allowing issues to evolve dynamically. Supported by metadata, this tool pinpoints issues that are not only highly relevant but also directly tied to ROI, and can be integrated into the user's existing task management software.

"Tagado's new monitor empowers CX, product and service teams to continuously use customer feedback to drive product and customer experience decision-making," says Gilad Gans, Active Chairman at Tagado. "This underlines how the Tagado platform helps customer-obsessed organizations adopt data-driven practices that put customer feedback in the center."

Tagado's new monitor also features an Alerts function, notifying users of changes within CX data to highlight emerging trends as they happen. Tagado's Alerts can be customized to identify changes in CX data, based on specific topics, metadata (e.g. UK customers only) or thresholds (e.g. hourly changes over 300%).

While the new monitor allows users to actively define the issues they want to follow, Alerts examines the full set of CX data to notify users of trends occurring in real-time. This means for the first time support and customer success teams can monitor the issues they have predefined while also being alerted to anomalies occurring in real-time within the data so they can see trends emerge as they happen.

StructuredWeb, a provider of the leading enterprise through-channel marketing automation (TCMA) platform, is proud to celebrate its 25th anniversary. This milestone marks a quarter century of unparalleled innovation, during which StructuredWeb has been at the forefront of developing cutting-edge technologies to empower brands and their channel partners.

Since 1999, StructuredWeb has been dedicated to transforming the channel marketing landscape. The company quickly distinguished itself as a pioneer in the transformation of channel marketing through TCMA. From content syndication to personalized video, StructuredWeb’s novel approach has become the standard for efficient and effective marketing through distributors, resellers, and partners.

StructuredWeb's commitment to innovation did not stop there. Recognizing the potential of artificial intelligence early on, the company became the first in channel marketing to leverage Generative AI to enhance marketing strategies, campaign creation, and analytics. By introducing ChannelGPT in 2023, StructuredWeb offers its clients not just tools, but strategic advantages in increasingly competitive markets.

"Over the past 25 years, StructuredWeb has consistently pushed the boundaries of what's possible in channel marketing," said Daniel Nissan, founder & CEO of StructuredWeb. "Our dedication to innovation and our customers' success has been the driving force behind our achievements. As we celebrate this significant milestone, we also look forward to the future, where we will continue to lead the way in utilizing technology to solve complex channel marketing challenges."

StructuredWeb's journey has been characterized by continuous growth and evolution. From its early days as a visionary startup to its current status as a global leader in AI-powered TCMA software, the company has remained steadfast in its mission to deliver exceptional value and service to its clients. Today, StructuredWeb's platform is trusted by some of the world's leading brands across various industries, helping them to achieve their marketing goals with efficiency and scalability.

“I am filled with immense gratitude towards our talented team. Each milestone we've achieved and every innovation we've introduced has been made possible because of the hard work and dedication of our employees,” added Nissan. “As we celebrate this significant anniversary, I want to extend my deepest thanks to every member of the StructuredWeb family. Their contributions have been instrumental in our success, and I am excited to see where our collective creativity and innovation will take us in the years to come.

As StructuredWeb celebrates this landmark anniversary, it also reaffirms its commitment to driving the future of channel marketing. With ongoing investments in research and development, the company is poised to introduce even more innovative solutions that anticipate and meet the evolving needs of marketers worldwide.

Company Touts Recent New Customer Wins, Including Bombas and Wendy’s

Braze, the leading customer engagement platform that empowers brands to Be Absolutely Engaging™, today announced strategic leadership appointments and new customer wins on the heels of a significant financial milestone. As previously announced, the company recently passed $500 million of Committed Annual Recurring Revenue (CARR), demonstrating the continued demand for Braze as brands recognize the critical role of customer engagement in driving growth, loyalty, and retention–particularly in a complex and challenging macroeconomic landscape.

“There’s never been a better time to be a better marketer,” said Bill Magnuson, cofounder and CEO of Braze. “In today's dynamic market, consumer loyalty is volatile and hinges on a brand's ability to deliver valuable and personalized experiences, both with and alongside their products and services. Brands who prioritize excellence in customer engagement are also building a foundational asset for their businesses–first-party relationships with their customers. Braze empowers them to leverage rich data, advanced machine learning, and sophisticated cross-channel orchestration to advance their customer engagement prowess as they navigate this exciting landscape.”

Customer Expansion, Product Innovation, and Industry Recognition

The need for brands to use customer engagement strategies that harness technology and creativity to create memorable, personalized experiences is greater than ever. More brands around the world are recognizing this need, and as a result Braze has seen steady growth of its diverse customer base globally. The company’s growth and customer expansion are due to the rapid pace of product innovation at Braze which has earned the company top recognition from several industry analysts and peer review sites.

• Over the past year, Braze welcomed impressive new customers across diverse industries, company sizes, and geographies worldwide, including Bombas, Miro, Nestlé Purina US, Papa John’s UK, and Wendy’s.
• Strategic product investments in updates to Sage AI by Braze, a suite of AI capabilities designed to power better, faster, and more effective outcomes from engagement across the user journey. Advancements in Cloud Data Ingestion partnerships, features, and functionality help brands streamline data integration and reduce time to value—and is notably supporting over 2,000 customer integrations ingesting about 400 million rows of customer warehouse data every single day.
• In 2023 Braze was named a Leader in The Forrester Wave™: Cross-Channel Marketing Hubs, Q1 2023, and named a Leader by Gartner® in the 2023 Magic Quadrant™ for Multichannel Marketing Hubs. The company was also recognized in G2’s 2024 Best Software Awards for the second year in a row.

Strengthening the Leadership Bench

As Braze continues to increase its global footprint, the company is strengthening its leadership across departments with promotions and new hires that support growth, innovation, and operational excellence. This includes the promotion of Eric Sanders to SVP, Global Head of Sales. Sanders, who has 20+ years of experience in enterprise SaaS sales, first joined Braze in April 2020 and most recently led the Americas Sales organization, playing a pivotal role in the company's positive trajectory. New leadership additions include:

• Christopher Foss as VP, Financial Planning and Analysis: Foss brings over 20 years of finance and sales experience to Braze, and previously served as the VP, Revenue & Operations at Toast, where he helped to scale and grow their global operations.
• Kelsey Nelson as VP, Product Marketing: Nelson joins Braze from Okta, where she spent the last six years leading Product, Technical, and Solutions Marketing for Okta's Workforce Identity Cloud.
• Rene Lima as Area VP, Sales, LATAM: Lima brings 25+ years of experience in enterprise software sales to Braze, and was most recently the Chief Revenue Officer for Acid Labs. He also previously served as the Head of Sales, VP Latin America at Salesforce Marketing Cloud and Commerce Cloud.
• Shahid Nizami as VP, Sales, APAC: Nizami has two decades of experience working with renowned companies across APAC like Google, Oracle, and HubSpot, and was recently the General Manager and Regional Vice President of Sales, Asia Pacific & Japan at ActiveCampaign.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including, but not limited to, statements regarding anticipated performance of, and benefits from, the Braze platform and products. These forward-looking statements are based on the current assumptions, expectations and beliefs of Braze, and are subject to substantial risks, uncertainties and changes in circumstances that may cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Further information on potential factors that could affect Braze results are included in Braze’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended October 31, 2023, filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on December 7, 2023 and the other public filings of Braze with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The forward-looking statements included in this press release represent the views of Braze only as of the date of this press release, and Braze assumes no obligation, and does not intend to update these forward-looking statements, except as required by law.

Louisnord brings decades of experience in marketing, human resources and change management to build upon Beekeeper's record growth

Beekeeper, the leading app for frontline teams, today announced the appointment of Nancy Louisnord to Chief Marketing Officer (CMO). Louisnord will lead Beekeeper's global marketing strategy, capitalizing on the addition of over 150 new frontline organizations in 2023 and building upon Beekeeper's record-breaking year of growth.

"Beekeeper's focus on connecting frontline workers with what they need to excel is not just noble but essential," said Louisnord. "My background in human resources, service management and digital transformation has shown me how crucial it is to support these often overlooked yet vital workers. I am thrilled to be part of a company that places such a high value on improving the lives and work of frontline workers with a solution that's truly purpose built for their specific needs."

In her role as CMO Louisnord will be responsible for bringing further awareness to Beekeeper's ability to address the growing and costly disconnect between frontline workers and their companies. Leveraging her international experience, particularly in Europe and the United States, Louisnord will spearhead Beekeeper's marketing team as Beekeeper continues to expand its global customer base.

"With an impressive background in the HR and B2B SaaS space, Nancy is uniquely positioned to tackle the specific and nuanced challenges that come with empowering a frontline workforce," said Beekeeper CEO and co-founder Cris Grossmann. "In filling this role, it was critical that we brought a leader onto the team who not only understands the urgency of closing the frontline disconnect, but who is also versed in the needs of our global customer base. I have no doubt that Nancy will help us to continue to set the standard for frontline excellence."

Louisnord brings nearly 25 years of experience fostering transformative growth within the technology sector. Before joining Beekeeper, she served as Global Chief Marketing Officer at Manta, where she played a pivotal role in overhauling marketing strategies, boosting ROI and elevating the brand globally, leading to a successful acquisition. Louisnord has a proven track record of driving successful marketing initiatives in demand generation, channel marketing, product marketing and brand development at the global level.

Evidenced by both Beekeeper's record growth and the findings from Beekeeper's recently released 2024 Frontline Workforce Pulse Report, one of the largest reports of its kind, there is clear need for purpose-built solutions tailored to frontline employees. Louisnord's appointment will help to continue to showcase Beekeeper as the clear leader in frontline employee engagement and a top solution to meet this demand.