Page 226 – SalesTech Star

CallMiner Acquires Conversational AI and Automation Provider VOCALLS

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June 3, 2025

CallMiner Acquires Conversational AI and Automation Provider VOCALLS

Acquisition expands CallMiner’s platform with native voice and text AI virtual agents, empowering organizations with a seamless path to analytics-driven automation

CallMiner, the leading provider of AI-powered conversation intelligence to improve customer experience (CX), announced it has acquired VOCALLS, a leading voice-first conversational AI and automation platform. CallMiner will combine its industry-leading conversation intelligence capabilities with VOCALLS’ voice, chat, social messaging and email AI virtual agents and task automation technology. Together, CallMiner and VOCALLS are transforming contact center efficiency and CX scalability, helping organizations embrace customer service and CX automation, better understand what to automate, and identify areas of opportunity and improvement in automation workflows.

According to Gartner¹, “Multichannel service journeys have become increasingly complex and expensive, leading to a disjointed customer experience and reduced customer retention. Service and support leaders will reexamine omnichannel strategies and leverage advancements in voice-enabled conversational AI to dramatically simplify the service experience.”

Organizations are continuing to automate more of their interactions. In doing this, it is becoming clear that voice remains the preferred channel for resolving customer inquiries and issues. By combining a deep analytical understanding of contact center interactions and voice automation, this strategic acquisition puts CallMiner at the forefront of both the contact center and CX industries. With CallMiner and VOCALLS, organizations gain an end-to-end, automated platform that helps them meet customers on their preferred channels, gather insights from conversations between humans and virtual agents to identify issues and trends, and improve customer outcomes – including those handled through self-service.

VOCALLS’ AI-powered technology is built to simplify customer service, increase efficiency, reduce costs, and deliver resolutions that lead to higher satisfaction. VOCALLS’ virtual agents support both inbound and outbound use cases across voice, chat, social messaging and email, as well as industries including financial services and banking, logistics and ecommerce, telecommunications and utilities, and more. In particular, VOCALLS excels in inbound voice stream acquisition and native outbound dialing capabilities. Beyond automating the interaction, robotic process automation (RPA) takes agentic action by autonomously assigning or completing tasks based on events within an interaction to drive efficiency gains and accelerate action.

“How customers engage with organizations has dramatically changed and we are undoubtedly moving toward an automated-first world, but one thing has remained consistent – voice is still our most natural form of communication and the highest volume channel,” said Jeff Gallino, CEO and founder, CallMiner. “With VOCALLS, we’re building on our mission to not only transform how businesses understand and gain insights from customer conversations, but also how businesses handle and automatically resolve those interactions through efficient and effective conversational AI capabilities. Being able to meet customers on their preferred channel – whether that’s voice or chat – is critically important to delivering positive experiences. We’re thrilled to welcome the VOCALLS team to CallMiner, and look forward to continuing to push the boundaries of conversation intelligence and automation in service of exceptional CX.”

Together, CallMiner and VOCALLS will help organizations take an automation-first approach to CX, including:

– Increased automation and improved outcomes: Analyzing contact center conversations enables organizations to identify issues best suited for automatic resolution. With CallMiner’s advanced analytics capabilities, organizations can understand the effectiveness of virtual agents and create a constant feedback loop to improve performance and automation outcomes.
– Enhanced real-time agent guidance and RPA: Providing virtual interaction context to human agents helps make interactions more effective and efficient. Additionally, RPA capabilities can use insights from contact center interactions to drive action and improve resolution speed through task automation.
– Expanded customer feedback efforts: Automating inbound and outbound interactions increases organizational capacity, making it possible to capitalize and execute on more customer feedback and engagement opportunities across voice, chat and email channels.

“We founded VOCALLS to pioneer voice-first contact center and CX automation,” said Artem Markevich, CEO and founder, VOCALLS. “This is one of the many things that makes the combination of CallMiner and VOCALLS so innovative. Together, we’re poised to create a unique offering that empowers modern enterprises to seamlessly embrace automation, informed by what is actually happening in their contact centers. We’re excited to join CallMiner and get to work on executing our joint vision for the future of CX and customer service – centered around combining the expertise of CallMiner’s analytics and VOCALL’s automation technology.”

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Blue Yonder Launches Supply Chain Compass Report Highlighting Top Strategic Priorities for Supply Chain Leaders

STS News Desk

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June 3, 2025

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Blue Yonder Launches Supply Chain Compass Report Highlighting Top Strategic Priorities for Supply Chain Leaders

Leaders recognize technology as a supply chain performance enabler, with 61% investing between $1–$10 million across the next five years to build more resilient, efficient supply chains

Blue Yonder, the world leader in end-to-end digital supply chain transformation, released the results of its inaugural “Supply Chain Compass” report highlighting nearly 700 global supply chain leaders’ key strategic priorities: implementing new technology (51%), improving efficiency and productivity (40%) and building more resilient supply chains (29%). The three-part report features responses from senior supply chain leaders in North America and Europe who work in manufacturing, retail and logistics.

“In the face of ongoing economic uncertainty, geopolitical instability, and inflationary pressures, supply chain leaders are prioritizing technologies that enhance speed and precision,” said Andrea Morgan-Vandome, chief innovation officer, Blue Yonder.

Achieving each strategic priority over the next three years will require specific actions, and respondents identified better demand planning (46%) and quickly obtaining and analyzing data on performance (46%) as two of the top actions they believe are essential to success. This was followed by investing in tracking and visibility solutions (45%), digital software transformation and innovation (41%) and managing supply chain costs (33%). In the current macroeconomic environment characterized by volatility and rapid change, focusing efforts on each of these actions will be critical. These priorities not only speak to immediate operational challenges but also position organizations to adapt swiftly to external pressures, ensuring resilience and competitiveness in an unpredictable landscape.

“A consistent theme among surveyed leaders was the adoption of innovative solutions that deliver true end-to-end visibility across the supply network and enable a more connected, intelligence-driven approach to demand and supply planning,” said Andrea Morgan-Vandome, chief innovation officer, Blue Yonder. “In the face of ongoing economic uncertainty, geopolitical instability, and inflationary pressures, supply chain leaders are prioritizing technologies that enhance speed and precision. The report highlights that, beyond mitigating risk, decision-makers are increasingly exploring next-generation AI agents to advance sustainability goals and build supply chains that are not only faster but also more efficient.”

Implementing New Technology is Foundational to the Future of the Supply Chain

Many leaders across industries are actively witnessing the transformative power that new technology can bring, with 74% agreeing that AI is already changing the way their business operates. A staggering 82% of leaders agree that outdated technology will hinder their supply chain’s potential, and 51% state that implementing new technology is a top priority in the next three years.

Supply chain leaders are willing to invest in technology, with 89% of decision-makers dedicating a specific budget to new supply chain technologies. For 61% of respondents, the budget for supply chain technology is between $1–$10 million across the next five years. With technology being a key enabler of supply chain performance, decision makers recognize they will need to prioritize new solutions and tools to respond to market challenges and growth opportunities.

Barriers to AI Adoption

Generative AI is currently under-implemented compared to traditional AI, which is largely used for prediction and automation. The majority of respondents (83%) are using (or are implementing) AI-powered automation, and 78% said the same of machine learning and predictive AI. By contrast, just 36% are using or implementing generative AI.

However, there is a clear pathway of opportunity being explored. Generative AI is becoming more important to enhance reliability and address sustainability goals, with one in four companies indicating they are implementing the technology. Only 16% said they have no plans at all for implementing generative AI-based solutions.

Understanding barriers to generative AI implementation is key for supply chain decision-makers:

Human Impact: Of those with no plans to implement generative AI, 51% said that their organization will prioritize a people-led approach over cutting-edge technology.
High Cost of Adoption: Organizations with an expected technology budget lower than $500,000 for the next one to five years are significantly less likely to consider implementing generative AI.
Different Priorities: Organizations not currently using generative AI aren’t necessarily behind — they’re prioritizing other strategic initiatives, such as automating inventory management to drive efficiency.

Businesses that focus on transportation, order management and execution and fulfillment are significantly more likely to be investigating the implementation of generative AI (46%), while those in logistics (16%) are behind the adoption curve with no plans to implement.

Intersection of Technology and Sustainability

Achieving more sustainable supply chains is top of mind for leaders, with “sustainable” being the number one word used to describe the future of their supply chains by respondents. This rang true for nearly two-thirds (68%) of leaders who agree there is an onus on supply chain operators to help solve problems like waste and climate change. Organizations that chose sustainability as a top three strategic priority are far more optimistic about their business performance.

Overall, leaders are initially focusing on tangible efforts to impact sustainability, but many are not yet embracing technology solutions that can provide a combination of cost savings and sustainability benefits:

Top opportunities for sustainability in supply chains are tangible investments often bearing a cost: Sustainable packaging (37%), reducing waste across manufacturing (30%), recycling (28%), renewable energy resources/green fuels (28%) and lower emissions from warehouses and facilities (27%).
Fewer leaders have embraced technology-related sustainability opportunities: Data analytics for emissions tracking (22%), connected networks for efficient shipping (17%), reducing waste from expiration (13%) and better returns processing (12%).
Nevertheless, there is a recognized link between sustainability, technology, and efficiency among one cohort: 26% believe that forecasting technology can improve efficiency and, in turn, sustainability efforts.

There is immense opportunity at the intersection of technology and sustainability. Respondents who named sustainability as a top three strategic priority are on the leading edge of technology and AI adoption: 94% say end-to-end data connectivity is fundamental to the success of their business (vs. 85% total), 80% say AI is already changing how they operate (vs. 74% total) and 61% say they are currently investigating generative AI.

“This study highlights that companies who have established sustainability as a top priority rate their overall supply chain performance more optimistically,” said Saskia van Gendt, chief sustainability officer, Blue Yonder. “The intersection of technology and sustainability presents a promising opportunity. Leaders who prioritize sustainability are leveraging advanced technologies such as AI and data connectivity to enhance efficiencies and reduce environmental impact. By embracing these innovations, we can transform our supply chains into powerful engines of sustainable growth.”

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data.world launches Data Marketplace: A revolutionary e-commerce experience transforms enterprise data discovery

STS News Desk

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June 3, 2025

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data.world launches Data Marketplace: A revolutionary e-commerce experience transforms enterprise data discovery

New marketplace experience bridges the gap between technical data catalogs and business user needs, enabling self-service data discovery at scale

data.world, the enterprise data catalog for the modern data stack, announced the launch of Data Marketplace, a purpose-built, e-commerce-style discovery experience that transforms how business users find and access high-quality data products within their organizations. The new marketplace serves as a curated front door to data.world’s comprehensive catalog, displaying only the most trusted and business-ready data assets organized by domain and use case rather than technical structure.

Organizations have invested heavily in comprehensive data catalogs, but business user adoption remains a challenge.

Data Marketplace addresses a critical challenge facing enterprise organizations: while 73% of enterprise data goes unused for analytics, business users struggle to navigate the technical complexity of traditional data catalogs. The new marketplace experience removes these barriers by providing a consumer-grade interface that makes data discovery as intuitive as online shopping.

“Organizations have invested heavily in building comprehensive data catalogs, but adoption among business users remains a challenge,” said Brett Hurt, CEO and Co-founder of data.world. “Data Marketplace changes that dynamic by meeting business users where they are—providing a familiar, shopping-like experience that makes our customers’ most valuable data products accessible to everyone who needs them.”

Bridging the technical-business divide

Data Marketplace operates on the principle that different users need different experiences. While data engineers require the full technical depth of a comprehensive catalog, business users need an interface that speaks their language and serves their workflows. The marketplace curates only the highest quality, actively maintained data products and presents them through visual merchandising and domain-based organization.

“Think of it like IKEA,” explained Tim Gasper, Chief Product Officer at data.world. “Your catalog is the warehouse—all the raw materials organized by type and source, perfect for technical teams building solutions. The marketplace is the showroom—curated displays organized by use case and business domain, designed for users who want solutions, not raw materials.”

Three pillars of enterprise value

Data Marketplace delivers value through three core pillars:

Discovery: Simplified decision-making through intuitive domain-based organization, visual merchandising, and curated experiences that surface only explicitly published, high-quality data products.

Adoption: Expanded platform reach with consumer-grade user experience, simplified navigation purpose-built for business users, and configurable landing pages with personalized suggestions.

Insight: Future-proofed strategy aligned with data mesh and domain-oriented data management practices, efficient governance that balances control with accessibility, and seamless transitions between marketplace and catalog views.

Industry-leading innovation

Data Marketplace represents data.world’s continued innovation in making enterprise data more accessible and valuable. Built on the company’s unique knowledge graph foundation, the marketplace maintains all the governance, security, and lineage capabilities of the underlying catalog while providing an entirely new user experience optimized for business consumption.

“This isn’t just a new interface—it’s a fundamental shift in how we think about data accessibility,” said Gasper. “Instead of expecting business users to become data engineers, we’re making data behave like the consumer products they’re already comfortable with.”

Seamless integration, immediate value

Data Marketplace integrates seamlessly with existing data.world deployments, requiring no data duplication or separate maintenance. Data products are created and managed in the familiar catalog environment, then published to the marketplace with a simple status change. This approach ensures organizations can leverage existing investments in metadata and documentation while providing immediate value to business users.

Key capabilities include:

Domain-based organization around business functions, rather than tech systems
Visual merchandizing with hero images and e-commerce-style browsing
Curated experience displaying only explicitly published, trusted data products
Configurable landing pages with personalized content suggestions
White-labeling options for brand customization
Seamless transitions between marketplace and catalog views

Supporting data mesh and modern architectures

Data Marketplace aligns with emerging industry practices around data products, data mesh architectures, and domain-oriented data management. Organizations implementing decentralized data strategies can use the marketplace to establish standardized approaches to data product creation and promotion while maintaining centralized governance and discovery.

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Blackbaud Names Bill Fort Senior Vice President of North America Sales

STS News Desk

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June 3, 2025

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Blackbaud Names Bill Fort Senior Vice President of North America Sales

Salesforce Veteran to Bring Sharp Focus on Delivering Customer Value

Blackbaud, the leading provider of software for powering social impact, announced it has appointed Bill Fort as senior vice president, North America sales. Fort will report to Chief Commercial Officer David Benjamin and will lead Blackbaud’s U.S. and Canadian sales teams focused on serving social impact customers, from nonprofits, foundations, and arts and cultural institutions to K-12 independent schools and higher education universities.

“We’re thrilled to welcome Bill to the team,” said David Benjamin, chief commercial officer, Blackbaud. “Bill brings with him a wealth of cloud software sales leadership experience and a deep passion for driving social impact that make him a great fit to take our passionate team of account executives into the next era of delivering value to help customers across North America go further, faster. We’re excited to learn from him and for our customers to benefit from his extensive background in the sector.”

Fort has 25 years of experience leading software sales teams across CRM, accounting, marketing automation, and reporting, as well as artificial intelligence. He was previously area vice president of sales at Salesforce, where he led multiple teams across sectors, from enterprise higher education to K-12, nonprofit, and Canadian sales. Prior to Salesforce, he held leadership positions at Oracle, SAP, SAS Institute, and CGI.

Fort holds a degree from California State University, Chico. He began his career working with inner-city teens and has continued to support the nonprofit community through volunteer leadership, philanthropy, and board service.

“This role is a great combination of my professional experience and personal passion, bringing my decades of experience to bear for a company that’s fully focused on helping charitable organizations achieve greater impact,” said Fort. “I look forward to diving in with our teams across sales, customer success and support to ensure our customers have the best tools, resources and partnership to achieve their missions.”

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SalesTechStar Interview with Ann-Christel Graham, Chief Revenue Officer at Sovos

Paroma Sen

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June 3, 2025

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SalesTechStar Interview with Ann-Christel Graham, Chief Revenue Officer at Sovos

Ann-Christel Graham, Chief Revenue Officer at Sovos shares a few tips on what modern GTM teams and CROs should prioritize in a complex selling market in this SalesTechStar interview:

_________

Can you walk us through your sales and revenue journey in SaaS?

Early in my career, I worked at Concur during its transition from traditional software to a SaaS model. We were early adopters, making the shift in the early 2000s when the concept of SaaS was still new. There was no playbook at the time, so we learned through trial and error across every internal function. As a sales team, we weren’t just selling a product; we were educating customers on the SaaS model itself and helping them navigate unfamiliar evaluation, procurement, and support processes.

The shift redefined the role of IT, reshaped contract structures, and introduced new expectations post-sale. That experience shaped my approach to selling and revenue leadership. Since then, I’ve been drawn to transformational opportunities that require both sales expertise and entrepreneurial thinking.

What are you most looking forward to in your new role as CRO at Sovos?

Sovos is undergoing an exciting transformation with the launch of the Sovos Compliance Cloud. This creates an opportunity to apply lessons from companies that have moved from offering individual point solutions to unified platforms. What makes this especially compelling is the chance to help redefine how tax and compliance technology can serve modern businesses. The space is ready for disruption, and Sovos is in a strong position to lead that change.

In your view, what challenges are today’s SaaS CROs facing?

CROs today are navigating a rapidly changing landscape. Economic pressures are affecting customer behavior and expectations, and strategies that worked in the past now require frequent adjustments. The focus has shifted from growth at all costs to efficient, sustainable growth. Although many new tools promise gains in productivity through AI and automation, CROs often lack access to foundational data and insights needed to run the business effectively. The rise of product-led growth is also transforming how buyers engage, requiring CROs to rethink their role in the customer journey. These shifts combine to create a tough environment for CROs who are expected to deliver predictable, scalable results.

What revtech or salestech tools have you leaned on to help meet growth goals?

I have long been an advocate for Salesforce, especially when it is implemented with a clear vision. Tools like Gong and HubSpot have also been instrumental. They help surface insights into buyer behavior, refine messaging, and support collaboration across teams. At Sovos, we are evaluating and testing new tools that can support productivity and align with our long-term growth strategy.

You’ve led GTM efforts — what best practices would you recommend for SaaS sales and marketing teams navigating today’s business landscape?

Alignment between sales and marketing is more critical than ever. With budgets under pressure and performance expectations rising, the teams need to be on the same page from the very beginning. One of the most important lessons I’ve learned is to drive alignment during the planning process. This keeps strategy intact even as external pressures shift priorities.

Another best practice is aligning around business outcomes rather than individual activity metrics. Activity measures personal output, but outcomes reflect what truly matters to the business and the customer. In many SaaS categories, differentiation through features has become harder. The companies that win are the ones that show customers they understand their needs and can deliver real value. When sales and marketing operate with shared goals and a focus on the customer, GTM becomes a competitive advantage.

Before we wrap up, what are five key tips you’d offer to fellow SaaS CROs?

Evolve from a sales leader into a true cross-functional partner. Build regular, intentional strategy sessions with peers across the business.
Align resources around the customer journey and develop a single, integrated view of the buyer.
Break down silos between sales and marketing to create one unified team.
Build a fully integrated RevOps function that supports the full lifecycle, not just reporting and pipeline.
Create a culture of continuous learning and improvement to stay flexible in a dynamic environment.

About Sovos
About Ann-Christel Graham

About Sovos

Sovos provides businesses with the confidence needed to navigate an increasingly regulated world. Offering a modern, IT driven response to compliance, Sovos’ solutions are scalable, reliable and secure and provide a great user experience

About Ann-Christel Graham

Ann-Christel Graham is the Chief Revenue Officer at Sovos, where she leads global revenue operations and go-to-market strategy. With over 25 years of experience driving growth and SaaS transformation across public and private sector organizations, she has held senior leadership roles at companies including Talend, SAP Concur, and Velocity Global. Known for balancing process-driven discipline with innovative thinking, Ann-Christel builds high-performing, customer-focused teams that deliver consistent, predictable results. She is passionate about mentoring others and fostering collaborative, high-growth cultures.

Also Catch, Episode 228 Of The SalesStar Podcast: Gamification for Better Sales Orientation with SalesScreen CEO – Sindre Haaland

Bluedot AI-Powered Virtual Assistant Improves Security and Accuracy in Automated Meeting Transcription

STS News Desk

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June 3, 2025

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Bluedot AI-Powered Virtual Assistant Improves Security and Accuracy in Automated Meeting Transcription

Bluedot announced the company is enhancing security and improving how remote employees collaborate and communicate with its next generation virtual meeting assistant. The startup company is transforming virtual meeting recordings and documentation for businesses with AI-powered notetaking solutions featuring secure end-to-end encryption, access controls and compliance with global data protection regulations.

Unlike virtual meeting tools that require inviting external bots, Bluedot seamlessly integrates with Google Meet for secure, local-only recording and transcription – ensuring a high level of privacy without transmitting sensitive data or granting access to third parties. Bluedot transcribes meetings, generates AI-powered notes and provides in-depth conversation analyses in 100+ languages. More than 1,000 global companies depend on Bluedot for secure, automated meeting recordings and transcriptions – including Salesforce, UserTesting, and Dept Agency.

“Bluedot gives businesses, from Fortune 500 companies to startups, peace of mind that their proprietary data is secure – while providing the collaboration tools they need to innovate, automate, and grow – without compromising confidentiality,” said Dima Eremin, CEO, Bluedot. “Traditional note taking is time consuming, error prone and distracting. With Bluedot’s AI-powered meeting tools, remote teams can focus on collaboration, knowing their meeting notes and summaries are accurate, available in real-time and seamlessly integrated with company workflows and data security protocols.”

Bluedot’s meeting assistant provides the most accurate AI-powered summaries on the market, including technical terms, to-dos, abbreviations and speaker identification. All user data is encrypted, protected and stored according to European Union laws, GDPR, and HIPAA, with access controls for sensitive materials. The AI-notetaker is designed to eliminate workplace inefficiencies with:

Real Time Transcription: Capture every word spoken, so nothing is missed and no manual note taking is required.
Automated Summaries: AI driven tools analyze meeting discussions and generate structured summaries, including action items, key takeaways and follow up points.
Seamless Integration with Productivity Tools: Notes automatically sync to CRM, Notion, Slack, project management tools and email systems, keeping you organized without extra effort.
Multi-Speaker Recognition: Advanced AI models can differentiate between speakers, so attributions are accurate, and meeting documentation is clear.
Searchable Meeting Archives: Users can instantly retrieve past meeting details using keyword search, so there’s no more digging through handwritten notes or video recordings.

“AI tools are not only changing how we document meetings, but also how we collaborate in a digital world. Bluedot’s AI-powered meeting assistant delivers meeting recordings that are precise and standardized, reducing miscommunication and knowledge gaps, and allowing team members to fully engage and collaborate,” said NAME. “Its workflow automation tools ensure that follow-ups, deadlines and action items are automatically tracked and communicated to the right team members – reducing administrative burdens and saving companies thousands of people hours a year.”

Bluedot was founded in 2022 by a team of two co-founders originally from Ukraine – Ruslan, Dima – who are currently based across London and Dusseldorf. The startups’ angel investors include Gross via Pioneer (former YC partner), Greg Jakacki, founder of Codility, Tomas James, an early investor in Zendesk, Bridget Harris, Founder of YouCanBookMe, and Google for Startups

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Gartner Survey Finds 60% of Customer Service Agents Fail to Promote Self-Service

STS News Desk

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June 3, 2025

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Gartner Survey Finds 60% of Customer Service Agents Fail to Promote Self-Service

Agents Play a Pivotal Role in Supporting Self-Service Investments

Sixty percent of customer service agents fail to promote self-service options, according to a survey by Gartner, Inc.

A Gartner survey of 5,801 customers conducted in January and February 2025 revealed that despite the potential benefits of self-service, when agents do mention self-service in customer interactions, 25% make neutral comments, and 12% make explicitly negative remarks.

“Promoting self-service is not just about reducing costs; it’s about empowering customers to use the easiest and most efficient solution,” said Keith McIntosh, Senior Principal, Research, in the Gartner Customer Service & Support practice. “Agents play a crucial role in this process, and their ability to positively endorse self-service options can really matter.”

Customers who receive self-service promotion from an agent are far more likely to say they will adopt self-service when they encounter future service issues with the company. Agent promotion is associated with a doubling of the number of customers who are likely to adopt self-service next time, highlighting the need for organizations to focus on training agents to effectively communicate the benefits of self-service options to customers.

Navigating Generative AI Adoption in Customer Service

As leaders continue to invest heavily in GenAI to automate self-service, great phone experiences can actually disincentivize the use of GenAI among customers. While 55% of service leaders are exploring customer-facing GenAI chatbots by 2025, only 35% of customers who last interacted via phone are willing to adopt a GenAI digital assistant.

This reluctance stems from the success and comfort customers experience when resolving issues directly through phone interactions. The phone remains the dominant service channel, suggesting that customers may be hesitant to shift to a GenAI digital assistant when their current method is effective.

“Service leaders should focus on integrating GenAI solutions that complement existing phone interactions rather than replacing them. By positioning GenAI as an enhancement to the phone experience, organizations can reassure customers that the digital assistant is designed to streamline their journey, offering both self-service solutions and seamless transitions to human agents when needed,” said McIntosh. “Meeting customers where they are, while offering innovative solutions, is key to driving adoption and satisfaction.”

Gartner clients can read more in “2025 Customer Insights: 4 Data Findings to Inform Your CX Strategy” and in the eBook, “4 Customer Insights to Improve the Service Experience.”

About Gartner for Customer Service & Support Leaders

The customer service and support function is vital to maintaining customer loyalty and influencing brand perceptions. Gartner for Customer Service & Support Leaders provides indispensable insights, advice and tools needed to achieve service and support leaders’ mission-critical priorities, specifically improving the customer experience while managing costs; designing an optimal service channel strategy; measuring and reducing customer effort; and how to hire, develop and retain high-potential frontline talent.

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Readymode Launches Powerful Managed Remediation Feature to Combat Caller ID Spam Labels and Improve Customer Trust

STS News Desk

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June 3, 2025

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Readymode Launches Powerful Managed Remediation Feature to Combat Caller ID Spam Labels and Improve Customer Trust

Readymode, a leader in intelligent outbound customer engagement and predictive dialing for sales teams, is proud to announce the launch of its new Managed Remediation feature within the Readymode iQ platform—an innovative tool designed to help businesses maximize their connect rate and regain trust in their outbound calling.

Registering phone numbers used for dialing is essential for verifying legitimacy with carriers, enhancing connect rates, and strengthening your caller ID reputation. With Readymode’s Managed Remediation, phone number registration and the remediation process is handled for users, significantly reducing the risk of numbers being flagged or blocked. By leveraging direct relationships with major telecom carriers and analytics partners, Readymode takes this one step further and offers a streamlined, efficient path to restore a clean caller ID and improve connect rates. Readymode users have their calls attested and vouched for using their industry reputation—another layer of protection against harmful labeling.

“Your reputation is everything in outbound dialing,” said Jason Jantz, CEO & Founder at Readymode. “With our new Managed Remediation feature, we’re enabling businesses to take control of their caller identity and break through the clutter of spam labeling—ultimately leading to more successful customer engagements. We have extremely strong telecom partnerships. The phone numbers you use for outbound calling benefit from STIR/SHAKEN certification, ensuring authenticity and improved deliverability,” said Jantz. “Our remediation process produces faster resolution and better results, improving call connection rates and customer engagement.”

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Fasoo Smart Screen Bolsters Supply Chain Security with Advanced Screen Protection

STS News Desk

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June 3, 2025

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Fasoo Smart Screen Bolsters Supply Chain Security with Advanced Screen Protection

Fasoo, the leader in data-centric security, introduces new momentum for Fasoo Smart Screen (FSS), its advanced screen security solution designed to control unauthorized screen capture tools and display a dynamic watermark on screen, deterring users from taking a photo using smartphones.

As global supply chains become increasingly digitized and distributed, organizations face heightened pressure to secure every touchpoint where sensitive data is accessed. Organizations in the semiconductor, automotive, energy, aerospace, and defense industries, as well as companies across their supply chains, recognize that protecting what’s visible on the screen is just as critical as securing files in storage or in transit.

Fasoo Smart Screen addresses this growing need by adding a powerful layer of screen protection to data-centric security strategies. The solution prevents unauthorized screen captures, applies dynamic watermarks to deter visual leaks, and logs screen-based activity to support incident response and compliance efforts.

“In supply chain, sensitive data doesn’t just move – it’s constantly seen. From design reviews to remote vendor access, what’s on the screen is often just as vulnerable as what’s in the file,” said Ron Arden, Executive Vice President, CTO, and COO at Fasoo. “Fasoo Smart Screen gives organizations the control they need to keep visual data exposure from disrupting operations or compromising IP.”

Fasoo has seen rising adoption of FSS across industries with complex and high-value supply chains, including semiconductors, automotive, and electronics. In these environments, engineers, suppliers, and contractors frequently access critical IP and confidential design data via virtual desktops or remote platforms. FSS helps ensure that what’s shown on-screen – from chip layouts to production blueprints – stays protected at all times throughout the extended supply chain.

Key Features of Fasoo Smart Screen:

• Dynamic Screen Watermarks: Apply on-screen, user-specific watermarks that allow tracing data breaches back to their source.

• Screen Capture Prevention: Block all screen capture attempts, including the Print Screen key, snipping tools, remote control software, or other capture applications.

• Comprehensive Activity Log: Monitor screen capture attempts for audits, compliance management, and incident response.

• Seamless Integration: FSS is compatible with Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, and various environments, ensuring comprehensive protection across diverse platforms.

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Flexport Launches Tariff Simulator to Help Businesses Navigate Rapidly Changing Trade Policies

STS News Desk

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June 3, 2025

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Flexport Launches Tariff Simulator to Help Businesses Navigate Rapidly Changing Trade Policies

Flexport, the leading global logistics technology company, announced the launch of the Flexport Tariff Simulator, a powerful new tool designed to help businesses estimate landed costs and navigate the evolving tariff landscape with greater speed and confidence. The tool is available to the general public at tariffs.flexport.com.

The launch marks the latest addition to Flexport’s growing suite of customs and trade advisory technology—designed to provide importers with the data, insights, and transparency they need to make smarter, faster decisions in a complex global trade environment.

With the Flexport Tariff Simulator, importers shipping to the United States can now estimate tariff and landed cost scenarios based on key shipment details, including: Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) code; Shipment value; Entry date; Country of origin; and Product-specific details such as material composition.

For example, a business importing aluminum-containing goods from China can enter the relevant HTS code, input the aluminum content, and select an entry date to receive an estimated, detailed duty calculation with landed cost. The Flexport Tariff Simulator enables dynamic scenario planning and cost forecasting as businesses explore alternative trade lanes, manufacturing options, and import timelines.

“Our customers have been telling us loud and clear: they need clarity on costs,” said Ryan Petersen, Founder and CEO of Flexport. “Our engineering team built The Flexport Tariff Simulator in response to meet that need in the face of all the uncertainty caused by rapid policy changes. We want to help merchants avoid expensive surprises.”

Within the simulator, there is an interactive map that allows users to see critical trade data around the world including the total value of imports from a given country, the current average duty rate, and the percentage of total United States imports coming from that country.

Along with the tariff simulator, Flexport is also launching a new, searchable catalog of HTS code content. Each entry provides detailed, easy-to-understand information to help businesses better navigate classification requirements, special duty rates, and implications for their customs clearance process.

While there are a number of other duty calculators that have launched, the Flexport Tariff Simulator is unique in its intuitive user interface and the fact it is updated in real time as tariff policies change. The technology is powered by Flexport’s deep expertise in trade advisory, accurately applying tariff rates in an evolving, complex environment. As tariffs shift, the simulator and HTS catalog will evolve accordingly, ensuring customers always have the most accurate and transparent data at their fingertips.

“As one of the largest customs brokerages in the U.S., Flexport is uniquely positioned to help businesses of all sizes stay compliant while managing risk and cost,” Petersen added.

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Ann-Christel Graham, Chief Revenue Officer at Sovos shares a few tips on what modern GTM teams and CROs should prioritize in a complex selling market in this SalesTechStar interview:

_________

Can you walk us through your sales and revenue journey in SaaS?

What are you most looking forward to in your new role as CRO at Sovos?

In your view, what challenges are today’s SaaS CROs facing?

What revtech or salestech tools have you leaned on to help meet growth goals?

You’ve led GTM efforts — what best practices would you recommend for SaaS sales and marketing teams navigating today’s business landscape?

Before we wrap up, what are five key tips you’d offer to fellow SaaS CROs?

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Write in to psen@itechseries.com to learn more about our exclusive editorial packages and programs.

Write in to psen@itechseries.com to learn more about our exclusive editorial packages and programs.

Write in to psen@itechseries.com to learn more about our exclusive editorial packages and programs.

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