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A New Conversation but (Happily) the Same Old Genesys

Just three weeks after the finalization of its carve-out from Alcatel-Lucent and purchase by private equity firm Permira, Genesys held its tenth annual analyst meeting. Given the increasing attempts at tighter integration by its French owner and the turbulent economic times of the past few years, it is no mean feat to have consistently gathered and updated the best and the brightest contact center (and more recently e-Services and social media) analysts each year.

As was true at Genesys' regional sales kickoff events earlier in February, last week's meeting had a celebratory air for the analysts who have followed Genesys' journey over the past few years. There is an almost audible sigh of relief as you speak to a Genesys person--from a member of the management team to a marketing manager to a sales person--that the new Genesys entity is poised to flourish, allowed to focus on their one passion, customer care. On the program was a panel discussion with 3 of the 4 new board members announced by Genesys earlier--and only one was from Permira, Brian Ruder. Jake Reynolds of Technology Crossover Ventures (TCV) and Stephen Davis of Banneker Partners also participated, as Permira allowed each of their firms to participate in the final financial package. In addition to the panel, the three gentlemen participated in one-on-ones with the analysts, all communicating that they have watched Genesys for years and were excited by the prospect of joining Permira in the financing.

What is the stated plan for Genesys? As Ruder described it, Plan A is to build Genesys into a strong, independent company. Ruder explained that Permira typically holds companies for about 5 years; the ultimate goal would be an IPO--a second one for Genesys.

What is new at Genesys? There is a renewed sense of purpose and enthusiasm from a team that--in the words of the CFO--hit a home run in terms of 2011 results. (Quite a feat as they were living under the cloud of ownership change.) What continues uninterrupted are plans to deliver more differentiable offers like intelligent Workload Distribution and Social Engagement. In the video below, VP for Product Management and Marketing Merijn Te Booij and CTO Slava Zhakov discuss plans for mobile customer care solutions: