Judges

As former Vice President of Research at Gartner, Jim has spent over two decades covering CRM, CX, and customer service.

There, Jim led Gartner’s workforce engagement management (WEM) and voice of the customer (VoC) research, aiding in the creation of the associated Magic Quadrants.

During his tenure at Gartner, Jim advised thousands of organizations of all sizes and industries around the world.

Subsequently, he became the Chief Experience Officer at a leading WEM vendor but has now returned to his roots as co-founder of Actionary.

Actionary is a new advisory services company where market-defining industry analysts – each with C-suite experience – have come together to support CEOs and their leadership teams with personalized and actionable advice.

Most recently, Shelly Kramer worked as the Managing Director of theCUBE Research, the research and advisory services arm of SiliconANGLE and theCUBE.

There, she operated alongside renowned tech analysts with the objective to expand and elevate the organization’s research and advisory services, empowering customers with the insights needed to excel in their markets.

A serial entrepreneur, Shelly founded her first company in her early 30s and later co-founded Futurum Research in 2016, achieving substantial revenue growth each subsequent year.

With a focus on technology, her expertise spans digital transformation, CX, Cloud, AI, ESG, 5G, SaaS, Automation, Robotics, Mobility, Cybersecurity, and Collaboration.

Dan Miller founded Opus Research in 1986 and helped define conversational commerce through consulting engagements and reports focusing on business opportunities at the intersection of automated speech, natural language processing, conversational AI, analytics, and contact centers.

He was Director of the New Electronic Media Program at LINK/IDC from 1980-1983, where he helped define one of the first continuous advisory services in the information industry.

Moreover, Dan also held management positions at Atari, Warner Communications, and Pacific Telesis Group (now part of AT&T).

Lastly, he edited Telemedia News & Views – a highly-regarded monthly newsletter regarding voice processing and intelligent network services developments – and served as Editor-in-Chief of The Kelsey Report.

Liz Miller specializes in the multifaceted realm of customer experience. With a focus on the essential pillars of CX—Sales, Service, and Marketing—she directs attention toward the evolving demands of today’s Chief Marketing Officer, the transformation of customer engagement, and the growing need for a security posture addressing threats to brand trust.

With 29 years of marketing experience, Miller provides strategic guidance on leadership, business transformation, and technology to execute contemporary CX strategies.

Formerly overseeing research and content for the Chief Marketing Officer Council, she collaborated globally to transform business models and competitive messaging in the evolving digital landscape.

A seasoned moderator, facilitator, and speaker, Liz engages C-suite executives in numerous webcasts, roundtables, and keynote presentations worldwide.

Before setting up her consultancy, Nerys spent almost 18 years in some of the UK’s most responsive outsourcers, managing contact center services for clients like Volkswagen, Vodafone, British Gas, the National Apprenticeship Service, and Sky.

Since setting up Injection Consulting in 2015, Nerys has immersed herself in the contact center technology space.

This immersion into the world of contact center technology, coupled with extensive operational experience, has served as the backdrop to conducting regular contact center audits, delivering transformation programs, and judging prestigious CX Awards.

Based in London, Oru is responsible for IDC’s coverage of UCaaS, Collaboration, and contact center coverage in the region.

Her work focuses on the transformation of business communication and collaboration in the evolving market, particularly under hybrid work.

She closely looks at how modern communications and collaboration technology can help businesses to become agile, resilient, and future-proof.

Mila D’Antonio is a Principal Analyst on Omdia’s Customer Engagement team, focusing on enterprise applications that enable personalized and connected customer engagement.

Mila provides analysis of the key developments in customer engagement applications and emerging tech that improves customer interactions and enables personalized, relevant engagements. That includes research on customer engagement platforms, customer data platforms, and customer journey orchestration.

Before joining Omdia, formerly Ovum, Mila worked as editor-in-chief at 1to1 Media.

Rebecca Wettemann is CEO and Principal Analyst of Valoir, a technology analyst firm focused on the value of technology.

Valoir provides research and advisory services to technology and business leaders focusing on CRM, CX, HCM, and EX.

With more than 25 years of technology industry experience in the private and public sectors, Wettemann has led the market in its understanding of the value of cloud computing, digital transformation, AI, and productivity in the digital workplace.

Michael is an experienced high-tech leader, board chairman, software industry analyst, and podcast host. He is a thought leader and published author on emerging business software, AI, digital transformation, and customer experience strategy-building trends.

Currently, Michael is the Founder, CEO, and Chief Analyst at Arion Research, an advisor to G2, and Board Chairman at LocatorX.

As a senior market researcher and leader, Michael has deep experience in business software market research, starting new tech businesses, and go-to-market models in large and small tech companies.

Martin Schneider has had a unique career that has spanned analyst and marketing practitioner roles, focused on high technology and related industries.

The unifying factors have always been both a keen analysis of go-to-market/CX trends and his success as a marketing leader.

Schneider started his career as a journalist covering B2B technologies and quickly transitioned into a role as a leading analyst covering application software for The 451 Group in NYC.

Schneider then moved to the vendor side, where he led successful go-to-market teams for several startups and established tech providers, including SugarCRM, Basho Technologies, and Caspio.

Leading a contact center is no easy task. However, it is a role that Julie Tano–Lawson thrived in for many years, creating strategic plans that improved CX results across ADT.

With such first-hand experience, she now spends her time mentoring business leaders, enabling them to enhance their CX maturity.

Yet, that is not all. As a founding member of the online community “Women in CX”, Tano Lawson shares her experiences and learns from many other illustrious industry professionals.

Keith Kirkpatrick is the Research Director at The Futurum Group, where he leads research initiatives focused on emerging technologies, digital transformation, and market trends.

With a strong background in technology analysis and strategic insights, Keith has over 15 years of experience in guiding businesses through complex technological landscapes. At The Futurum Group, he oversees the development of in-depth research reports, providing actionable intelligence to help companies navigate the future of business.

Keith is known for his ability to distill complex data into clear, strategic recommendations, making him a trusted advisor for executives and industry leaders.

Finbarr Begley is Cavell’s Senior Analyst tasked with monitoring the CCaaS, and CX spaces. Finbarr has been at Cavell for over five years, and worked in the Telecoms industry for over 12 years in marketing and analyst roles.

His role at Cavell also encompasses managing the Cavell podcast, managing enterprise quantitative research, and keeping track of AI trends.

Zeus Kerravala is the founder and principal analyst with ZK Research and has an exclusive focus on emerging technology in the areas of communications, networking and security. He’s the only UC/CC analyst in the AR power 100 rankings and in 2020, was the Ranked #6 Analyst by Apollo Research.

Kerravala provides a mix of tactical advice to help his clients in the current business climate and long term strategic advice.

Kerravala provides research and advisory services to the following constituents: End user IT, vendors of hardware, software and services, the reseller community and the financial community looking to invest in the companies he covers.

Nicolas de Kouchkovsky is a three-time CMO and seasoned veteran in the customer experience and sales tech domains, offering CX and sales software companies a wealth of expertise accumulated over several decades.

As a Fractional CMO, de Kouchkovsky helps B2B SaaS companies on all things marketing and go-to-market. Leveraging his unique combination of marketing expertise, product management acumen, and deep domain knowledge of CX, he serves as a growth catalyst for tech companies. Indeed, he has applied his hands-on approach to over 35 companies ranging from pre-series A to series B, as well as larger organizations.

As an industry analyst, de Kouchkovsky advise technology providers on strategy, messaging, and market intelligence. Additionally, he helps enterprises design whole solution stacks and chart future-proof technology roadmaps.

Justin Robbins has built and led global training and consulting programs that have served over 50 Fortune 500 companies. His experience spans roles in operations, strategy, and marketing with various tech brands, alongside research leadership at ICMI & HDI.

Robbins started his CX career in operations, managing teams and solving real-world challenges at companies like Network Solutions and Hershey Entertainment & Resorts. This foundation offered him a practical, results-driven perspective on what it takes to create exceptional customer experiences.

Beyond Metric Sherpa, Robbins serves on the board of CX Accelerator and advises the Quality Assurance & Training Connection, working to empower CX professionals with the resources they need to succeed.