Rick Medeiros is the Group Vice President of North America Sales, and Global Solutions Engineering for Verizon Partner Solutions.
Telecom Review recently spoke with Rick to get some key insights into Verizon’s approach to the marketplace. The following are some of our questions and Rick’s response.
What are your plans for expanding Partner Sales at Verizon Partner Solutions (VPS)?
Right now, the Partner Sales team and I are challenging ourselves to be laser-focused on delivering to customer requirements and executing on opportunities in a rapidly evolving market. Our real advantage lies in both the continuous investments that Verizon makes in our network, alongside the team’s knowledge base and skill in delivering solutions for partners across every segment and vertical in the wholesale industry.
As a strategy, keeping the customer front and center is a winning approach. And working closely with our customers is more important than ever to make sure we fully understand their requirements and the outcomes they are working towards. As part of this, we are working on better equipping our customers for success by establishing clear communication channels, and by providing technical assistance, sales enablement tools, and marketing materials.
This approach enables VPS to stay agile and responsive to emerging trends and consumer demands. We are creating a thriving partner ecosystem that drives significant revenue growth and expands our market reach.
Do you expect data center connectivity to be a large focus for VPS?
Absolutely. Data center connectivity is crucial for the industry to thrive in today’s digital landscape for several reasons. There are a number of factors driving data center demand, including cloud computing, edge computing and green initiatives. The rise of Artificial Intelligence (AI) is also another very exciting driver for data center demand that we believe VPS is well positioned to serve for our partners. Businesses need flexible and scalable connectivity solutions that can adapt to their evolving needs, and data center connections provide the foundation for this agility. High-speed, low-latency connections to data centers are essential for optimal performance of business-critical applications, especially real-time applications and services. Leveraging the Verizon network, we believe we are well positioned to provide the solutions our customers need to navigate this opportunity.
Please tell us your plans to differentiate VPS.
Verizon Partner Solutions offers a broad range of solutions across connectivity, security and collaboration, catering to diverse business needs. I believe the strength of our network is one of the differentiators that helps position Verizon to meet our customers in the market. We have been undergoing a significant multi-year network transformation that has put us in a great place to capitalize on the opportunities as bandwidth demand continues to scale. All of this investment into our network provides partnership opportunities across the wholesale market while also allowing Verizon to develop products and solutions within both fiber connectivity as well as our wireless solutions - FWA, IOT and Private 5G networks.
Will customer engagement and feedback options be expanded to help grow their business?
Yes, customer engagement and feedback vehicles are constantly being expanded to help our customers grow. For example, VPS invests in capturing the voice of the customer through multiple strategies. We make a point to leverage multiple channels like surveys, our bi-annual Customer Advisory Board, the annual VPS Partner Summit as well as our daily customer interactions. The collection of this feedback provides a valuable opportunity for VPS to make specific improvements for our customers providing a better overall experience as they engage their account teams all the way through quoting, ordering, service delivery and assurance.
A key area of focus this year based on customer feedback has been VPS’ continued investment in learning and development, both for our employees and for our customers. In the first half of this year, all VPS management completed product training curriculum, investing over 2,000 employee hours. In addition to employee training, Verizon also offered a number of customer learning programs focused on leveraging our platforms as well as multiple customer webinars specific to product and solutions overviews. We believe providing this real-time knowledge transfer is what our partners require while they look to meet their customers’ needs in the marketplace.
Do you have some new product verticals that will increase awareness for VPS?
Some important areas of focus include 5G market leadership, fixed wireless access (FWA), Internet of Things (IoT) and private wireless networks. We continue to expand and enhance our nationwide 5G network. The deployment of 5G is not just about faster mobile internet; it also supports advanced applications in areas like private wireless networks, FWA and IoT. Additionally, Verizon is leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance network performance, customer service, and overall client experience. This will enable Verizon to, for example, proactively address potential issues, predict why a customer is calling and therefore resolve customer inquiries more efficiently, and develop innovative products and services to meet the evolving needs of our customers.
What new partnering projects do you have planned?
Verizon partners with players across the global ecosystem; including industry organizations such as the Global Leaders Forum, MEF and TM Forum. Providing standardization and interoperability across the industry is fundamental to supporting customers in optimizing their digital transformation investments and using the full extent of the APIs as new enhancements are made.
Check out the newly relaunched Verizon Partner Solutions’ website for future partnering project updates. Also, save the date for our annual flagship event the Verizon Partner Solutions Summit, happening the week of March 17, 2025 in Orlando, Florida.
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