C Spire and Webex form the perfect, future-forward partnership.

Suzy Hays, President at C Spire, is both a futurist and a perfectionist. Equipped with expertise in telecoms, wireless, fiber internet, cloud services, and collaboration, Hays is well-suited to lead C Spire in achieving its vision for long-term growth. 

“What’s important to us is a very seamless, future-forward experience,” says Hays of C Spire’s customer service goals. “Our purpose, from a brand standpoint, has always been to stay ahead of our customers in technology— so they have whatever advantages come with that technology over time. That’s why we were the first in most of our communities to provide fiber to the home. It’s why we provided fiber to businesses so early on.” 

C Spire’s entire business is built on its mission to create best-in-class, innovative experiences for their customers. While many organizations claim to put the customer first, C Spire’s name stands for Customer Inspired. A symbol of the customer is present throughout C Spire’s offices and conference rooms as a reminder to always make decisions “with the customer in the room.” This focus on the customer translates into faster access to fully vetted technology and consistent operational excellence built with best-in-class platforms, ensuring the best possible solutions for customers. 

Fueled by C Spire’s long-standing achievements in both business and residential services, Hays took inspiration from the organization’s formula for continuous improvement: To be the best at what they do by providing an experience today that advances—and enhances—the lives of their customers and communities well into tomorrow. 

But to be the best by providing the best, Hays and C Spire needed a partner that could deliver on this vision. C Spire needed Cisco. 

“C Spire’s entire business is built on the belief that partnership and collaboration are the linchpins of success.” 

C Spire and Hays have cultivated a strong relationship with Cisco after years spent working together on Webex for BroadWorks. In Cisco, Hays sees a partner capable of providing a versatile collaboration portfolio that could serve business customers of all sizes—from small to enterprise-level—and Webex is that solution. 

Apart from the capability to support a range of business sizes, to be integrated into C Spire’s all-star software stack line-up, a solution must live up to its name. “We go full-stack, with the best-in-class platform. Period,” Hays emphasizes. "If you want to be the best at what you do, then you need to have that foundational level. And Cisco’s collab solution is exactly that.” 

Steadfast dedication to finding the right answers from the start perfectly aligns with C Spire’s ideals and has been a welcome characteristic of the partnership. 

"I’ve been impressed by the executive team at Cisco," Hays shares. "As advisors and partners, they have invested time and resources into educating us on the opportunities we have. I see Cisco as a key part of our next phase of growth." 

This success prompted Hays to plan to further scale and grow C Spire by removing operational complexities and reducing costs, which meant moving into the cloud and expanding into new markets. C Spire entertained relationships with other partners, but in the end, only Cisco could deliver the product, the platform, and the ability to allow C Spire to own the entire customer journey. 

Imbued with additional inspiration, C Spire set new goals: To achieve exponential growth that extends beyond the bounds of the business’s current service area. Cisco’s Webex cloud is ideally positioned for C Spire’s plans: the AI-driven Webex platform, a full suite of collaboration tools, completely integrated Webex devices, and for the future, contact center solutions. With Webex as the foundation to serve these new markets being delivered via Cisco’s new Wholesale Route-to-Market, C Spire found the full-stack, best-in-class solution they were looking for. 

“If you want to be the best at what you do, then you need to have that foundational level. And Cisco’s collab solution is that.” 

C Spire continues to deliver on its promise to customers by adopting new technology that gives them an advantage in the marketplace. In line with that promise, the organization is among the first to offer Webex through Cisco’s innovative new Wholesale Route-to-Market, a reflection of the company’s unwavering philosophy to be best at what it does through innovation and operational excellence. Cisco highly values the C Spire partnership and awarded them the Webex Managed Services Partner of the Year for 2023. 

Recently, Cisco announced at WebexOne a series of AI investments across the Webex platform and integrated devices. “Cisco’s all-in commitment to AI across the platform is a great example of why Cisco is the right partner for C Spire and our customers. The newly announced Cisco AI Assistant for Webex is a game changer and aligns with C Spire’s strategy of advancing business through leading-edge technology.” 

With Cisco and C Spire aligned—not to mention Suzy Hays leading the charge—the future looks bright.