New LiveVox CEO Talks Contact Center Technologies, Partner Relationships, Recession

In November, John DiLullo was named CEO of LiveVox, a cloud-based provider of customer service and digital engagement tools. He replaces Louis Summe who co-founded the company and served as CEO for more than 22 years.

“John brings a compelling mix of relevant technology and commercial industry experience, a proven track record of successfully scaling go-to-market operations and a customer-first orientation, making him the ideal leader for LiveVox as it enters its next phase of growth,” said Stewart Bloom, executive chairman of LiveVox, earlier this year. “The board is confident that John has the right vision and expertise to support the company’s existing customer base, expand LiveVox’s product suite to new markets and customers and maintain the company’s commitment to consistent innovation and customer service.”

Channel Futures sat down with DiLullo to talk about his views about that innovation and customer service framework. DiLullo also discussed his background in cybersecurity and why it’s relevant to his new role at LiveVox. In addition, he reflects on the possibility of recession and how much of that will influence the company and partners.

Channel Futures: How did you go from an academic background in electrical and electronics engineering to a career in sales and the channel?

LiveVox’s John DiLullo

John DiLullo: It was as easy as falling in love. I came out of the technology business, and I have two patents that were granted early in my career. I started as an engineer in spacecraft operations but at some point I realized there’s this whole world outside of just building better mousetraps, and I became infatuated with the whole idea of selling technology. My first real job was selling systems or key systems, phone systems, and I learned how hard it really is to get through sales and understanding competition, understanding channels and understanding all the things that need to go right for a customer to get success and derive value from technology. And that became a fascination of mine for my entire career. I couldn’t have picked a better career choice and the way I got here now seems very serendipitous, but I’ve been so lucky.

See the slideshow above for the continuation of the interview.