Meet the 2025 Genesys Customer Innovation Awards judges

Felicitas Burgi is the Head of Customer Operations and Innovation at Zurich Switzerland, bringing a wealth of experience and a passion for driving innovation and optimizing customer experiences. Leveraging her expertise in digital transformation, strategic planning and operational excellence, Felicitas is dedicated to elevating customer satisfaction and achieving significant business growth. She excels at developing and executing innovative strategies, building strong relationships with stakeholders, and leading cross-functional teams to deliver exceptional results. Felicitas is committed to fostering a customer-centric culture and driving continuous improvement to enhance organizational performance.

Marty Hand is the Chief Technology Officer for the National Domestic Violence Hotline (The Hotline), where he provides leadership for technology operations, web and app development, data analytics and workforce management for the only 24/7 hotline in the nation serving domestic violence survivors via call, chat and text — linking them to nearly 5,000 shelters and domestic violence programs across the United States, Puerto Rico, Guam and the US Virgin Islands. The organization has answered more than 7.5 million contacts since their founding in 1996.

Marty has been with The Hotline since 2020 and has over 30 years of experience in the IT and contact center fields, including key leadership positions with Apple and Dell. He holds a BA in Management Information Systems from Washington State University and an MS in Predictive Analytics from Northwestern University.

Emma Noble-Beasley is a seasoned professional in the contact center industry with over 20 years of experience in the banking and government sectors. Specializing in customer experience, she has led large business transformations affecting over 2,500 people at organizations like ACC, BNZ and Kiwibank. Emma excels in channel strategy, digital transformation and employee experience, and is renowned for her authentic leadership and innovative implementations, earning her the Global Genesys Innovation Award. Her initiatives have significantly improved CX and EX, achieving cost savings up to $2 million annually. Dedicated to social change, Emma has driven digital initiatives for public service improvements and is a well-regarded industry expert.

Mila D’Antonio is a Principal Analyst on the Omdia Customer Engagement team, specializing in enterprise applications that drive personalized and connected customer experiences. She provides in-depth analysis of key developments in customer engagement technologies, including AI-powered technology, customer engagement platforms and customer journey orchestration. Her research focuses on emerging innovations that enhance customer interactions and enable relevant, data-driven engagement strategies.

Before joining Omdia (formerly Ovum) in 2017, Mila served as Editor-in-Chief at 1to1 Media. She holds a degree from the University of Pittsburgh, where she studied English, journalism and political science.

A. Bernardin “Bernie” Arnason is a leading strategic advisor and entrepreneur with a track record of more than 25 years across the customer experience (CX) and telecommunications ecosystems. He has vast experience supporting clients with analysis, strategic advisory and market research to understand markets and seize opportunities.

Currently, Bernie is an Industry Director at Frost & Sullivan where he offers strategic advisory and market analysis to clients. Prior to Frost, Bernie spent close to 18 years as a principal and partner at Pivot Group, a CX and marketing consulting firm in the telecom industry and is the founder, past publisher and editor-in-chief of Telecompetitor.com, an online broadband industry publication.

Beth English is the founder of EE and Associates and Global Tech and a seasoned leader in Information and Communications Technology (ICT) transformation for global and multi-location enterprises. Specializing in artificial intelligence (AI) strategies and readiness assessments, Beth excels in preparing organizations to leverage emerging technologies effectively. Her expertise spans enterprise and government sectors, where she advises on complex, high-impact projects that drive sustainable growth and operational efficiency.

Beth’s strength lies in her ability to navigate the challenges unique to geographically diverse and operationally complex organizations, crafting bespoke solutions that deliver measurable results. Her insights into AI readiness equip organizations with the strategies needed to seamlessly integrate new technologies, ensuring successful adaptation and alignment with core business objectives.

A recognized industry expert, Beth is a past president and long-standing member of the SCTC, a published author, frequent speaker, member of the BC Strategies team of experts, and founding member of the Global Consultant Alliance.

Damien Griffin, Director of Baringa, has more than 17 years’ experience in the shaping and delivery of customer-focused, scaled agile transformations across industries. He has worked across the delivery lifecycle working on large-scale projects coupled with shorter-term, strategy, diagnostic and op model design work. Damien’s deep specialism is customer experience (CX) design and delivery with a significant focus on the digitization of CX, customer service and expertise in contact center cloud platforms, AI solutions and core channel applications such as CCaaS and CRM. Outside of work, he is an avid traveler, diver, skier, football fan and enjoys spending as much time as possible with his young family.

Simon Harrison, CEO, Analyst and Executive Partner of Actionary, is an accomplished analyst and technology strategist with over 30 years of experience spanning systems engineering, technical consulting, product innovation and global senior leadership. He began his career as a UNIX systems engineer and consultant before advancing to senior roles, including SVP of Product Marketing and award-winning Chief Marketing Officer, driving growth for a multibillion-dollar company. A former Gartner® analyst and Magic Quadrant™ author, Simon remains an active industry analyst and executive advisor, helping companies sharpen their strategy, messaging and go-to-market performance. Today, as Founder of Actionary, he delivers board-level insight on AI, customer engagement and platform innovation, drawing on deep technical roots and a proven track record of helping companies achieve their goals at scale.

John Heiberger, president of Lucilium, has over 30 years of experience in operations, information technology, contact centers and leadership. Lucilium, which he founded in 2011, is noted for its uncompromising delivery of results while building a foundation of trust.  John is supported by a network of industry professionals who have delivered compelling business solutions within almost every industry. He maintains the highest standards and is valued for doing what is right for the client.

John is skilled in various areas of information technology, including AI, CX, contact centers, operations, leadership, strategy and execution. He has hands-on experience building information technology strength and contact center operational excellence for organizations — and has “​in your shoes” knowledge in both areas. John provides clients with significant results in the areas of delivery, strategy, lifecycle, return analysis, inside sales and service teams, help desk teams and overall operational performance.

Jonathan Keller is Co-Founder and Managing Director of Canopy Edge, a global consulting firm helping companies navigate the evolving landscape of corporate sustainability. He brings more than 18 years of executive experience in B2B consulting, ESG strategy, research and digital media in the global technology sector.

Chris Lewis has covered all aspects of the global telecom and adjacent industry sectors for 40 years working as an industry analyst with Logica, Ovum, Yankee Group and IDC, as well as independently under the Lewis Insight and Great Telco Debate banners for the last 12 years. He offers a unique perspective on the emerging telecom and networking markets and how they fit into the broader emerging digital landscape. More recently, he has focused on how AI is impacting both the operational side, as well as customer experience aspects of the industry. He also works with the TM Forum, sits on the GSMA Mobile World Congress Advisory Board and acts as a judge for many industry bodies. Chris also founded the Great Telco Debate, which he established as a platform for more open and frank discussion on the future of the telecom industry.

Registered blind throughout his career and a leading user of assistive technology, Chris has now expanded his coverage to look at the area of Equality Diversity & Inclusion and Inclusive Design and its importance as part of sustainability for the telecom industry.

With a reputation for honest, sometimes irreverent insight, Chris is proud of long-term relationships with senior management and stakeholders from the world’s largest vendors and service providers — underpinned by his keen sense of discretion and confidentiality.

In addition to his commentary on the industry, Chris is a frequent public speaker at industry and client events around the world. His dynamic and engaging presentation style, coupled with in-depth industry knowledge, has resulted in keynote addresses, chairing panels, workshop facilitation and coaching of high-level executives at many of the world’s top telco and ICT companies.

Markus Merte, a visionary enabler with over 30 years of industry experience, transforms the customer and employee experience into extraordinary experiences. His career is characterized by a deep passion for CX projects and service transformations. Markus has evolved from a dedicated project developer to a renowned CX evangelist, always focusing on the symbiosis of innovative technology and individual customer needs. His extensive experience makes him a trusted advisor for companies that want to turn their CX visions into tangible results.

Luis Muñoz, Founder of ccaaslabs, has 30 years of experience in IT, of which about 25 have been dedicated to customer experience and contact center solutions. He started developing Dialogic hardware-based interactive voice response systems in 1999 and, since then, has been a developer, analyst, project manager, technical director, architect and solutions consultant for companies such as Jazztel, Syscom, Evoluciona and Genesys. Currently, Luis works as a freelance advisor and consultant helping companies migrate their contact center platforms to the cloud and implement omnichannel platforms that deliver the best customer experience in a scalable, innovative and efficient way.

Nicolas Olivares, Partner at Communication Strategies, has over 30 years of experience in IT Technology and Services specializing in voice and data networks. Nick has also been a Principal and Consultant with Communication Strategies since 2004. In his role as Project Director, he manages the work of the Consultant/Project Manager team and oversees most consultant engagements.

Nicolas has an extensive background in telephony, VoIP, Unified Communications, LAN/WAN design, telecommunications services and circuits, advanced Contact Center and various Microsoft integrations (Teams, Exchange, Teams, SharePoint, Office365). Nick also has significant experience in the public sector and is experienced with most public sector purchasing vehicles (CalNet, NASPO, WSCA, E-Rate) As an effective team leader and communicator, Nick focuses on a collaborative approach with clients and team members to deliver results to clients — on time and on budget.

Lou Reinemann is Research Director, AI-Enabled Sales, Customer Services and Contact Center Strategies at IDC. Lou covers Customer Services (Voice of the Customer, Customer Success, Customer Service) and Contact Center Strategies, providing insights and research on organizational practices focused on customer engagements and journeys.

Prior to joining IDC, Lou spent over 30 years as an executive and consultant for tech companies and was responsible for running global pre- and post-sales customer-facing technical service teams. Lou has served for many years as a judge for customer service awards.

Sudhir Rajagopal is Research Director for the Customer Experience Management Strategies program. Forward-looking enterprises have recognized that intelligent experiences are the way forward. His research is focused on how organizations can attain experiential value parity through emotionally intelligent, contextually relevant, AI-led, whole journey experiences that grow and sustain customer trust.

Sudhir has close to 20 years of experience guiding enterprises to achieve customer-centric outcomes at scale. Prior to IDC, Sudhir spent over 15 years with multiple management consulting firms leading enterprise CX initiatives for various global companies and helping them deliver empathetic experiences at scale while achieving strategic business outcomes.

Silvia Schuts is an independent WFM consultant and founder of WFM Expert. She specializes in the implementation, configuration, and daily use of Workforce Management systems such as Genesys Cloud WEM. With over 15 years of experience, Silvia supports organizations in making the most of their WFM tools — from accurate forecasting and scheduling to reporting and system training. Her clients include the Dutch Tax Authority, insurers, telecom companies, and public sector organizations. Silvia combines deep system knowledge with practical insights to help teams get real value from their WFM platforms.

Melissa Swartz is a recognized independent consultant and expert on communication technology and business processes at Global Tech, which specializes in artificial intelligence consulting. She has extensive experience working with clients to assess their needs and creating strategies for meeting them. She offers completely independent, vendor-agnostic technology consulting and always represents her clients’ interests.

Melissa is a No Jitter blogger, regular speaker at Enterprise Connect, a member of the elite BC Strategiesexperts team, and past president of the Society of Communication Technology Consultants. experts team, and past president of the Society of Communication Technology Consultants.

Chris Thalassinos, Founder of Communications Intelligence Group, is a technology strategist for organizations looking to improve their customer experience. With over 20 years as a technology executive, he is an expert in emerging and converging technologies, as well as collaborative, client-focused change management. Additionally, he provides clients with strategic insight into technology and business alignment, with a focus on measurable innovation and outcomes. He’s served as a trusted advisor to such notable clients as BDO Canada, Bell Canada, Pinewood Studios, Rogers Communications, Royal Bank of Canada and Zurich Insurance.

Rebecca Wettemann is CEO and Principal of Valoir, a technology analyst firm providing research and advisory services to leaders with a focus on the value of technology. Founded in 2019, Valoir has deep expertise in the value of CRM, HCM, customer and employee experience, and enterprise applications. Valoir helps clients understand and maximize the returns from their technology investments.

With deep expertise in HCM, employee experience, CRM, customer experience, cloud, AI and analytics, and enterprise applications, Rebecca’s team combines primary research and unique insights to help clients understand and maximize the value of technology. Rebecca is widely viewed as an expert in technology ROI and has helped hundreds of organizations build the business case for their technology investments.

Rebecca is a sought-after speaker and resource for the press, as well as financial analysts and VC firms seeking to understand the value of emerging applications and sectors. She has led the market in its understanding of cloud computing, employee and customer engagement, digital transformation, AI and productivity.

Rebecca has authored numerous reports including “The State of Digital Transformation,” “Assessing the Value of AI and Automation,” and “Is HR ready for AI,” as well as numerous return on investment studies and reports on enterprise applications, CRM and CX, and HCM and EX.

Rebecca brings more than 20 years of industry experience to Valoir, with previous leadership roles at Nucleus Research and IDC. Her practical experience includes tenures at the International Telecommunication Union and the United States Information Agency, where she led digital transformation initiatives and related projects to help governmental agencies bridge the digital divide.

Rebecca holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science and a Bachelor of Arts degree in French from Oklahoma State University, where she was honored as a Distinguished Alumna in 2022. She also holds a Masters of Law and Diplomacy degree with a focus on technology policy and finance from the Fletcher School at Tufts University.

Angelo Arezzi, Senior Director of Workforce Management at Genesys, is a seasoned support leader with over 20 years of experience driving customer-centric innovation and operational excellence. At Genesys, he leads Support Services with a focus on elevating the customer experience. He has held leadership roles at top global brands and holds advanced degrees in computer science and a doctorate in Business Administration.

Bridgette Bell McAdoo, the Global Sustainability practice leader at Genesys, spearheaded the company’s first Chief Sustainability Officer role. She crafted a holistic sustainability management approach for Genesys, optimizing its economic, social and environmental impact across diverse functions and regions. Bridgette continues to leverage advanced sustainability metrics to deliver integrated analysis to stakeholders and refine sustainability initiatives in real time. As a hands-on, cross-departmental leader, Bridgette places great emphasis on stakeholder engagement and education.

Bridgette is a seasoned executive with over two decades of experience in executing strategic outcomes for esteemed companies like Yum Brands, UTC and WWF.

Bridgette holds a bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering from Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University and an MBA in Strategy from Claremont Graduate University.

Annick Duffy is Global WEM Senior Director at Genesys. She is a business professional, coach and operational strategist with over 25 years of experience in driving business results to exceed growth expectations while assisting businesses in adopting employee engagement best practices in their markets.

Annick is responsible for workforce engagement management (WEM) practices across the Genesys WEM Knowledge Hub organization, delivering adoption of operational disciplines across the customer base. She partners with a team of experts in Sales, Professional Services, Customer Success, Product Marketing and the customer community to rethink, reinvent and innovate the way organizations interact with their employees and customers.

Rahul Garg joined Genesys in 2021 as Vice President of Product for AI and Self-Service. He leads the development of cutting-edge AI products for Genesys Cloud, including next-generation platforms that harness agentic AI and generative AI. With over a decade of experience in AI and natural language processing, Rahul brings deep technical and product expertise to the role. He is passionate about driving innovation to deliver value across the customer experience — from agents and supervisors to end users. Prior to joining Genesys, Rahul was Chief Product Officer at Pypestream and a founding member of the product team at IBM Watson.

Peter Graf is the Chief Product Officer (CPO) of Genesys, driving the global product vision and innovation strategy. He oversees software product management, engineering, cloud operations and product delivery across the company’s industry-leading customer experience platform.

Peter has held a variety of executive leadership positions in operations, development, sales, marketing and services throughout his more than 25 years in the global enterprise software industry. His extensive background includes deep expertise on emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence.

Prior to Genesys, Peter served as CPO for Sungevity, a market-leading solar electricity company. Earlier in his career, Peter held multiple senior leadership roles with multinational software corporation SAP, including serving as the Executive Vice President and General Manager of Sustainability Software.

Peter earned a doctorate in computer science from Universität des Saarlandes and a master’s degree in computer science and economics from Technische Universität Kaiserslautern in Germany.

Derek Nesmith joined Genesys in 2021 and is Vice President of CSS Innovations, leading customer experience transformation through AI and analytics. With nearly two decades of experience in AI and analytics, Derek brings deep expertise in data-driven experience orchestration. He focuses on leveraging advanced technology to create seamless, personalized customer interactions. Prior to Genesys, Derek held strategic positions at Accenture and Strategy, developing expertise in customer experience transformation and AI solutions.

Mike Szilagyi is a seasoned software executive with over two decades of leadership experience spanning product management, engineering, operations and technology strategy. As SVP of Product Management for Genesys Cloud CX, he leads product strategy and product management for the company’s flagship cloud-based, AI-powered experience management platform. Mike has a proven track record of bringing disruptive technologies to market, with prior leadership roles at Motorola and a Chicago-based equity market-making firm, where he oversaw development and IT operations. His expertise bridges deep technical fluency with enterprise-scale product delivery. He holds a bachelor’s degree in engineering technology and computer science from Purdue University.

Rakesh Tailor is the VP of Product Management for Workforce Engagement Management and Supervisor AI at Genesys, where he leads the vision and strategy for a comprehensive portfolio of solutions including recording, quality management, surveys, speech and text analytics, employee development, gamification, workforce management and supervisor AI products such as Virtual Supervisor and Supervisor Copilot.

Rakesh joined Genesys in 2006 through the acquisition of VoiceGenie, a pioneering VoiceXML-based platform startup. With over 24 years of experience in contact center technologies, he brings deep cross-functional expertise across software development, R&D leadership, solution architecture and product management. He has a strong track record of delivering enterprise-scale cloud software that supports global organizations with high performance, reliability and agility.

His passion lies in building innovative, AI-driven solutions that empower contact center teams to perform at their best, improve operational outcomes and enhance the overall employee experience.