Q&A: 8x8 CMO Talks On-Premise To Cloud Shift

What do you see in the overall trends in cloud communication solutions?

It's happening fast, faster than people thought only a few months ago, and this is because larger businesses are now jumping in the cloud with both feet since there is a company like 8x8 that can carry them to success. The partnership with Arrow Systems Integration will further accelerate this.

Where do you see the trend in Unified Communications-as-a-Service heading?

Same as for cloud communications. The attach rate of UC to telephony in the cloud is very high because all of the capabilities like Instant Messaging/Presence or document sharing are part of the offer.

This is not typically the case for on-premise solutions that require complex license upsell and implementation plans. 8x8 is at the forefront of this and we expect the trend to accelerate with the integration of HD Video in the user experience.

Where are trends in Software-as-a-Service heading?

In the same direction of cloud communications and UCaaS. Key is the ability to quickly deploy services so that customers can enjoy almost instant time to value. When that occurs, magic happens.

How is 8x8 going to capitalize on the opportunity of on-premises hardware and software systems shifting to the cloud?

The on-premises market is rapidly declining. The migration to cloud communications started at the SMB segment - businesses with less than 50 employees. We are now seeing a very rapid adoption of our cloud communications solution by midmarket and distributed enterprises that bring a higher level of complexity and more stringent requirements.

To help these larger customers quickly and effectively migrate to 8x8's solutions, we have launched a comprehensive set of services, called "Elite Touch" to help onboard customers in a matter of weeks.

For instance, we on-boarded ChenMed, a fast growing and extremely well-regarded healthcare organization with over 1,400 employees and 38 locations, in less than 5 weeks. This level of on-boarding is transformational compared to typical implementation cycles of on-premises solutions that last months if not quarters.