Cisco's partner relationships play an integral role in Cisco's business, and we're happy to spotlight Jorge Alanis, COO with Evox. Jorge is an active member in Cisco's partner marketing advocacy community that helps professionals connect with each other, share best practices, and learn from peers.

Hi, Jorge! I'm so excited to chat with you and learn more about your professional and personal journey! Let's start with this: Have you always wanted to work in IT? When you were younger, what career did you think you might pursue?

Hello Rashik, thank you for the opportunity! I would say my profession in IT was centered around being a System Engineer. From a young age, everything related to computers and systems caught my attention. While working in a field services role, I earned the following Cisco certifications: CCNA, CCDA and CCNP. 

Tell us about Evox! When did you join the company, and what are your current responsibilities?

I joined Evox in 2000 when I was 18 and will celebrate my 22^ndanniversary this October! In my time at Evox, I've worked in Field Engineering, and as Project Manager, Business Development Manager, Chief Marketing Officer, and a Cisco Director within my business unit. In January 2021, I took on the strategic role of Chief Operating Officer to help align and drive strategy for the company. Since taking this role, I have enjoyed working on several business transformation projects!

I'm proud to say we won The Marketing Velocity LATAM award in both 2017 and 2018 and we were The Global Award Winners from The Partner Summit in 2018! I was also one of the nominees for Partner of the Year in the Global Advocate Awards last year.

22 years, what an incredible achievement and breadth of experience! Changing gears, what challenge (or challenges) have you and your company had to overcome in the last year?

Evox started an innovation-focused transformation in 2011 by developing our own collaboration and contact center offers. We leveraged Cisco technologies, with a focus on a recurring payment model. We also adopted the Customer Experience model based on the LAER framework (Land, Adopt, Expand and Renovate) to focus on our customers and add to our value and offerings.

Our challenge, like many companies, has been reinventing ourselves during the pandemic. We took advantage of the incredible partner resources Cisco provides to get a competitive advantage and take a more aligned approach to our software, services, and subscriptions.

You're one of our "Icons" in Cisco's marketing focused partner community, and a very active member. What value does the community provide to you?

Cisco's partner marketing advocacy community is a great initiative! It is an amazing place to network with peers from around the world and hear about their experiences. It's also a way to keep up-to-date on trends and take Cisco courses. I have met other partner marketers through the community that I now have as connections on LinkedIn, and we regularly share experiences with each other.

Being a Cisco partner marketing advocate for the past year, what would you say are your favorite things about the community? What are your motivations for participating? 

My favorite part of the community is the access to ongoing learning opportunities that motivate me to develop my professional knowledge. The wide variety of "challenges" in the community is also great, with different showcase topics every month.

With a glance to the future now, how would you like to see Cisco's partner marketing advocacy community evolve?

I would love to see the community offer more live events as we return to in-person gatherings! I've had the opportunity to attend Cisco events in San Diego, Chicago, Barcelona, and New Orleans and they were all fantastic experiences. By adopting a hybrid digital and in-person approach within the community, this would enable partners to connect with each other and with Cisco.

I agree that this would be beneficial. Now for our last question, which celebrity's voice would you borrow for a day?

Easy! I would borrow Cisco's very own Chuck Robbin's voice for the day.

His speeches have a way of capturing your attention and portraying the right message. Chuck is a true leader! I admire how he transformed Cisco by expanding the product suite to include software, and aligning Cisco's business model with partners worldwide.

A great choice! Thank you again for joining us, Jorge!

You are welcome!

Read more partner advocate interviews

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Join us!

Cisco's partner marketing advocacy community accelerates Cisco's breadth around partner advocacy, helping us reach even more partners and bringing a depth to our relationships that prioritizes authentic, mutually beneficial interactions.

Our advocacy community is centered around interests and business challenges unique to partner marketing. It's a dedicated space where partners can connect with each other and with Cisco, share feedback and best practices, and develop their marketing skills. Cisco's partner marketers engage with us through dedicated channels and challenges as they:

• Connect with peers, and Cisco's executives and marketing leaders
• Share feedback, questions, and best practices
• Get access to "insider" content and resources
• Develop career skills
• Boost personal and professional brand development
• Gain inspiration from the brightest partner marketing minds in the industry

Ready to get started? Head over to the community and say hello!