Home > Companies > C-Suite On Deck > Q&A with Amy Barzdukas, Executive Vice President & Chief Marketing Officer at Poly

Q&A with Amy Barzdukas, Executive Vice President & Chief Marketing Officer at Poly

MEDIA 7 | November 21, 2019

Amy Barzdukas, EVP and Chief Marketing Officer at Poly is a marketing and communications leader with extensive experience in setting strategy, shifting perceptions, advising customers, digital marketing, revenue marketing, integrated marketing communications, and public relations in highly competitive product arenas.

Amy is known for her ability to create and execute winning turnarounds on a global scale.

MEDIA 7: What inspired you to get into marketing?
AMY BARZDUKAS: I was always destined for marketing, even if I didn’t know it. As a child, I collected promotional brochures. I was fascinated by how the words and pictures were used to drive action. My first job was as an advertising copywriter, and I’ve never looked back.

M7: How is Poly redefining the video conferencing experience for modern businesses?
AB: We’re in an unprecedented time of change in our industry. Voice and video services are moving to the cloud, and companies are changing how they approach their communications needs. Poly is the largest provider of the devices – video conferencing, audio conferencing, headphones and desk phones – you use to connect to these services so you can collaborate with your colleagues. That uniquely positions us to shape the video conferencing experience, and we’re doing so in four ways.

First, Poly has made both the Zoom Rooms and the Microsoft Teams video conferencing experience better than ever with our radically simple Poly Studio X video bars that deliver these experiences with no PC or Mac required. We’ve got decades of experience in understanding what makes meetings more human – for everyone in the room and those dialing in from other locations – and we’ve packed all of that into easy-to-install, easy-to-manage, and easy-to-use all-in-one powerhouses.

Second, we are bringing the world of AV and video conferencing into the modern app economy. Our Studio X series and Poly G7500 video conferencing devices run a common platform that can be updated and enhanced through a series of regular software updates. This Poly platform, built on Android, can run applications like a smartphone does today.

Third, Poly has introduced innovation that makes any video conference better. Our new Poly MeetingAI features use AI and machine learning to address the distractions that hit your senses in a meeting. We make it easier to hear what’s being said by blocking out the annoying noises that people make while talking, and we make it easier to see what’s going on in the room with the most advanced speaker tracking and framing, and our built-in production rules.

Finally, we are pricing our solutions in a way that completely resets the calculations on what it costs to outfit a room. The Studio X30, for huddle room and smaller spaces, costs just about $2,100, including the Poly TC8 touch controller. All you add is the cloud service and a monitor, and you have a room up and running for under $2,500. That’s easily under the cost of other solutions and with better audio and video quality.


"Baby Boomers and more than half of Gen Z say they are most productive when they were working around noise."

M7: As the CMO of Poly, what were the major challenges in rebranding and transforming two separate organizations (Plantronics and Polycom) under a single brand Poly?
AB: One of the greatest challenges of bringing together Plantronics and Polycom was doing so in a way that honored their brand equity, history, and positive associations while establishing a new story for the new company. Plantronics was already an audio pioneer– the first headset that transmitted Neil Armstrong’s famous words during the first moon landing. Polycom was the leader in audio and video conferencing – the conference phone used by business leaders and industry captains.
We had to figure out how to build a stand-out narrative in a crowded space for the general market. For customers and partners, we found a way to carry through the legacies and histories of both companies into the new brand. And for our employees, we had to inspire them to believe in the new brand and the new combined mission. These different challenges with different stakeholders took different approaches to confront, but in the end, we brought everyone to the same conclusion that Poly was moving forward, unified and stronger.

And like any acquisition, integration takes time. We’re proud of our accomplishments since rebranding to Poly in March 2019. Since then, we’ve refreshed our video conferencing line of products, broken new ground with a mobile phone station called Elara 60 Series and showcased our continued commitment to expanding the ecosystem with partners such as Zoom, Microsoft, Google, Amazon and more. As Poly, we bring a new level of quality, simplicity, and flexibility so that every communication can easily become a place for collaboration and innovation for the enterprise.


"Gen Z and Millennials came up in an era of digitization, so they are more accustomed to the tools and technology to deal with distractions in the workplace."

M7: A recent study by Poly reveals that employees prefer noisier open offices to closed, quiet spaces. What do you think is responsible for driving these unique demands in the workplace today?
AB: Our research shows that Gen Z and Millennials tend to prefer open offices compared to Gen X and Baby Boomers and that more than half of Gen Z say they are most productive when they were working around noise. What we’re seeing is that Gen Z and Millennials came up in an era of digitization, so they are more accustomed to the tools and technology to deal with distractions in the workplace. For example, they’re used to wearing noise-canceling headphones to block out the background noise, and similarly at home with video. They’ve been doing it all their lives!

Now that we can work from anywhere – coffee shops, airports, waiting rooms – we are more accustomed to dealing with distractions and working through them. We take that mindset into the office along with the tools we may use to address distraction, from a pair of comfortable headphones with ANC to deciding to do different types of work in different settings.

M7: What features have made Poly Studio win the 'Best of Enterprise Connect' award in the '2019 Communication/Collaboration Device'?
AB: Poly Studio is our answer to the need for easy-to-use video conferencing devices for smaller spaces called huddle rooms. Poly Studio is a video USB bar with premium audio and video capabilities. Its standout features include NoiseBlock, which mutes distracting background noises, Automatic Group Framing and Speaker Tracking, which zooms in to focus on the speaking participant. This board-room like audio and video transforms small meeting rooms into a center for collaboration. We’re also pleased that it was recently certified for Zoom Rooms and Microsoft Teams. The device also works with Skype for Business, Google Meet, Cisco WebEx and Amazon Chime, and virtually any cloud-based video collaboration service.


"Poly combines legendary audio expertise with powerful video and conferencing capabilities to help our users overcome the distractions, complexity, and distance, making communication in and out of the workplace challenging."

M7: What traits make Poly a global leader in communications and a leading choice for every kind of workspace?
AB: Our in-depth expertise, tireless innovation, and emphasis on partnership make Poly a global leader in communications and a leading choice for every kind of workspace.

Poly combines legendary audio expertise with powerful video and conferencing capabilities to help our users overcome the distractions, complexity, and distance, making communication in and out of the workplace challenging. When the world was on a race to space in the ’60s, NASA approached us—Plantronics back then—with a seemingly impossible task: create a headset that would equip astronauts to communicate with Mission Control from the earth to the moon, and back again.

Fifty years later, we share the same mission today: to create powerful connections that unify people the world over. We’re designing technology for the different ways people work – open offices, remote locations, mobile-first workers. We are the largest provider of headsets, video and audio-conferencing devices that you use to communicate and collaborate for your work, whatever that may be. And we continue to innovate with products like Poly Studio X that change how people collaborate.
Through partnerships with industry leaders like Microsoft, Amazon, Google, and Zoom, Poly takes an open-architecture approach that allows users to seamlessly connect across all the best technologies. Whenever and wherever people connect with these services, we will be there to provide the best-in-class audio, video and voice technology to make the experience that much better.

M7: What’s your superpower or spirit animal?
AB: My superpower is the ability to read amazingly quickly, thanks to the experimental elementary school I attended. I don’t know how anyone gets through their workload without it, honestly. My spirit animal? I told my husband the other day that I think it is Tom Petty. I’m a huge fan. If you have a problem, there is a Tom Petty song that can solve it, or at least make it more fun.

ABOUT POLY

Plantronics, Inc. (“Poly” – formerly Plantronics and Polycom) (NYSE: PLT) is a global communications company that powers meaningful human connection and collaboration. Poly combines legendary audio expertise and powerful video and conferencing capabilities to overcome the distractions, complexity, and distance that make communication in and out of the workplace challenging. Poly believes in solutions that make life easier when they work together and with our partner’s services. Our headsets, software, desk phones, audio and video conferencing, analytics and services are used worldwide and are a leading choice for every kind of workspace.

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Gep uses microsoft azure openai service to enhance its procurement & supply chain software solutions

prnewswire | May 29, 2023

GEP, a leading provider of supply chain strategy, software, and services to Fortune 500 and Global 2000 enterprises worldwide, today announced the launch of a suite of solutions within GEP SOFTWARE that uses OpenAI's ChatGPT technology through Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service.This integration offers clients an intuitive interface to query data, automate processes and improve decision-making to optimize operations. "The AI capabilities from Microsoft are a giant leap forward. This integration provides our clients with a conversational-based interface that is more intuitive, allowing them to derive actionable insights and improve global procurement and supply operations like never before, unlocking new levels of efficiency and productivity," said Subhash Makhija, chief executive officer, GEP. "We're using generative AI capabilities through Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service to identify operational gaps and risks in supplier contracts and brainstorm ways to optimize procurement and value chains." "This collaboration aims to accelerate AI-driven innovation to deliver more efficient and sustainable global procurement and supply chains for our joint customers," said Alvaro Celis, vice president of ISV Sales for Microsoft. GEP SOFTWARE, used in 120 countries, is available in the Microsoft Azure Marketplace. It includes GEP SMART™, named the world's best procurement software, encompassing spend analysis, sourcing, contract management, supplier management, savings project management, catalog management, and category workbench, and GEP NEXXE™, the next-generation cloud-native supply chain unified platform. Microsoft's generative AI capabilities are incorporated into the GEP MINERVA™ suite of AI and machine learning (ML) engine enabling cross-organization data analytics and decision support. GEP SOFTWARE enables global companies to drive optimum efficiency, agility, visibility and actionable intelligence into all procurement, purchasing and supply chain functions while eliminating burdensome infrastructure and support costs to achieve maximum ROI. About GEP Software GEP Software provides award-winning digital procurement and supply chain platforms that help global enterprises become more agile, resilient, competitive and profitable. With beautifully rendered interfaces and flexible workflows, GEP provides users fresh, intuitive digital workspaces that yield extraordinary levels of user adoption and meaningful gains in team and personal productivity. GEP products capitalize on machine learning and cognitive computing, advanced data and semantic technologies, IoT, mobile and cloud technologies, and are designed to incorporate continual innovations in technology. GEP's software integrates quickly and easily with third-party and legacy systems, such as SAP, Oracle and all other major ERP and F&A software. And with superb support and service, GEP is an industry leader in customer satisfaction and loyalty. A leader in multiple Gartner Magic Quadrants, GEP's cloud-native software and digital business platforms consistently win awards and recognition from industry analysts, research firms and media outlets, including Gartner, Forrester, IDC, Procurement Leaders and Spend Matters. GEP SOFTWARE is part of Clark, NJ-based GEP — the world's leading provider of procurement and supply chain strategy, software and managed services.

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GEODIS Expands Drayage Offering with Acquisition of Southern Companies, Strengthening End-to-End Supply Chain Capabilities Across U.S.

prnewswire | May 29, 2023

GEODIS, a world leader in transport and logistics, announced today it has acquired Southern Companies, a leading drayage provider based in the U.S. that handles all phases of the import and export process. The acquisition enhances GEODIS' end-to-end supply chain capabilities across the U.S., further strengthening its position as one of the world's leading providers of logistics services. Southern Companies is a family-owned business founded in Miami in 1965 and has moved more than 1 million containers. The company runs operating terminals serving seven key ports: Port of Miami, Port of Everglades, Port of Houston, Port of Jacksonville, Port of Tampa, Port of Savannah and Port of Charleston. Southern Companies provides a range of import and export services, including warehousing and trucking, to ensure customer goods are moving swiftly through the supply chain. "The acquisition of Southern Companies represents an important addition to GEODIS as we continue to strengthen and grow our capabilities, our team and our client roster throughout the U.S.," said Mike Honious, GEODIS in Americas President & CEO. "Southern Companies has been a leader in drayage services, from warehousing to trucking, for nearly six decades and operates in ports that are critical to our clients. From their people and culture to their expertise and capabilities, Southern Companies is an ideal fit for GEODIS and aligns perfectly with our Americas growth strategy." Jorge Mora, Owner & CEO of Southern Companies, said, "We have been relentlessly focused on import and export logistics, with a special emphasis on port operations, and have witnessed tremendous organic growth since our beginnings over 55 years ago. We understand the unique needs of our clients and have proven expertise in maintaining the highest standards of excellence while meeting the ever-changing demands of a growing international market. By combining our capabilities with GEODIS' exceptional leadership, deep bench of experts and global footprint, we can expand our reach and provide an even broader range of services to our clients to help them navigate today's complex supply chain landscape." The acquisition complements GEODIS in Americas' existing transportation and warehousing capabilities, providing customers with an efficient and reliable end-to-end logistics solution. More than 80 employees spanning Southern Companies' seven facilities throughout the Southeast will officially join GEODIS. With its Americas region headquartered in Brentwood, Tennessee, GEODIS currently operates more than 150 warehouse facilities for its clients with over 50 million square feet of warehousing space in the U.S. alone. GEODIS now has more than 17,000 employees across North America. About GEODIS GEODIS is a leading global logistics provider acknowledged for its expertise across all aspects of the supply chain. As a growth partner to its clients, GEODIS specializes in five lines of business: Supply Chain Optimization, Global Freight Forwarding, Global Contract Logistics, Distribution & Express, and European Road Network. With a global network spanning nearly 170 countries and more than 49,400 employees, GEODIS is ranked no. 6 in its sector across the world. In 2022, GEODIS generated €13.7 billion in revenue. GEODIS is a company owned by SNCF group.

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