REDWOOD CITY, Calif., May 03, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Gainsight™, the Customer Success company announced today the final agenda and details for Pulse 2017 , the largest conference for the Customer Success community coming to the Oakland Convention Center in Oakland, CA from May 9-11. Gainsight is expecting over 4,000 executives from recurring revenue businesses to be in attendance for the event, which now in its fifth year, has played host to over 11,000 individuals from six continents. So far, over 31 countries will be represented at the 2017 conference as well as 41 of 50 states, reinforcing the belief that Customer Success is truly a global movement. With 150+ speakers on 10 stages across 3 days, Pulse is the annual destination for Customer Success professionals from all industries to gather and share best practices, network with peers, and celebrate being pioneers of the profession.
“Pulse has become a ‘mini-SXSW’ for our industry,” says Anthony Kennada, Vice President of Marketing at Gainsight. “We’ve closed down an entire Marriott hotel and attached convention center, several city blocks, and even an aircraft carrier to accommodate the energy and excitement behind the Customer Success movement. We’re thrilled to be on this journey with the great partners, customers, and community members who are together writing the history pages of the next great profession in Customer Success.”
Some of the highlight sessions from today’s announcement include keynote discussions with Aaron Levie, CEO of Box, Keith Krach, Chairman of DocuSign, Tom Reilly, CEO of Cloudera and Gretchen Rubin, Author of the blockbuster New York Times bestsellers, Better Than Before, The Happiness Project and Happier at Home. This illustrious cast will also share the stage with customer-centric executives from companies such as Adobe, Cisco, GE Digital, HPE, IBM, Illumina, Salesforce, SAP Concur and Sprint amongst many others.
Full access passes for the conference are now officially sold out, however free keynote and social passes are still available at www.gainsight.com/pulse .
More Than a Tech Conference
Pulse has become more than simply a tech conference, but an experience that binds the members of the Customer Success community together. The inclusive event has become a place where all members of the industry, regardless of maturity or company size, can come together to invest in the professional development of their teammates in Customer Success and collectively move the category forward.
In an effort to celebrate the fifth year milestone of the conference, Gainsight has announced several new activations to this year’s programming, including:
Pulse Town Expansion : The surrounding neighborhood of Old Oakland will transform into Pulse Town for this week alone as restaurants, bars, and apparel stores will open their doors to Pulse. Attendees will be able to grab lunch at local restaurants and food trucks as part of their conference registration and participate in a pub crawl on Tuesday night around the neighborhood.
The Customer Success Experience at the USS Hornet : On the evening of Wednesday, May 10, Gainsight and Salesforce will be hosting the Customer Success Experience on the USS Hornet, an (actual) aircraft carrier docked in the San Francisco Bay in Alameda, CA about three miles from Pulse 2017. The Hornet played a major part in the Pacific battles of World War II, served in the Vietnam War, and recovered the Apollo 11 and Apollo 12 astronauts as they returned from the moon (the space capsule is on display in the ship’s hangar bay).
Special 90s Surprises : In an effort to reflect on the last five years as an industry, Pulse has embraced the nostalgia of the 1990s as a central theme for the conference this year. Everything from venue decor to background music and throw-back games throughout the event, and even a few surprise performances will bring attendees back twenty years while building customer-driven growth strategies for the next twenty years.
Built for the Customer Success Industry, Led by the Community
As the Customer Success ecosystem continues to mature, several marquee brands have lent their resources and expertise to driving the growth and future direction of the industry. Many of these organizations, including ServiceRocket , ServiceSource , Accenture , G2 Crowd , Salesforce Quote-to-Cash , SuccessHacker , UserIQ and over twenty other companies have joined forces with Gainsight to make Pulse 2017 the biggest event yet for the Customer Success industry.
Christopher M. Carrington, CEO of ServiceSource , says of the fast-developing industry, “With analyst reports predicting that more than 80 percent of software vendors will incorporate subscription-based business models by 2020, the pressure is on companies to transform their customer engagement strategy and how they manage their recurring revenue. With more than 15 years’ experience in doing just that for B2B companies by helping them implement, evolve and scale their customer success programs, we’re thrilled to help build the future of the industry at Pulse 2017."
Attendees can enroll in Pulse Academy Live presented by SuccessHacker to become certified Customer Success Managers, take a break at the Pendo Lounge, or enjoy an evening of entertainment and networking on board the deck of the USS Hornet aircraft carrier in the San Francisco Bay with Salesforce Quote-to-Cash and Gainsight. Conference-goers can also chose to attend Business of Customer Education (BOCE) , a dedicated track presented by ServiceRocket.
“Educating customers is crucial to customer success, which makes Pulse 2017 a natural venue for us to present Business of Customer Education (BOCE),” says Rob Castaneda, Founder and CEO of ServiceRocket. "Our day-long deep-dive at Pulse is focused on building, executing, and scaling customer education programs that increase adoption, which reduces churn and ultimately grows revenue through Customer Success."
“The role of the customer in a business’s success is more meaningful than ever,” says Brad Rosen, Director of Customer Success at real-time review platform G2 Crowd. “User reviews help businesses limit risk and objectively assess what is best for them by leveraging the crowd. The customer has a powerful voice, which means scaling success of every customer has become crucial to any business’s strategy.”
Live Training and Certification at Pulse Academy
On Monday, May 8th, Gainsight and SuccessHacker will present Pulse Academy Live , an intensive, one day workshop designed to provide both new and existing Customer Success Managers and Account Managers with the foundational knowledge and skills needed to jumpstart a career in Customer Success. Participants in Pulse Academy Live will join the over 2000 graduates of Customer Success University, the former branding of the program now presented in partnership with SuccessHacker.
“More and more companies are starting to understand that their success is inextricably linked to the success of their customers,” says Todd Eby, Co-Founder and CEO of SuccessHacker. “This realization has put Customer Success in the spotlight as retention, renewal, and recurring revenue replace one-time sales. Customer Success is now more than just an ideal, it’s a critical success factor and key to a company's long-term success.”
Pulse Academy Live will be available in two tracks -- one for practitioners and another for team leads. Participation in either program is still available at $495 per person and does not require a ticket to Pulse 2017. Those interested in attending can register at www.gainsight.com/pulse .
An Immersive Experience
With in-depth training experiences, 4,000 expected attendees,150 of the most influential speakers in Customer Success, and creative networking and surprise entertainment throughout the 3-day Pulse experience, Pulse Town is expected to be the center of one of the fastest growing industries as it partners with local businesses to transform Old Town Oakland and the deck of the USS Hornet into an immersive conference retreat for Customer Success professionals, as Pulse enters its 5th year in the booming Customer Success industry.
For More Information:
- Register now for Pulse 2017: http://www.gainsight.com/pulse/
- Read more about Gainsight’s customers: http://www.gainsight.com/customers/
- Join Gainsight’s growing team: http://www.gainsight.com/company/
About Gainsight Gainsight™, the Customer Success company, helps businesses grow faster by reducing churn, increasing upsell, and driving customer advocacy. Gainsight’s product helps you touch customers effectively, track customer health consistently and transform the way your company orients around the customer. Gainsight provides a 360° view of customers and drives retention across Customer Success, sales, marketing, executive and product management. Learn how leading companies like Adobe, Box, Cisco, DocuSign, HPE, Marketo and Workday use Gainsight to help their customers succeed at www.gainsight.com .
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