Cisco Customer Achievement Awards: Americas 2025 Finalists

The Cisco Customer Achievement Awards recognize outstanding Cisco customers who are achieving exceptional results through the innovative use of Cisco solutions. Now in its inaugural year under a revitalized brand and enhanced scope, the program builds on seven years of legacy and the success of the Customer Advocate and CX Hero Award programs. We’re thrilled by the response of this latest iteration, with over 130 nominations highlighting impactful business transformations and inspiring customer success stories. A panel of more than 50 Cisco experts and external industry leaders meticulously evaluated each submission to select the organizations and individuals that would advance to the shortlist.

We’re excited to officially announce the finalists for the Cisco Customer Achievement Awards: Americas 2025! These organizations represent the pinnacle of innovation, demonstrating how Cisco technologies can drive significant business outcomes and create lasting value.

We look forward to celebrating these finalists and will announce the winners during the Awards Ceremony taking place on Wednesday, June 11, 2025 at Cisco Live San Diego. Now, onto announcing the 2025 Americas finalists for each award category.

AI-Readiness

The AI Readiness Awards celebrate organizations that expertly integrate AI across diverse environments using Cisco’s advanced solutions. This recognition highlights the innovative use of Cisco technologies to modernize and secure data centers, leverage AI-native capabilities, and deliver sustainable, cost-effective AI workloads.

The Operations Pioneer Award recognizes organizations that have implemented Cisco technologies to drive transformative operational improvements. This category highlights customers who have used innovative approaches to enhance efficiency, security, and scalability, overcoming challenges and delivering measurable results that redefine their day-to-day operations.

Congratulations to the finalists:

1. Northwest Natural Gas
2. New York City Health + Hospitals
3. SmartCap
4. Umpqua Bank

The Infrastructure Innovator Award celebrates organizations that have modernized their IT infrastructure to enable scalable, secure, and high-performance environments. This category honors customers who have undertaken transformational upgrades to their data centers, networks, and systems, preparing their organizations for the demands of AI workloads and future growth.

Congratulations to the finalists:

1. City University of New York (CUNY)
2. Dolby
3. Groq
4. New England Patriots/Kraft Sports & Entertainment
5. TaxSlayer

The Customer Experience Trailblazer recognizes one finalist with an honorable mention, highlighting the organization that has leveraged Cisco Customer Experience (CX) services to achieve exceptional results. This recognition celebrates a customer who partnered with Cisco’s CX teams to successfully implement innovative solutions, navigate complexity, and deliver meaningful outcomes with measurable business impact. The customer honoree for this category will be announced at a future date.

Future-Proofed Workplaces

The Future-proofed Workplaces Awards recognize organizations that modernize diverse work environments with Cisco solutions, ensuring they are ready for the future. This award celebrates those who excel in providing zero-trust secure access, enhancing engagement through collaboration tools, and delivering outstanding hybrid work experiences.

The Modernized Infrastructure Maestro Award honors organizations that skillfully modernized and secured their network infrastructure using Cisco solutions, achieving exceptional performance, scalability, and threat protection to drive business success.

Congratulations to the finalists:

1. Fairlife
2. Texas Children’s Hospital
3. University of California, Riverside

The Workplace Wizard Award celebrates organizations that have transformed their workplaces into engaging and productive environments for users and employees, leveraging Cisco technologies to create seamless experiences through immersive collaboration and hybrid work solutions.

Congratulations to the finalists:

1. US Department of Commerce
2. Delaware State University
3. Northern Kentucky University
4. GetixHealth
5. Itaú Unibanco

The CX-Powered Workplace Warrior Award honors organizations maximizing Cisco investment value through strategic CX services, achieving outstanding results in technology adoption, performance, and business outcomes to thrive in the evolving world of work.

Congratulations to the finalists:

1. CACI
2. Missile Defense Agency
3. City University of New York (CUNY)
4. Huntington Bank

Digital Resilience

The Digital Resilience Awards recognizes organizations who excel in maintaining a secure, reliable, and high-performing organization through advanced security, assurance, and observability, as well as leveraging Cisco Customer Experience services to drive better business outcomes.

The Cybersecurity Defender Award honors organizations that excel in leveraging Cisco security solutions to effectively prevent, detect, and respond to threats, ensuring comprehensive protection across their business operations.

Congratulations to the finalists:

1. Innovation Federal Credit Union
2. Steve Madden
3. Children’s National Hospital
4. CalTrans
5. Claro Brasil

The Assurance Avenger Award recognizes organizations that achieve seamless end-to-end connectivity using Cisco’s assurance solutions, ensuring reliable application delivery and optimized network performance.

Congratulations to the finalists:

1. New York City Health + Hospitals
2. Itaú Unibanco
3. US Bank

The Observability Visionary Award honors organizations using Cisco’s observability tools to prevent downtime and enhance user experiences, ensuring operational excellence and service reliability.

Congratulations to the finalists:

1. Honeywell
2. Alaska Airlines
3. REPAY

The CX Resilience Ranger Award recognizes organizations that demonstrate exceptional digital resilience by expertly navigating challenges and achieving outstanding outcomes through strategic implementation and the use of Cisco Customer Experience (CX) services.

Congratulations to the finalists:

1. Northwestern Medicine
2. Baltimore Police Department
3. Grupo Xcaret

Sustainability Changemaker

The Sustainability Changemaker Award honors organizations using Cisco’s innovative solutions to reduce environmental impact and drive sustainability. From energy-smart buildings and efficient data centers to embracing circular design and a low-carbon economy, these changemakers are paving the way towards a greener future. Celebrate those leading the charge in energy management, clean energy, and sustainable innovation!

Congratulations to the finalists:

1. Fairlife
2. Eletrobras
3. Clarke County Hospital

CX Customer Hero of the Year

The CX Customer Hero of the Year award is a prestigious recognition presented to a customer who has demonstrated exceptional leadership and initiative in leveraging Cisco’s Customer Experience services within their organization. This award celebrates those who have not only embraced Cisco’s technologies but have also effectively leveraged Customer Experience services to harness them to drive significant technological advancements and outcomes within their organization.

Congratulations to the finalists:

1. Brent Saxton – Huntington Bank
2. Dan Cantor – Fiserv
3. Joe Gleeson – Intel
4. Michael Cole – Mass General Brigham
5. David Smith – US Bank

Cisco Insider of the Year

The Cisco Insider of the Year celebrates the customer who has made the most significant impact on the Cisco Insider community and will be nominated by the Cisco team. This individual has consistently contributed to the broader Cisco Insider community and has supported other customers through activities such as mentorship, community building, exchanging best practices and/or advocating with Cisco through speaking at events or case studies. Join us in celebrating the amazing journey and awesome impact this standout individual has had on the Cisco Insider community and beyond

Congratulations to the finalists:

1. Gustavo Leon Delgado – EMERSON
2. Marcelo Morais – 4XPERT
3. Jian Zou – PKA
4. Dexter King – Carnival Cruise Lines
5. Tim Roberts – St. Anne Institute

Please join us in congratulating the nominees and feel free to share your comments below.

Follow @CiscoInsider on LinkedIn and Instagram for further awards updates! 

If you’re attending Cisco Live in San Diego, be sure to add the Awards Ceremony to your agenda for the week, and we’ll see you there!

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