‘Powering Transformation for Fortune 500 Companies and the World’s Most Loved Unicorns’: Everise, an Award-Winning Asia-based Global Experience Company, Plans to Expand its Footprint Globally

 “Everise is a next-gen experience company that offers a unique set of solutions combined with a deep pool of industry knowledge.”

In today’s experience economy, people don’t buy products, they buy experiences. In light of this, we’re pleased to present Everise —the leader in delivering global experiences.

The company provides end-to-end customer experience solutions by enabling transformational global experiences and fusing human and digital workforces to deliver omnichannel CX. It serves customers worldwide.

Everise was established in 2016 and is headquartered in Singapore.

Sudhir Agarwal, Everise CEO, spoke exclusively to The Silicon Review. Below is an excerpt.

Can you brief us about the history of your company?

In a partnership with Everstone Capital and my company, Sunrise BPO, Everise was born with a vision to create a USD 1 Billion-dollar Experience Company, by identifying and subsequently acquiring companies which showed potential in the areas of customer experience.

In the span of 18 months, we successfully completed the monumental task of acquiring a best-in-class Customer Experience company in the US, C3; an innovative connected device support company in the US, Trusource Labs; an Enterprise AI company in Malaysia, Hyperlab; as well as launching a Multilingual Hub Joint Venture with Korean BPO giant, UBASE in Malaysia.

In 2019, we focused on integrating the businesses and creating a single “We Are Everise” culture that was people-first, celebrated diversity and incubated innovation. Globally, we have over 12,000 technology-driven professionals, who speak more than 20 different languages across 13 locations. This investment in our people led to winning multiple “Best Company to Work For” Awards from the Stevies International, HR Asia and more.

Today, we are one cohesive unit under the Everise brand, extending CX Transformation to enterprises from the Fortune 500 to the world’s most beloved unicorns and high growth tech start-ups. And, we offer a unique and comprehensive set of Customer (CX), Product (PX) and Digital (DX) Experience solutions for various clients in the industries such as Health and Wellness, Connected Health, Smart Home, Tech and Software, Travel and Hospitality, Media and Communications, Financial Services, and Logistics and Supply chain.

There is nothing more important for a successful business than a well-defined mission and vision statements. Can you explain your M&V statements in brief?

We are in the people business, first and foremost. Everything we do has to revolve around our employees, connecting them to the best experiences for them. We do this by investing in the right work environment and the right corporate culture — one that celebrates diversity and incubates innovative thinking, regardless of position.

From a business point of view, we strive to transform customer experiences in the digital age. We know that our clients’ needs are as unique as their customers, so we work with them to define their ideal support outcomes and then draw from our suite of experience-focused business solutions to craft a winning strategy.

In short, our mission is to connect people and transform experiences.

What is your greatest fear, and how do you manage fear?

I wouldn’t say I am fearful, but being human, I think we all experience moments of doubt. It’s in these moments that you need to be the most patient with yourself. On the occasion that I dip into a low point, I reflect on the great experiences I have had in my life and climb my way out of doubt and back into certainty. I am patient with my emotions, keeping negative energy away by transitioning to the positive. In this way, I address things before they transform into fear.

What were the biggest initial hurdles to building your business and how did you overcome them?

With mergers and acquisitions, I’ve learned that the biggest challenge isn’t the acquisitions themselves but the integrating of each company’s unique culture. With Everise, I brought American, South American, Asian, and European cultures and each of their unique company cultures together, under a single brand, a call-to-action: “We are Everise”. By doing this, the synergies we envisioned between the companies were able to materialize in a short time and enable us to grow effectively.

What do you hope to accomplish in the long run?

It’s simple, really: Continued success by creating memorable experiences for both my employees and our clients. This is the foundation of what we do, and if we get that right, then the rest will fall into place for the business.

What would you say was the single most influential factor in your business’ success?

Our people! Without them, we wouldn’t have the success we have today. But because of our people-first focus, Everise has become one of the most awarded employers in the region, winning innovation awards at ‘HR Excellence Awards’, ‘HR Asia’s Best Place to Work’ award, ‘Top 50 Workplaces in the US’ from ‘The Silicon Review’ and ‘Company of the Year’ from ‘Stevie Awards for Great Employers’, just to name a few. It’s humbling to know that investing in people can be a rewarding experience.

What other leaders do you look up to and why?

I look up to mentors in my life who have been there for me, whether it was my first mentor or my first big boss. At the beginning of my career, Vineet Nayar, Chairman of Tech Mahindra, gave me my first job at the age of 19 and showed me the ropes. He’s one of the most successful professionals from India and without him, I wouldn’t be where I am today. As a result, I have made it a personal passion to also mentor the next generation of leaders in our company.

If you had one piece of advice to someone just starting out, what would it be?

Whatever you choose to do, make sure you are passionate about it and stick with it. Surround yourself with people who are smarter than you and who can enable you to support your growth. And never forget to be thankful for the support of your family and friends.

What are your future focus areas?

There are two areas we are looking to expand. First, the markets we operate and serve; and second, our capabilities, specifically our digital transformation resources. Growing in these two facets will cement Everise as the global leader for CX Transformation Solutions.

Sudhir Agarwal: A Formidable Leader

Sudhir began his journey with Genpact in 1999, a global professional services firm, where he held multiple leadership roles spanning across operations and transition management and spearheaded the company’s successful foray into Hungary and China. Following Genpact, Sudhir was a founding member of Aegis, one of the largest BPO companies in India. Growing the company from a mere five-employee operation, he scaled the operation from its humble beginnings into India, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Europe, the Middle East, Australia, Argentina, the US, and Asia.

Succeeding Aegis, Sudhir founded Everise with a vision to disrupt the traditional BPO industry by creating a technology-first CX Transformation company.

As an impactful orator and thought leader in the industry, Sudhir has been regularly invited to speak at various prestigious forums across the world, including the Wharton India Economic Forum at Philadelphia, the Aspect BPO CXO Xchange roundtable in Hong Kong, CX Asia Summit in Singapore, and Female Entrepreneurs Day, among others.

Our strong relationships and deep technical knowledge allow us to nurture innovation and deliver immersive customer experiences for the brands of tomorrow.