Viewing the career of Felipe Godoy from a superficial level, one would find a longtime expert in the field of telecommunications, covering areas from the construction of infrastructure and product design, to his current role as vice president of business development for RingByName. However, that only speaks to Godoy’s professional vocation. His true calling is built around service in all of its forms.
The holder of BAs in computer science and political science, along with a master’s degree in international relations and security from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, Godoy embarked on a military stint with the Army that included the role of commander in the United Nations Ground Forces Peacekeeping Operations. While his post-military career has touched on various aspects of communications and technology—from founding a tech start-up that delivered satellite-based disaster recovery solutions for government and private enterprise to consulting for Cisco Government Systems and Panasonic—that love of service continues to be a common denominator throughout his life.
“I have always found service rewarding, whether volunteering in the community, serving in the military or designing customer-centric technology solutions,” said Godoy, a 2020 ENX Magazine Difference Maker. “The most rewarding part of my job is working directly with our partner dealers to generate new revenue streams and market around the needs of the customers to whom they are trusted advisors.”
After spending five years with Hotwire Communications, where he developed the company’s IP-based smart home and security products, Godoy arrived at RingByName in 2012. He was on the lookout for new channel opportunities and leveraged a speaking engagement at ITEX to gain entry into the world of office technology dealerships. He was duly impressed with how dealers approached customer acquisition and retention, and discovered there was a natural overlap for RingByName and dealers to build new evergreen revenue streams. Thus, the company’s channel partner program was born.
“In speaking to business equipment dealers and managed service providers, I kept finding a reticence to offer new cloud-based technologies for the same common reasons: lack of product knowledge about new technologies, and the lack of man-power to sell, support and maintain it,” Godoy noted. “We resolved to create a program where dealers weren’t defocused from their core mission: selling business equipment. That’s why RingByName’s team of sales engineers do all of the heavy lifting—from preparing the proposal and performing remote sales presentations, to supporting the customer after the sale. By working as an extension of the dealer’s team, we can leverage our expertise in telecom and create successful outcomes and meaningful revenue growth.”
Becoming a master of multitasking was thrust upon Godoy earlier in his career, a skill set imparted on him by Richard Tobier, owner of a Panasonic partner/integrator. He quickly learned the ins and outs of sales, customer support, installation and everything else under the telecom/customer service sun.
“The most important lesson was to listen to clients and provide solutions that brought maximum value and satisfaction, which was in line with my philosophy,” Godoy remarked.
One of the watershed moments during Godoy’s time with RingByName came while he was serving as director of customer experience and product design. Working with the firm’s software and marketing teams to analyze focus group results to drive the creation of new software was an eye-opening experience for him.
“I came to understand how the look and feel of software must take into account the experience of the end-user to create a sticky product that an essential extension of their business process,” he said.
In 2020, Godoy notes RingByName is seeking to greatly expand its sales channel and improve reseller tools to enable them to market their support and generate more revenue from telephony and unified communications-as-a-service (UCaaS) products. This will be accomplished through webinars, automated email marketing and SEO support for partners.
Godoy will seek to raise the bar through continuous reviews of trends, the needs of end-users (particularly monitoring the work-from-home requirements) and identifying best practices. “We will continually evaluate and adjust our efforts and products to make sure we are ahead of the curve,” he said.
Away from the office, Godoy enjoys hiking, fishing and other outdoor activities. He recently tried his hand at woodworking, an offshoot of his love for gadgets and tools. Godoy is an ardent supporter of various causes that support veterans, including the Vietnam Veterans of America and the Wounded Warrior Project, and help them transition into civilian life and receive needed assistance.
