Customers know the pains that come with being on the receiving end of a reactive support model: customers call with problems, representatives provide scripted solutions, you are escalated from agent to agent, and tickets are closed as quickly as possible.
This cost-over-customer approach optimizes for call volume and response speed but often leaves underlying issues either unresolved or severely delayed. Such a way of operating serves neither the front-line customer service representative or the customer themselves, with both feeling like it was a less-than-optimal experience.
Yet while the broader market continues to double down on cost-cutting measures – outsourcing support overseas, standardizing service to lowest-common-denominator, and optimizing for operational efficiency over customer outcomes—a fundamental shift is occurring. A new breed of forward-thinking MSPs are emerging, ones that recognize that customer experience extends far beyond having agent availability for the call. They are beginning to pioneer a new paradigm that focuses on proactive outreach and preventative care that builds a productive partnership with the customer rather than creating a transactional relationship.
“When you reach out to customer support, you want to feel that the person on the other end truly cares and is committed to helping. Bottomline, your experience matters. At Fusion Connect, that level of care is real—and our customer satisfaction scores prove it,” said Sharma Montgomery, SVP of Customer Experience at Fusion Connect.
The Limitations of Traditional Service Models
The cost-over-customer MSP model creates predictable friction points. For a company calling in for an issue with something as integral as its UC system, the delay, the time spent waiting, and the downtime equate to more than annoyance; they hinder the company’s business operations. Equally, this model puts the onus on the customer to put in the work to get their issue resolved.
Yet by approaching this issue with traditional internal metrics that score based on call volumes and answer times, MSPs are increasingly disconnected from the actual customer experience.
Having the capacity to serve a large number of customers at one time is not the same as having customers satisfied with that experience. This reveals the fundamental flaw in how many MSPs measure success. Companies that focus on call time, ticket volume, and closure rates “are missing the opportunity to truly serve and delight the customer, which is the real objective,” Montgomery said.
The Proactive Partnership Model
Bucking trends, a new breed of MSPs are inverting this approach by treating customer interactions as part of a comprehensive account management strategy rather than isolated incidents to resolve quickly.
“At Fusion Connect, we see every client engagement as an opportunity to learn more about their business, challenge ourselves to find new ways to best serve them, and provide the type of service and support that not only makes their day easier but also helps them grow their business,” Montgomery explained.
This methodology involves rethinking key procedures of contact center operations by focusing on accountability, a new metric of success, and proactively addressing potential issues before they occur. Deployed through separate parts of the process but making up the new mode of thought, the first step of this is eliminating the need for Tier 1 agents.
Rather than routing customers to whatever representative is available, advanced providers assign experts to be dedicated to that account for a deeper understanding of that customer, great continuity across all touchpoints, and a higher quality of service. Their dedicated agent will remain engaged to ensure tickets are completed and proactively think of ways to best support and care for that customer.
These proactive agents will analyze trends across customer interactions to identify systemic problems before they impact large numbers of users.
This not only expedites any potential customer interaction but can eliminate any issues that may arise.
But, most importantly, it is how this new breed of MSPs is approaching the impact of this new strategy. The shift toward proactive customer care for a superior experience and that strategic shift requires entirely different success metrics.
Rather than tracking operational efficiency indicators, advanced providers focus on customer outcome measurements. Key performance indicators for the new model include Customer Satisfaction (CSAT) scores, Net Promoter Scores (NPS), customer retention rates, and renewal percentages.
These metrics provide insight into the actual business impact of service delivery rather than just operational throughput.
For Fusion Connect, implementing this new way of serving its customers has been a purposeful pursuit with operational shifts to put the customer first. Its comprehensive customer experience strategies report significant improvements across all satisfaction indicators, with some achieving NPS increases of 667% alongside CSAT scores averaging 4.8 out of 5.0 for initial support interactions.
The Strategic Investment in Service Excellence
Such a proactive approach requires strategic investment, however. Rather than optimizing for lowest-cost delivery, leading MSPs are investing in higher-skilled professionals with extensive industry experience.
Fusion Connect, for example, has built support teams with an average of 13 years of industry experience, with many team members maintaining over a decade of tenure at the company translating to deep solution knowledge and customer account familiarity.
“Building relationships with customers goes beyond just selling products or services,” Montgomery noted. “It’s about understanding their business and meeting their needs, which requires genuine care, effort and a real connection.”
This approach ensures consistency, deep technical knowledge, and the institutional memory necessary for effective proactive support.
Why this new MSP Paradigm Shift is Sticking
The outdated MSP model is being challenged by a new approach that prioritizes deep customer relationships over standardized service delivery. Industry recognition, including awards like the Stevie Awards for customer experience excellence, reflects a broader shift that values measurable customer-centric outcomes.
Leading MSPs adopting this new mode of operating demonstrate common characteristics: significant improvements in customer loyalty metrics, above-average response times, and customer satisfaction scores that substantially exceed industry benchmarks.
Fusion Connect’s approach exemplifies this transformation, with measurable improvements including 81% of customers providing five-star ratings and 84.5% service level performance with 30-second average response times – significantly outperforming the industry standard of three minutes. Their recent Silver Stevie Award recognition reflects this new customer-first methodology.
But as is the core tenant with this new approach, the best criteria to measure its impact is how it has helped customers.
“With other providers, we always start with Tier 1 support, and we have to start in the queue with hundreds or thousands of other customers,” said Jeff Mitchell CIO, Ganley Automotive Group.
“When I call Fusion Connect, I know my reps’ names and the fact that they will chase an issue until it’s resolved.”
Similarly, Niko O’Hara, VP of Programs, Engineering and Vendors at Avant, emphasized the comprehensive nature of proactive partnerships: “Fusion Connect makes the customer their top priority, ensuring clients receive exceptional support from solution design to implementation and beyond.”
These testimonials highlight a crucial distinction: customers value predictable access to knowledgeable representatives who maintain accountability for complete issue resolution over traditional metrics like initial response speed.
The Business Case for Proactive Investment
While proactive customer experience models require a higher upfront investment in staffing and infrastructure, the business case for these new breed of MSPs becomes compelling when measured against customer lifetime gained through satisfaction.
“From our perspective, investments that make customers happy is the smart choice and demonstrates a commitment to customer success,” Montgomery explained.
For businesses evaluating MSP partnerships, the implications are clear: traditional metrics of success – response times, ticket volumes, and initial pricing – are insufficient indicators of long-term partnership value.
Instead, organizations should examine providers’ commitment to proactive customer experience through measurable outcomes like customer satisfaction scores, retention rates, and industry recognition for service excellence.
For Customers crying out for a better service with their MSPs, they should take note to see which vendors are listening.
Organizations evaluating MSP partners can examine providers like Fusion Connect, which has demonstrated measurable commitment to proactive customer experience through Silver Stevie Award recognition, industry-leading response times, and comprehensive account management approaches that prioritize long-term partnership success.
This post originally appeared on Service Management - Enterprise - Channel News - UC Today.