Call Sales: +1 (833) 437-3835
Call Sales: +1 (833) 437-3835
Chris Lybeer | March 9, 2021 |
As we continue to celebrate Revel’s tenth anniversary, Revel CSO Chris Lybeer shares his thoughts on the momentous occasion, paired with his predictions for Revel’s next 10 years in business. Check back next month for more thoughts from Revel’s head of strategy.
Revel is celebrating 10 years in business. All I can say is wow. Just wow. When I sketched the outline for this blog it was about all the usual topics—our mission, a history of rapid innovation and great products, progress as a business, and more. And then I scrapped it all. I decided to focus on the heart of Revel.
The great recession of 2008 was still playing out when Revel was formed. As the company was reaching its 10th year in business, a global pandemic hit and created catastrophic consequences for the industries that our team services (restaurants and retailers). Even without encountering those rough waters, the odds of any technology startup getting past the ‘handful of people in a garage’ stage are very, very small. And in spite of all that, today Revel has tens of thousands of clients, over 400 employees, and reached profitability in 2020. Wow. Just wow.
We’ve certainly had our ups and downs; every company does. We’ve had to mature in phases along our journey to becoming the leading cloud-based POS, and we seem to be gradually perfecting our craft with each phase. What really made the difference though? What was the ‘X’ factor? What are we proudest of? In my humble opinion, it’s two things, and two things only. First, our people. And second, how we treat our clients. Bear with me while I elaborate.
Part of our ‘X’ factor is the Revel team and the terrific people who comprise that team. I know, I know, its cliche to say that a company's people make the difference. Oddly, based on my personal experiences and observations, about three-quarters of companies pay lip service to the concept. Having great people who are passionate, quality-oriented, service-oriented and highly skilled starts at the top. Leadership has to drive a culture of teamwork, respect, and integrity. It’s also incredibly important to set the hiring bar high, to hold each other accountable, and to make it very clear we tolerate nothing less than doing the right thing. We take care of each other and have each other’s backs.
From our Chief Executive Officer Greg Dukat down, this culture is strong and consistent. I believe it makes all the difference. Across our global workforce, employees care about contributing in their roles, helping our clients, and supporting each other day in and day out. And you can really feel it. When Revel established an office in Atlanta in 2018, we won a spot on the Atlanta Business Chronicle’s Best Places to Work list—an employee-voted award—in our first year in a new city. And our other offices have the same dynamic. Wow. Just wow.
The team behind Revel’s technology also prioritizes client care. Really, does anything else matter? Throughout my career, I’ve found that if you can do that right, everything else flows. Revel is transparent with our clients. We’re always willing to engage with them to work through issues, and we care deeply about helping to improve their operations—and ultimately their lives. We strive to be partners with our clients, not just a vendor.
Nothing makes us prouder than a compliment from a client, or a client deciding to do more business with us. One of my favorite recent stories came from a 21-site franchisee of a major brand who sent an unsolicited email to our CEO. He explained that when they installed their last POS 10 years ago, it took many months to do all their sites. His managers were all frustrated, the system had a lot of glitches, and for over a year it was a highly painful experience that cost him hard dollars. With Revel, all 21 sites were rolled out in two weeks. The icing on the cake was that he said the managers loved the Revel platform, it was easy to use, and was running like clockwork. Wow. Just wow.
As the original and most experienced cloud solution on the market, we have a big opportunity to build on our growing list of accomplishments. Perhaps the best part about celebrating 10 years in business is that I know we’re only getting started. Armed with a global sales presence, a first-class support team, forward-thinking engineers, and some of the sharpest individuals I’ve had the pleasure of working with, Revel is not slowing down anytime soon.
Revel is truly the heart of so many businesses and I am so inspired to be a part of this team. Wow. Just wow.
Here’s looking forward to the next 10 years!
Client Login