As we conclude the inaugural Cisco Customer Achievement Awards with our EMEA celebration-following the inspiring achievements we've witnessed across the Americas and APJC regions-we are thrilled to recognize the exceptional innovators who are driving transformation across the region.
Every day, we witness our customers doing extraordinary things. You're not simply deploying technology; you're reimagining industries, transforming customer experiences, and creating meaningful impact that extends far beyond your organizations. The stories behind this year's winners exemplify the power of innovation and remind us of the privilege we have in supporting your success.
This year's EMEA winners represent excellence in collaboration, innovation, and leadership. They've embraced complex challenges, pursued ambitious goals, and delivered remarkable results that set new benchmarks in their industries. Their achievements demonstrate what's possible when visionary organizations leverage technology to drive real business outcomes.
To our nominees and finalists, we commend your dedication to innovation and excellence. To our winners, thank you for your partnership and for trusting Cisco as part of your transformation journey. We invite you to join us in celebrating these outstanding organizations and the people behind their success. 
AI-Readiness
Reist Telecom was honored with the AI Infrastructure Innovator Award! Reist Telecom transformed its data
center by unifying virtual machines and containers onto a single, scalable platform powered by Cisco UCS X-Series and Red Hat OpenShift. This modernization provides the high-performance, secure foundation necessary to deploy agentic AI workloads and deliver automated, future-ready services to their customers.
Congratulations to the finalists:
- Trivium Packaging
- Oman Data Park
For their trailblazing efforts, Nestle S.A. was recognized with the AI Operations Pioneer Award! Nestle is enabling a transformative approach to networking through the deployment of a new concept that maximizes the synergy between connectivity and AI. The SDWAN platform is utilized to ensure the digital resilience necessary for the large-scale adoption of AI within the organization. Additionally, Nestle is introducing AI-powered automation to transform global network operations and enhance efficiency through Cisco AI Canvas.
Egypt MCIT Applied Innovation Center was honored with the CX AI Trailblazer Award! Egypt's MCIT partnered with Cisco CX to deploy the "Imhotep-AI" cluster, leveraging CX Advanced Services to navigate complex HPC requirements and accelerate national AI research from months to days. This collaboration transformed their infrastructure into a scalable AI powerhouse, enabling over 200 use cases across critical sectors like health and education.
Congratulations to the finalists:
- Banque Misr S.A.E.
- Informationstechnikzentrum Bund (ITZBund)
Future-Proofed Workplaces
Credit Agricole received the Hybrid Work Hero Award! Credit Agricole revolutionized its workplace by deploying 5,000 Cisco video endpoints and Cloud Calling for 100,000 users, ensuring a seamless, high-quality hybrid experience across all global subsidiaries. This massive digital transformation prioritizes immersive collaboration and sustainability, utilizing advanced monitoring to provide a consistent "white glove" experience for every employee.
Congratulations to the finalists:
- National Trust
- Haufe Group
- Tripadvisor
- BBVA
Universitatsmedizin Frankfurt (University Hospital Frankfurt) was named the Modernized Infrastructure Maestro Award winner! University Hospital Frankfurt transformed its healthcare delivery by deploying a resilient, 24/7 Cisco network infrastructure that integrates real-time patient and asset tracking via Cisco Spaces. This modernization provides a scalable foundation for digital innovation, significantly enhancing operational efficiency and patient care visibility.
Congratulations to the finalists:
- Mitchells & Butlers
- Milton Keynes University Hospital
- SATORP
- Mercy Ships
The CX-Powered Workplace Innovator Award was awarded to Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA)! Managing million's driver and vehicle records, DVLA partnered with Cisco CX to build a resilient, unified platform that improved Mean Time To Resolution significantly. This modernization ensures a huge increase in uptime while providing the critical technical upskilling needed for their workforce to thrive in a multi-architecture environment.
Congratulations to the finalists:
- The American University in Cairo
- PHILIPS
- Education Authority NI
- CEER Motors
Digital Resilience
stc took home the Cybersecurity Defender Award! stc partnered with Cisco to implement a future-ready, intelligence-driven security architecture that safeguards Saudi Arabia's critical digital infrastructure and Vision 2030 ambitions. This transformation, leveraging an integrated suite of Cisco and Splunk solutions, increased their CMMI maturity score to 3.8 while delivering a 95% improvement in detection time and reducing response times by over 87%.
Congratulations to the finalists:
- Menarini Group
- Nova Digital
- Universitatsklinikum Tubingen (University Hospital Tubingen)
- Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA)
Nestle S.A. received the Assurance Avenger Award! Nestle leveraged Cisco ThousandEyes and SD-WAN to gain real-time, end-to-end visibility into internet and cloud paths, drastically reducing latency and network disruptions. This proactive approach to assurance achieved 99.97% availability, ensuring seamless application performance and reliable connectivity across their global operations.
Congratulations to the finalists:
- Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA)
- Helsana Insurance Company Ltd
- National Grid plc
- NatWest Group
Specsavers Optical Group Ltd was honored with the Observability Visionary Award! By consolidating over 20 disparate tools into a unified observability platform, Specsavers transformed their global expansion strategy. This standardized, automated approach ensures seamless digital resilience for 50 million customers whileallowing the business to scale into new markets with unprecedented speed and reliability.
Congratulations to the finalists:
- HSBC
- Banque Misr S.A.E.
The CX Resilience Ranger Award went to Lloyds Banking Group plc! Lloyds Banking Group achieved digital resilience by migrating its complex operational intelligence platform to Splunk Cloud, utilizing CX services to unify stakeholders and modernize its infrastructure. This strategic partnership has empowered over 2,500 different users to drive proactive risk management and maintain high-performance analytics across their financial operations since go-live.
Congratulations to the finalists:
- BBVA
- The American University in Cairo
- INTESA SANPAOLO SpA
Sustainability Changemaker
The Sustainability Changemaker Award was presented to National Trust! As Europe's leading conservation charity, the National Trust UK leverages the Webex Suite to unify its mobile workforce across 500 historic sites and landscapes. The adoption of Webex Calling has optimized their digital infrastructure, reducing energy consumption to just 12.5k kWh to meet critical sustainability goals. These innovative collaboration tools improve operational efficiency while promoting inclusivity through AI-powered captions and noise-canceling technology.
Congratulations to the finalists:
- Arelion
- Colt
- Bouygeus Telecom
- Tripadvisor
- Credit Agricole
CX Customer Hero of the Year
Of the two individuals to win awards, Giorgio Roberto, from INTESA SANPAOLO SpA, was recognized with the prestigious CX Customer Hero of the Year Award! Giorgio has demonstrated visionary leadership at Intesa Sanpaolo by driving automation initiatives and leveraging Cisco Customer Experience services to achieve significant technological and operational advancements. His strategic focus on innovation and efficiency is evident in projects like Services as Code adoption and active participation in AI-Ops workshops.
Congratulations to the finalists:
- Christian Fertig -Deutsche Bank
- Sebastian Lehminger - Aumovio
- Carlo Lattante -Mediaset
- Frank Liney -National Rail
- Alejandra Jaimes Jiminez -PHILIPS
Cisco Insider of the Year
To close out the awards, Marco Hirschmann, from 2Ring / Hirschmann CX Consultancy, was celebrated as the Cisco Insider of the Year! Marco is a powerhouse within the Cisco Insider community, actively contributing across the Advocacy, Champions, and User Group tracks through deep-dive tutorials, forum troubleshooting, and expert mentorship. By leading webinars on API automation and sharing real-world insights at global events like Cisco Live and WebexOne, he has significantly raised the technical bar for contact center professionals across EMEA.
Congratulations to the finalists:
- Julian Bendix -NTS Netzwerk Telekom Service AG
- Gert-Jan de Boer - aaZoo B.V.
- Orkun Kenber -NXP Semiconductors
- Zoë Rose -Canon Europa N.V.
To all our EMEA winners and finalists: thank you for your partnership, your trust, and your commitment to pushing the boundaries of what technology can achieve. Your success inspires us, and we're honored to support you on your innovation journey.
As we celebrate these remarkable achievements, we're already looking forward to what's next. The Cisco Customer Achievement Awards will kick-off once again at Cisco Live 2026 Las Vegas, where we'll come together to recognize the next wave of innovation and excellence. We can't wait to see what our customers will accomplish in the year ahead and to celebrate your continued success.
Here's to the power of partnership, the spirit of innovation, and the incredible achievements yet to come!