CustomerTimes
AI Positioning Audit
An honest assessment of our AI public visibility, thought leadership, and competitive positioning vs. Salesforce ecosystem peers.
Company Snapshot
CustomerTimes is a strong Salesforce Summit Partner with real delivery capability and enterprise clients — but our public AI narrative doesn't match the depth of what we actually do.
Key Clients
Coca-Cola · Abbott · Bayer · AstraZeneca · L'Oréal · STADA · Danone · Pernod Ricard · Bacardi · Haleon · IQVIA · Purina · Liberty Mutual · Oscar
Recognition
Global Footprint
HQ: New York City · Offices in London, Paris, Toronto, Warsaw, Riga, Podgorica, Kyiv, Tbilisi, Yerevan, Mumbai, Buenos Aires, Sofia, Almaty
AI Public Positioning Assessment
We have real AI capabilities and products — but our public presence doesn't convey the depth. Here's what the outside world sees vs. what we actually deliver.
AI Capability Maturity: Internal vs. External
Competitive AI Visibility
How our AI positioning compares to Salesforce ecosystem peers — from GSIs to boutiques. The gap isn't capability, it's narrative.
| Competitor | SF Tier | AI Positioning | AI Content Volume | AI Products | Exec Visibility |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Accenture | Global Elite | Full AI practice, GenAI at scale | 100s of articles | Multiple | Industry leaders |
| Deloitte Digital | Global Elite | Full AI practice, industry-specific | 100s of articles | Multiple | Industry leaders |
| TCS | Global Strategic | Crystallus AI on Data Cloud, Agentforce sponsor | High volume | Crystallus | Conference keynotes |
| Slalom | Platinum+ | Agentforce founding partner, EnhanceIQ | 6+ AI articles | EnhanceIQ | C-suite surveys |
| CustomerTimes | Summit | AI Factory, CT REx, Agentforce, GenAI/ML | ~4 blog posts | CT REx + suite | Minimal |
| Silverline CRM | Platinum | Salesforce-focused, limited AI narrative | Low | None visible | Low |
| Coastal Cloud | Platinum | Salesforce-focused, limited AI narrative | Low | None visible | Low |
CustomerTimes has stronger AI products than Slalom (AI Factory, CT REx, CT Vision, AI-powered CPQ) and deeper Salesforce AI integration than most boutiques — but Slalom publishes C-suite AI surveys and gets Agentforce founding partner visibility, while we have ~4 blog posts and zero AI thought leadership. We're losing the narrative war despite winning the capability war.
AI Content Volume: CT vs. Key Competitors
Content & Thought Leadership Audit
A forensic look at what we publish, what's broken, and what's missing entirely.
Published Blog Posts Found
| Title | Topic | AI Content? |
|---|---|---|
| How to Master Retail Execution: A Guide for CPG & Beverage | Retail / CPG | No |
| Revenue Is Leaking and Your Incentive Plans Are To Blame | Sales / SPM | No |
| How to Implement Servitization | Manufacturing | No |
| Reimagining Shelf Merchandising with Extended Reality | XR / Retail | Adjacent |
| Automate Audit Trails for Incentive Compensation | Automation | No |
| Salesforce Data Migration Tools & Best Practices | Salesforce | No |
Pattern: 0 of ~6 visible posts are about AI strategy, AI implementation, or AI-powered CRM. Topics are operational/tactical. No executive authors.
Published Reports & Downloads
| Report | AI Relevance | Assessment |
|---|---|---|
| Retail Execution Report 2026 | Indirect | Good industry content, not AI-focused |
| AI in Manufacturing Report 2025 | Direct | Strong — but needs more visibility |
| Salesforce Implementation Partners Report 2025 | No | Good for credibility, not AI positioning |
| Manufacturing Data Activation Blueprint | Direct | Strong — should be promoted more |
| SPIFF Implementation Guide | No | Tactical guide |
| Enterprise VR Training & Industrial Metaverse | Adjacent | Interesting niche content |
Content Infrastructure Issues
/blog/ returns 404
The main blog URL is broken. Posts exist but aren't accessible via the primary blog path.
/insights/ returns 404
The insights section is inaccessible. No content hub for thought leadership.
No webinars or video content
Zero webinars, zero recorded demos, zero video case studies. Competitors run active webinar programs.
No podcast
ePlus, Presidio, and others run podcasts. We have none. No recurring content vehicle exists.
What Slalom Does That We Don't
Slalom is the best comparison — a boutique Salesforce partner of similar scale that dramatically outperforms us in AI visibility:
What Slalom Publishes
- C-suite AI surveys (200 executives on adoption barriers)
- EnhanceIQ methodology (500+ roles assessed)
- Dedicated Agentforce service page (founding partner)
- Future-of-work AI analysis series
- AI business case frameworks
- Original research with quantitative data
What We Publish on AI
- AI/ML service page (capability list, no proof)
- AI in Manufacturing Report 2025 (good, buried)
- Manufacturing Data Activation Blueprint (good, buried)
- Paris Innovation Day (one event, no digital content)
- ...nothing else
- ...that's it
Leadership Visibility Audit
We searched every executive by name across Perplexity, Google, LinkedIn, and YouTube. Here's what a prospective client finds when they research our leadership team.
| Executive | Title | Background | Published Content | Speaking / Video | Overall Visibility |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| James Goldfinger | CCO & Partner | 40yr CRM veteran, Duke BS Math, ex-SAP (Customer Value Network founder), ex-HighPoint, PeopleSoft. 500+ clients guided. Salesforce Partner Advisory Board. PepUp Tech board. | Multiple | 6+ videos | Strong |
| Dimitri Sidney | CEO | Ex-Siemens, ex-Vodafone Ukraine. CEO statement on CT website only. | None found | None found | Invisible |
| Roman Khudyakov | CTO | Since 2008. BS/MS IT, Kyiv-Mohyla Academy. Ex-SAP CRM Consultant (Masterdata), ex-UI/UX (Newtonideas). Leads 1,500 engineers. | None found | None found | Invisible |
| Rafael Moiseev | CMO | VP Global Marketing. Pathmonk Presents podcast interview on digital transformation. | 2 articles | 1 podcast | Emerging |
| Maxim Votek | Managing Partner | Co-founder CT. Pharmacist-turned-entrepreneur. Forbes Tech Council member. Qwoted expert (AI, Health Tech). Substack: maxvotek.com. | Forbes + Substack | Qwoted expert | Strong |
| Alex Patsko | CEO of Europe | Appeared in "Setting the Stage" CT video with Goldfinger. | None found | 1 video | Minimal |
| Maxim Solovyov | Global Practice Head | No public background found. | None found | None found | Invisible |
| Anton Miliaiev | Chief Delivery Officer | Ex-CEO CT Belarus (2012-2022). CDO since 2020. | None found | None found | Invisible |
| Artem Kolyshkin | SVP, Global Delivery | No public background found. | None found | None found | Invisible |
| Dennis Khramov | CIO | No public background found. | None found | None found | Invisible |
| Anna Fedorova | CFO | No public background found. | None found | None found | Invisible |
Our CCO is the one executive with real public visibility. A 40-year CRM veteran on the Salesforce Partner Advisory Board, he has 6+ YouTube videos/webinars including "How AI Will Change Sales Cycles," "Driving Business Value with Salesforce," an AppExchange Mavericks interview, a Hypercard.ai analyst demo, a "Megatrends in CX" webinar, and a CRM podcast appearance. He should be the model for what every other executive needs to do.
James Goldfinger: Content Inventory
| Content | Type | AI Relevant? |
|---|---|---|
| "How AI Will Change Sales Cycles as We Know Them" (panel with Revenue Grid) | Video / Panel | Yes |
| "Analyst Cam: Hypercard.ai by Customertimes" (AI innovation platform) | Video / Demo | Yes |
| "Driving Business Value with Salesforce" (best practices) | YouTube | Indirect |
| "Setting the Stage with Customertimes" (Dec 2024, with Patsko) | YouTube | Indirect |
| AppExchange Mavericks interview (Salesforce MVP Justin Edelstein) | Podcast/Video | Indirect |
| "Megatrends in Customer Experience" (webinar with eGain) | Webinar | Indirect |
| "The Power of CRMs Post COVID-19" (podcast, 30+ yrs insight) | Podcast | No |
| Salesforce Partner Advisory Board (Ecosystem Equality, Consumer Goods/Retail) | Board Seat | Indirect |
| PepUp Tech Board Member (since 2021) | Board Seat | No |
Max Votek: The Hidden AI Voice
Our Managing Partner has the most active AI thought leadership of any CT executive — but almost none of it is connected to the CustomerTimes brand. He runs a Substack (maxvotek.com) with 12 AI-focused posts and hundreds of subscribers, is a Forbes Tech Council member with published contributions, has been quoted in Healthcare IT News on AI in healthcare, and is listed on Qwoted as an expert in AI and Health Tech. The content is there — it just needs to be amplified through CT's channels.
| Content | Platform | Date | AI Topic? |
|---|---|---|---|
| "The Six-Dollar Secret: Why the Next Trillion-Dollar Company Will Look Nothing Like a Software Company" | Substack | Apr 8, 2026 | Yes |
| "Why Cloudflare might be the default deploy target for AI-built software" | Substack | Apr 3, 2026 | Yes |
| "OpenClaw as a Foundation for Vertical AI Agents" | Substack | Apr 1, 2026 | Yes |
| "How I replaced $2,000/month in SaaS with a $200 Claude Code subscription" | Substack | Mar 23, 2026 | Yes |
| "How to Actually Choose an AI Agent Platform" | Substack | Mar 19, 2026 | Yes |
| "The 5 Platforms Fighting for Enterprise AI Agents" | Substack | Mar 12, 2026 | Yes |
| "The Real NVIDIA Moat Has Nothing to Do With GPUs" | Substack | Mar 10, 2026 | Yes |
| "Consulting Firms Spent $10 Billion on AI. Their Business Model Didn't Change" | Substack | Mar 5, 2026 | Yes |
| "I Self-Hosted an AI Agent Orchestrator. Here's What I Learned" | Substack | Feb 25, 2026 | Yes |
| "I Don't Need to Know Databricks. An AI Agent Will Do It for Me" | Substack | Feb 19, 2026 | Yes |
| "$240 Billion in Panic-Buying" | Substack | Feb 12, 2026 | Yes |
| "20 Expert Strategies To Optimize AI Speed And Performance" (contributor) | Forbes | 2024 | Yes |
| "From Cost Center To Growth Engine: How To Measure Partnership ROI" | Forbes | 2024 | Adjacent |
| "Optimism for AI to improve healthcare grows" (quoted) | Healthcare IT News | 2024 | Yes |
| Qwoted Expert Profile (AI, CEO, Health Tech) | Qwoted | Active | Yes |
12 of 12 Substack posts are AI-focused (AI agents, LLMs, Claude Code, NVIDIA, enterprise AI platforms, consulting disruption) but none link to or mention CustomerTimes services. The Forbes articles list him as Forbes Tech Council, but the connection to CT's AI consulting practice is invisible. Fixing this one disconnect — cross-posting to CT blog, referencing CT case studies, co-branding the content — could dramatically improve CT's AI visibility overnight.
Rafael Moiseev: Emerging Presence
Our CMO has the beginnings of visibility: 2 published articles on customertimes.com (Jan 2026, ITSM topics) and a Pathmonk Presents podcast interview covering digital transformation and innovation. He's also appeared in the Innovation Day Milwaukee video (Dec 2025). This is a start but needs to shift toward AI-focused content at higher volume.
YouTube Channel Assessment
CustomerTimes has ~10+ videos across YouTube (main + CT Europe channel) but content is fragmented:
| Video | Date | Views | Assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| VR Training & Industrial Metaverse | ~Jan 2026 | 25 | Low reach |
| Innovation Day Milwaukee — AI in Manufacturing | Dec 2025 | N/A | Niche |
| Global beauty leader CRM transformation | N/A | N/A | Good story |
| Hypercard.ai analyst demo | N/A | N/A | AI-relevant |
| CT Europe: recruiting/meetup videos | Various | Low | HR content |
| Study Center: Salesforce tutorials | Various | Low | Training |
11 current executives searched. Results: 2 have strong visibility (Goldfinger with 6+ videos, Votek with 12 Substack posts + Forbes + Healthcare IT News), 1 is emerging (Moiseev), and 8 are completely invisible. The CEO, CTO, Global Practice Head, CEO Europe, CDO, SVP Delivery, CIO, and CFO have zero discoverable thought leadership. Critically, Votek's prolific AI content isn't connected to the CT brand at all.
Executive Activation Priority
Tier 1 — Activate Now
- Dimitri Sidney — CEO vision on AI-powered consulting. Quarterly byline articles.
- Roman Khudyakov — CTO on AI Factory, Agentforce architecture. Technical blog series.
Tier 2 — Amplify
- James Goldfinger — Already active. Increase AI-specific content, Dreamforce speaking.
- Rafael Moiseev — Shift from ITSM to AI topics. Double content output.
- Maxim Votek — Already active (Substack + Forbes). Cross-post to CT blog. Brand the AI content.
Tier 3 — LinkedIn Baseline
- Alex Patsko — European market perspective.
- Maxim Solovyov — Practice expertise posts.
- Anton Miliaiev — Delivery excellence angle.
Event Presence
| Event | CT Presence | Competitor Presence |
|---|---|---|
| Dreamforce | Not found | Slalom, TCS, Accenture, Deloitte — all present |
| Salesforce World Tour | Not found | Most Summit/Platinum partners attend |
| Paris Innovation Day | Hosted | Good — but no digital content published from it |
| Innovation Day Milwaukee (AI in Mfg) | Hosted | Dec 2025, YouTube video published |
| Industry Conferences (NRF, HIMSS, etc.) | Not found | GSIs and boutiques actively present |
Strengths to Leverage
The good news: we have real assets that most competitors in our tier don't. The problem is visibility, not capability.
1. AI Factory Is a Genuine Differentiator
85% automated testing coverage, 30% faster delivery, 35% higher user adoption — these are quantifiable AI-driven outcomes that no Silverline, Coastal Cloud, or similar boutique can match. Even Slalom doesn't have an equivalent proprietary AI delivery accelerator. This needs to be the centerpiece of our AI narrative.
2. CT REx Is a Real AI Product
A Microsoft AI-powered field execution platform with visit planning, real-time insights, and voice summaries is a shipping AI product, not a consulting deck. This puts us in the product company category alongside TCS Crystallus — a significant positioning advantage vs. pure consulting competitors.
3. Enterprise Client Logos Prove Capability
Coca-Cola, Bayer, AstraZeneca, Abbott, L'Oréal, Danone, Pernod Ricard — these aren't mid-market accounts. If we can get even 2-3 AI case studies with these names, the credibility leap would be enormous.
4. ISG Leader + #1 SF Partner Ranking
ISG Provider Lens Leader for Salesforce Multicloud and ranked #1 Salesforce partner in 2025 is analyst-grade validation that most boutiques will never achieve. This should be in every pitch deck, every LinkedIn post, every content piece.
5. Comprehensive AI/ML Capability Set
GenAI, Predictive AI, Agentic AI, RPA, NLP, Computer Vision, AI-driven analytics — across Azure, AWS, GCP, Salesforce, SAP. The breadth is real. We just need to prove it publicly.
6. Published Reports Show Intent
The AI in Manufacturing Report 2025 and Manufacturing Data Activation Blueprint show we can produce substantive content. We need to scale this to every vertical and make AI the narrative thread.
90-Day AI Visibility Action Plan
Concrete steps to close the gap between our actual AI capability and our public AI narrative.
Priority Actions Matrix
| Action | Impact | Effort | Priority |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fix broken /blog/ and /insights/ URLs | High | Low | Immediate |
| AI Factory dedicated page + demo video | High | Medium | Week 1 |
| First AI case study with named client | Very High | Medium | Month 1 |
| CEO + CTO LinkedIn activation (weekly posts) | High | Low | Week 1 |
| Publish 3 AI strategy blog posts | High | Medium | Month 1 |
| Agentforce webinar series launch | Medium | Medium | Month 2 |
| Dreamforce 2026 speaking submission | Very High | Low | Month 3 |
| Original AI-for-CRM research report | Very High | High | Month 3 |
CustomerTimes has the AI products (AI Factory, CT REx), the client logos (Coca-Cola, Bayer, AstraZeneca), the analyst recognition (ISG Leader, #1 SF Partner), and the technical depth (GenAI, Agentic AI, Computer Vision) to be the definitive AI-for-CRM Salesforce partner. What we don't have is the public narrative. Fix the content infrastructure, activate executive voices, publish proof points, and we close the gap with Slalom in 90 days and start competing with TCS/GSIs for AI mindshare within 6 months.