PALO ALTO, Calif., Dec. 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Talkdesk®, Inc., a leader in customer experience automation (CXA), today announced that Michael Klein, global head of retail, travel, and hospitality marketing, has been named a finalist for the 2026 Vendors in Partnership (VIP) Bridge Builder: Person of the Year Award. The award recognizes industry leaders whose careers combine substantial retail experience with solution provider roles, giving them the unique perspective to champion transparency, foster empathy, and build enduring partnerships.
The winners will be announced at the VIP Awards Ceremony in New York City on Friday, January 9, 2026. The ceremony kicks off a major week for the industry, leading into National Retail Federation (NRF) 2026: Retail’s Big Show, where Talkdesk will showcase its AI innovations, including Customer Experience Automation (CXA) and Retail Experience Cloud™.
Klein’s career began on the retail floor and rose through leadership roles at major brands, including Williams-Sonoma, Harry & David, and LVMH Group. In 2008, he shifted into the technology sector, spending 14 years at Adobe before joining Talkdesk. He now unites that journey across retail and technology to educate and empower global retailers with Talkdesk AI-powered customer experience solutions that humanize technology, build consumer loyalty, and drive measurable outcomes.
“Having spent half my career as a retailer and the other half as a technology partner, I have seen firsthand how critical it is to bridge the gap between operational challenges and digital innovation,” said Michael Klein, global head of retail, travel, and hospitality marketing at Talkdesk. “I’m truly honored to be named a finalist for the Bridge Builder Award among such remarkable peers. This isn’t just a personal milestone; it reflects Talkdesk’s deep partnership with the retail community and our shared goal of creating frictionless, empathetic shopping experiences through technology.”
At NRF 2026 (Booth #4142), Talkdesk will reveal how retailers can use customer experience automation to handle the complexities of modern commerce. By leveraging the Talkdesk Retail Experience Cloud and AI agents for retail, brands can automate high-volume workflows like order management and returns, freeing human teams to focus on revenue-generating interactions.
Additionally, Klein will join Amy Williams, vice president of global customer experience at Rocky Brands, Inc., for a dedicated speaking session on Sunday, January 11, 2026, from 9:30 to 10:00 a.m. ET. They’ll discuss how Rocky Brands uses Talkdesk AI-powered solutions to scale its support, simplify operational complexity, and improve customer satisfaction.
About Talkdesk
Talkdesk® is leading a new era in customer experience with Customer Experience Automation (CXA)—a new category and platform designed to automate the full complexity of modern customer journeys. CXA replaces fragmented, human-coordinated workflows with autonomous, multi-agent AI orchestration that delivers intelligent, scalable, and outcome-focused service across the entire CX lifecycle.
At the core of CXA is the Talkdesk Data Cloud, which turns transcripts, call recordings, case notes, and customer records from across CRMs and systems of record into real-time, actionable knowledge. This enables AI agents to operate with full context, collaborating seamlessly to resolve complex customer problems with speed, precision, and adaptability.
Talkdesk CXA supports both cross-industry workflows and industry-specialized use cases in sectors like healthcare, financial services, retail, utilities, travel, and government. With prebuilt AI agents, a virtuous automation cycle (Discover, Build, Orchestrate, Measure), and rapid time-to-value, Talkdesk helps enterprises modernize customer experience without the need for a full rip-and-replace.
Trusted by global brands and recognized for continuous innovation, Talkdesk empowers organizations to grow revenue, reduce costs, and transform service delivery through coordinated, AI-driven automation. Companies that love their customers use Talkdesk.
Talkdesk is a registered trademark of Talkdesk, Inc. All product and company names are trademarks™ or registered® trademarks of their respective holders. Use of them does not imply any affiliation with or endorsement by them.
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