IT teams today face relentless pressure as new vulnerabilities emerge daily across sprawling environments that stretch from on-premises infrastructure to the cloud.
Waiting in a long support queue and having to speak to multiple reps before getting answers simply doesn’t cut it in this high-risk reality.
Adaptiva takes a different approach to customer success. Led by Dan Richings, Senior Vice President of Global Customer Success and Solutions, Adaptiva has embraced a single-tier support model and customer-first philosophy. Adaptiva’s support isn’t treated as an add-on service but rather a core part of the customer experience. No red tape, repetitive questions, or gatekeeping. It’s just hands-on, responsive, and highly knowledgeable help at no extra cost.
In the first part of our Q&A series with Dan, we explore what makes this approach unique and why customers consistently rate Adaptiva’s support team so highly.
Dan, Adaptiva’s customer success team is leading the industry with its commitment to satisfaction. How would you describe your team’s approach to support?
Dan: Unlike the traditional tiered setup with first-line, second-line, and third-line support, Adaptiva focuses on recruiting highly technical support equivalent to third-line escalation.
Whenever a customer calls the help desk, logs a support ticket or emails us, they’re speaking directly to someone who knows the product inside and out, meaning they can understand, troubleshoot, and fix an issue much quicker, without any back-and-forth.
Our customers appreciate not having to repeat themselves or answer unnecessary questions before being put through to someone who understands their working environment and potential issues. Over time, we see customers building bonds and relationships with our support team.
Often, competitors charge extra for services. Why does Adaptiva include its support?
Dan: To clarify, our customers do pay a standard maintenance fee, but we don’t nickel-and-dime them with extra charges for professional services. Whether it's standard support, implementation support, or project consultation, we just do it. That’s our big differentiator. Our customers know they can lean on us without worrying about additional invoices, and they love that.
How does this model shape the relationship between your team and customers? Do you find it changes how often they reach out, or the connection they build with one another?
Dan: It's a two-sided coin. Some customers might reach out more often since they’re not being charged for it, but others may not reach out because they aren’t paying for it.
The real impact is the trust it creates. Our customers know we’re here to help, whether it’s day-to-day support or on a long-term project. Because we run a single-tier support model and have low turnover, customers can end up speaking with the same engineers multiple times. That familiarity makes it feel less like a vendor interaction and more like working with a colleague.
Our team understands each customer’s environment, how their systems are configured, and in many cases has helped set things up. That means issues get solved quickly, but it also makes conversations feel more personal. And because our team has broad technical knowledge, we often help with parts of the customer’s environment that go beyond our product. In many ways, we become an extension of their internal team, and that’s exactly how we want them to see us.
You survey customers after support interactions. What has that feedback shown about the effectiveness of your approach?
Dan: After every support incident, we request customer feedback. For nearly seven years, we’ve had 100% positive feedback. That’s thousands of support tickets without a single negative response or unhappy customer. That speaks volumes about how our team operates. Customers know they’re getting high-quality, personal support every time.
Final Thoughts
Adaptiva’s decision to bypass traditional support models is redefining customer success in cybersecurity.
With an expert team, built-in consulting, and a support culture built on relationships, Adaptiva ensures customers are successful from day one. The story doesn’t end with resolving tickets, however. Feedback gathered from these regular customer interactions directly fuels Adaptiva’s product innovation.
In part two of our Q&A with Dan Richings, we explore how customer voices move beyond support to influence innovation and the product roadmap.
