worthless to him because he used a type of computer system incompatible with either of the two that Cisco’s translator handled. This feedback spurred Lerner and Bosack to retool the translator and develop the multiprotocol router, which became Cisco’s early core product. Lerner realized then that success was not a matter of developing cutting-edge technology, but of developing cutting-edge technology that was relevant to the customer. Because she believed that this relevancy required customer involvement, Lerner made it her mission to create a culture at Cisco that went well beyond traditional notions of customer support. She therefore consolidated all functions that directly touched the customer but sales into a single “Customer Advocacy” organization.4