# Louis Summe

> Louis Summe is the co-founder and former CEO of LiveVox, executive chairman at VanillaSoft and a board member at Aspect. His career centers on enterprise customer engagement, cloud contact-center software and simplifying the adoption of communications technology. He led LiveVox through its 2021 public-market combination with Crescent Acquisition Corp.

- **Role:** Executive Chairman at VanillaSoft; Board Member at Aspect
- **Organizations:** LiveVox, VanillaSoft, Aspect, Electronic Data Systems, Merck-Medco, Physicians Online
- **Education:** B.A. in Physics, Xavier University, M.B.A., Columbia University
- **Known for:** Co-founded LiveVox and led it through its 2021 public-market combination., Oversaw LiveVox’s expansion from voice services into a broader cloud contact-center platform., Appointed executive chairman at VanillaSoft and a member of Aspect’s board.

## Career timeline

- **Early career** — Worked at EDS and Merck-Medco.
- **1997-2000** — Vice President of Product and Business Development at Physicians Online.
- **1998** — LiveVox predecessor inception and beginning of CEO tenure according to the 2023 proxy; Summe described the operating business as starting in 2000 in his 2021 interview.
- **2014** — Golden Gate Capital made a majority investment in LiveVox.
- **2021** — LiveVox completed its combination with Crescent Acquisition Corp on June 18 and became publicly traded.
- **2022** — CEO tenure ended November 1; John DiLullo succeeded him.
- **2023** — Vice chairman effective January 1, according to the 2023 proxy; VanillaSoft announced his executive chairman appointment September 27.
- **2026** — Aspect announced his appointment to its independent board on January 6.

## Achievements

- Co-founded LiveVox and led it through its 2021 public-market combination.
- Oversaw LiveVox’s expansion from voice services into a broader cloud contact-center platform.
- Appointed executive chairman at VanillaSoft and a member of Aspect’s board.

## Latest updates

- **2026-01** — Aspect announced Summe as a member of its new independent board and identified him as executive chairman at VanillaSoft, based in San Francisco.
- **2024-04** — VanillaSoft featured Summe presenting with Seth Dorne at LeadsCon 2024.
- **2023-09** — VanillaSoft announced Summe as executive chairman alongside a growth investment from Tritium Partners.

## Links

- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/louis-summe-970514

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/louis-summe
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-23