In another life, Ed Barfield may have been the perfect pit road crew chief for a racing team. The CEO of AgentDealer—a CRM platform dedicated to the office technology industry—is focused on positively impacting performance. Success in racing is predicated on making constant adjustments along the way to remain ahead of the pack. In order for end-users to maximize the value of the CRM, Barfield is ceaseless in finding the tools and partnerships that can continuously improve the product.
One can almost hear the whir of the pit road air gun as Barfield details an eventful 2025. From new products such as ProCPQ, TracMap 3 and AgentDealer AI to significant partnerships with Ambition.com and Apollo.io, AgentDealer never let its foot off the gas. They rolled out a dealer council for end-users to provide feedback and inform product development. Team members even took to the road to get up close and personal with users.
We sat down with Barfield as he detailed these initiatives, the growing influence of AI in the CRM realm and how AgentDealer is leveraging it to continuously add value to the platform. His crystal ball foreshadows the CRM of the future being “systems of action and systems of intelligence,” and AgentDealer isn’t planning to spin its wheels in that regard.
ENX: How did AgentDealer perform in 2025? How did expectations compare with results?
BARFIELD: AgentDealer had a strong 2025, marked by continued product innovation, deeper customer engagement and meaningful progress toward becoming a more complete dealer operating platform. We entered the year with high expectations around product development, customer enablement, quoting, sales process improvement, marketing alignment and expanded partner capabilities. Overall, the year met or exceeded those expectations.
One of the strongest indicators of progress was the volume and quality of platform enhancements delivered throughout the year. We continued investing in customer resources, training, webinars, community engagement and dedicated consulting support, all while advancing major product initiatives such as ProCPQ, TracMap 3, AgentDealer AI and expanded sales and marketing enablement programs.
The biggest takeaway is that 2025 wasn’t simply a year of incremental improvement. It was a year in which AgentDealer continued to move from CRM functionality into broader operational value for dealers.
ENX: What stands out as some of the watershed moments for the company over the past 12 months? What resonated the most with you?
BARFIELD: Several moments stand out. The continued development and beta testing of ProCPQ were major milestones because quoting is a critical part of the dealer sales process. Dealers need speed, accuracy, pricing control, margin visibility and a better user experience, and ProCPQ addresses those needs directly.
Another watershed moment was the continued expansion of our partner ecosystem. The addition of partners such as Ambition.com and Apollo.io strengthens the value we can deliver around sales execution, prospecting, coaching, lead generation and pipeline development.
The formation of our Dealer Council also stands out. That’s especially meaningful because it creates a more formal channel for dealer input as we prioritize product development. We’ve always valued customer feedback, but the Dealer Council provides a stronger structure to keep the dealer voice at the center of our roadmap.
The AI conversation is another major moment. Salesforce has released new AI tools for partners, and we’re currently working to obtain the certifications needed to implement Agentforce tools. That represents an important step forward because AI will become a major part of how CRM platforms create value, but it has to be implemented responsibly, securely and in ways that solve real business problems.
ENX: Last summer, AgentDealer’s Charlotte Radtke and Eric Miller did a tour of Texas dealers, including Datamax, Stargel and DOCUmation, among others. What’s the value you see in these face-to-face meetings?
BARFIELD: The value is tremendous. Face-to-face meetings give us a much better understanding of how dealers are actually using AgentDealer in their day-to-day operations. It’s one thing to hear feedback through support tickets, webinars or remote meetings. It’s another thing to sit with a dealer team, watch how they manage opportunities, review the pipeline, quote deals, inspect activity and use the platform in real business situations.
Those visits help us see the full context behind customer needs. Sometimes the most valuable product ideas come from observing where users experience friction, where processes slow down or where managers need better visibility.
They also strengthen relationships. Dealers are more candid when we’re sitting across the table from them, and those conversations help us build trust. The Texas visits reinforced how important it is for AgentDealer to stay connected to the dealer community and to build solutions that reflect how dealers actually operate.
The Dealer Council is a natural extension of that philosophy. It gives us an ongoing way to capture that kind of feedback and apply it to product development.
ENX: How has the new CPQ tool, ProCPQ, been received by your users? What features do they find most compelling?
BARFIELD: ProCPQ has been received very positively. Dealers immediately understand the value because quoting is one of the most important and complex parts of the sales process. A strong CPQ tool has to do more than generate a quote. It has to support accurate configurations, pricing discipline, leasing options, margin protection, document generation and faster deal progression.
The features users find most compelling include a cleaner and more intuitive interface, a step-by-step build progression, faster quote generation, improved accuracy and the ability to reduce errors in complex configurations and pricing scenarios. Margin protection is also a major benefit because ProCPQ can help enforce pricing rules and discount limits.
Dealers are also responding well to expanded capabilities such as multiple leasing options, cost and margin visibility, contract pricing, managed services quoting, quote document generation, price book synchronization, deal splits, financial reviews, custom financials and gross profit targeting.
The response confirms that ProCPQ is solving a real operational challenge. It helps dealers quote faster, more consistently and protect profitability while improving the overall sales experience.
ENX: In the past year, you’ve added leasing integrations and offered programs with sales and marketing firms. Talk about the importance of industry-specific partnerships in maintaining differentiation in a competitive market.
BARFIELD: Industry-specific partnerships are critical because the dealer channel has workflows and requirements that generic CRM systems don’t fully address. Dealers need more than account records, contacts and activity tracking. They need tools that support quoting, leasing, sales accountability, marketing execution, lead qualification, territory planning, campaign performance, pipeline management and business reviews.
That’s why partnerships matter. They allow AgentDealer to remain focused on the dealer ecosystem while connecting customers with best-in-class tools and services that support their growth strategy.
Our partner approach is built around practical outcomes. Marketing and sales can’t operate in separate silos. Marketing must generate the right opportunities, and sales must have the processes and accountability to convert them into revenue. By connecting strategy, campaign execution, lead assignment, engagement tracking, CRM automation and reporting, AgentDealer becomes the hub that ties the process together.
The addition of Ambition.com and Apollo.io strengthens that strategy. Ambition.com brings value around sales performance, coaching, accountability, visibility and motivation. Apollo.io supports prospecting, lead generation, outreach and sales engagement. Together, these partnerships help dealers improve both pipeline creation and pipeline execution.
In a competitive market, differentiation comes from solving the specific problems dealers face. Our partnerships help us do that more fully and more connectedly.
ENX: What does the future look like for CRM providers? What will tomorrow’s platforms evolve to provide?
BARFIELD: The future of CRM is moving beyond systems of record. Tomorrow’s platforms will need to become systems of action and intelligence.
Traditional CRM captured information: accounts, contacts, activities, opportunities and notes. That will still matter, but it will no longer be enough. Dealers will expect CRM platforms to help them understand what the data means, identify what needs attention, recommend next steps, automate routine work and connect more areas of the business.
For the dealer channel, that means the CRM will continue to evolve into a broader operating platform. It will need to support sales process, CPQ, leasing, marketing automation, customer segmentation, territory management, service and equipment visibility, business reviews, KPI dashboards and AI-assisted workflows.
The most valuable platforms will be the ones that help users take action. They’ll not just show managers that a deal is stalled; they’ll help identify why. They’ll not just store customer data; they’ll help sales reps use it. They’ll not just report activity; they’ll help improve performance.
That is where AgentDealer is focused: building tools that help dealers execute better across the full revenue lifecycle.
ENX: Do you view AI as a threat or an opportunity in the world of CRM? Are you employing it in any manner, and if so, how?
BARFIELD: We view AI as a major opportunity, provided it’s implemented responsibly. The concern isn’t AI itself. The concern is using AI without the appropriate security, governance, data controls and business-process discipline.
In the CRM world, AI has the potential to help users work faster, make better decisions, summarize information, prioritize accounts, improve follow-up, automate repetitive tasks and identify opportunities that might otherwise be missed. But it must be done in a way that protects customer data and respects each organization’s rules and permissions.
That’s why our AI strategy is closely tied to Salesforce. [The platform] has released AI tools for partners, including Agentforce capabilities, and we’re currently working to obtain the required certifications to implement them. Our goal is to be prepared to help dealers adopt AI in a secure, practical and business-focused way.
We’re not approaching AI as a novelty. We’re approaching it as another layer of value that can help dealers get more from the data and workflows already inside AgentDealer.
ENX: Where do you see AI potentially making the greatest impact going forward?
BARFIELD: Productivity, decision support and workflow automation. For sales reps, AI can help summarize account history, recommend next steps, identify priority opportunities, reduce administrative work and improve follow-up. For sales managers, AI can help identify pipeline risk, inspect activity, coach more effectively and understand where deals are getting stuck. For marketing teams, AI can help with segmentation, campaign targeting, lead scoring, message optimization and campaign analysis.
There’s also meaningful potential around quoting and CPQ. AI can help guide users through complex pricing, configuration, leasing and margin scenarios. That could be especially valuable in the dealer channel, where deals often include equipment, service, financing, managed services and custom terms.
Long-term, the biggest opportunity is AI that operates inside the workflow. Dealers will benefit most from AI that understands the CRM data, follows business rules, respects user permissions and helps complete specific tasks. That’s where tools such as Agentforce can become especially powerful.
The goal isn’t to replace people. The goal is to make people more effective by helping them spend less time on manual work and more time on selling, managing, serving customers and making better business decisions.
ENX: Is there anything on the horizon from a program or partnership standpoint?
BARFIELD: There are several important initiatives on the horizon. The addition of Ambition.com and Apollo.io is a major step in expanding the AgentDealer partner ecosystem. Ambition.com supports sales performance, accountability, coaching and visibility, while Apollo.io supports prospecting, lead generation, outreach and sales engagement. These partnerships align well with our focus on helping dealers build a pipeline, manage activity and improve sales execution.
The Dealer Council will also play an important role going forward. It gives dealers a direct voice in the product roadmap and helps ensure we prioritize enhancements that deliver real operational value.
AI and Agentforce readiness will be another major focus. Salesforce has released new AI tools for partners, and we’re working to obtain the certifications needed to implement Agentforce capabilities. That will position us to help dealers adopt AI in a secure, practical and aligned way with their business processes.
We’ll also continue expanding programs that connect sales process, marketing enablement, CRM automation, campaign performance and management accountability. Dealers are looking for connected solutions, not disconnected tools, and that will continue guiding our partnership strategy.
ENX: What will a successful 2026 look like in your estimation? What are some of your goals?
BARFIELD: A successful 2026 will be measured by customer outcomes. We want dealers to quote faster, manage pipeline more effectively, improve marketing ROI, protect margins, strengthen accountability and get more value from their data.
From a product standpoint, success will include broader adoption of ProCPQ, continued development of price-book synchronization, expanded use of TracMap 3 and meaningful progress on AI and Agentforce capabilities. We also want to keep improving support resources, training, customer education and the overall user experience.
From a customer success standpoint, we want dealers using AgentDealer as a true management platform, not just a CRM. That means stronger forecasting, better visibility into sales activity, more consistent business reviews, improved marketing-to-sales alignment and clearer performance metrics.
From a strategic standpoint, our goals are to keep expanding the dealer-specific ecosystem, strengthen our partnerships, use the Dealer Council to guide product priorities and prepare our team to deliver AI capabilities responsibly.
In short, a successful 2026 means AgentDealer continues helping dealers operate smarter, sell faster, manage better and make more informed decisions.
