Forbes exits Ingram Micro EMEA

Forbes: leaving the organisation was a difficult decision

Jay Forbes has resigned as Ingram Micro’s EMEA president and will be replaced by the distributor’s Latin American head honcho, Alain Maquet.

Forbes is returning to his native Canada following a two-year stint in the hotseat that has seen him streamline Ingram’s regional headquarters and divest non-profitable businesses.

Forbes said: “While leaving the organisation was a difficult decision, my family and I decided this was the right time for this transition."

Maquet has headed up Ingram Micro Latin America since 2005 but boasts a strong European pedigree having previously managed the distributor’s operations in France and several neighbouring countries.

Maquet will report into Ingram’s chief operating officer Alain Monie.

Monie stressed that Latin America has been the firm’s most profitable region for two of the last three years under Maquet’s watch.

“He knows the European market extremely well, with broad experience managing large, complex operations as well as entrepreneurial start-ups,” Monie said. “We are confident in his ability to build on Jay's good work and drive profitable growth throughout the region.”

Meanwhile Monie also paid tribute to the “meaningful changes” Forbes had made during his two-year tenure.

“Through his leadership, the team streamlined the regional headquarters, strengthened the performance of lagging operations and re-balanced our portfolio mix in favor of higher-margin accounts,” he said.