Chief executive, intY CASCADE
Career so far
BT Engineer from 1971 -1978, Prime computer engineer from 1978-1979, Case engineer 1979-1980, Case Sales: 1980 - 1986, Motorola - sales and marketing director: 1986 - 1987, Atlantic - sales and marketing Director, 1987 - 1989 Modular Technology managing director, 1989 - 2003 Kardex: managing director, 2004 - 2005 - intY chief executive 2006 to date
What was your first job and were you any good at it? As a teenager I worked in a music shop. Music is a passion of mine - I play guitar, piano and harmonica so, of course, I was in my element.
Who was your top teenage pin-up? Farah Fawcett.
My colleagues won't know this about me but….
I have a heart of gold.
What is your favourite snack?
A full English breakfast - black pudding being a must!
What has been your career high point to date?
There's been a few but. Developing the intY CASCADE platform, getting from where we were to where we are now has been a tremendous journey.
Has 2013 been a good, bad or ugly year? Why? It's not over yet! So far it's been a great first year for intY CASCADE, our cloud marketplace for the channel.
What do you say when strangers at a social gathering ask what you do for a living?
I tell people I am a sales professional. For two reasons, first, I am proud of being a sales person, it's something I am passionate about. Secondly, it saves a million questions about cloud and the internet - don't think you'll be surprised at how many people don't know much about either!
If I wasn't working in the channel I would probably be…
Travelling. My favourite place to go in the world is the Florida Keys.
What do you see as the channel's biggest challenge in 2014?
The rate at which the technology landscape is evolving is the fastest I've ever seen. To keep pace, the channel will need to rethink how it operates in terms of understanding, delivering and supporting often complex solutions, particularly in the SMB to mid-market where the early adopter customer is now replaced with middle adopters, who are often sceptical of the benefits of cloud. The most important and biggest challenge will be delivering clear and concise sales messages through professional selling.
