Westcon’s chief executive-in-waiting has outlined his priorities for the networking distributor as he prepares to take over from Tom Dolan.

Dean Douglas, who joined as chief operating officer in 2008, will take the reins on 1 April as Dolan steps back into the role of chairman.

Dolan, who founded Westcon in 1985, indicated he only wanted to head up the firm for five years when he rejoined as chief executive in 2004.

Douglas said his three priorities are to grow Westcon’s global capabilities, expand its portfolio of services and help resellers tap into their existing customer base more effectively.

One area primed for expansion is Westcon’s process-as-a-service offering, Douglas revealed.

“There are certain processes we can do more effectively because of our scale and capabilities, where there is no reason for the reseller to invest,” he explained.

Alastair Edwards, senior analyst at Canalys, said that Westcon is facing stiffer competition from a renewed Azlan and local specialists.

“Tom is a respected guy and has done a good job in building up Westcon. The market is becoming more competitive and the company needs strong management to get through this,” he said.