Expert financial advice on offer at Finance Forum

Financial specialists from legal, corporate, accountancy, trade credit and distribution sectors will speak to industry players this month

Resellers will learn to manage their piggy bank for growth at Finance Forum 2010

Channel partners are being urged to attend CRN’s first ever Finance Forum targeting the specific financial needs and worries of technology providers, to be held on 24 June in Reading.

Mark Burton, CRN publisher, says the event, aimed at reseller business leaders, will be unique, with a select line-up of five focused speakers with decades of direct experience in channel financial issues.

“Pressure on resellers is more intense than ever. We are emerging from recession – yet many players are finding that poor market performance in 2009 will have a knock-on effect on credit lines this year,” he says.

“This is all about how you can continue to ensure you have the best financial structure in place to keep growing your business.”

Channel stalwart Nitin Joshi, founder of Channelmoney, says the forum aims to provide the tools that VARs will need to succeed in the years ahead, and help them avoid the pitfalls.

As chairman, he will not only ensure the speakers give their best but offer insight into their words and a few of his own well-honed views on the issues.

“I am hoping that people will come away with 10 solid ideas on how to improve their businesses. Ten ideas to take away with them, which will allow their businesses to do better in the next 12 months than they would without those pearls of wisdom,” says Joshi.

On the other hand, it is also definitely about how you can improve your relationship with your suppliers, says Joshi.

Finances even more important
Mark Ancell, credit services general manager at Computer 2000, says issues of finance are even more important at the moment than usual.

“It is very relevant. With the way the economy is and the change in government and so on, there is still an awful lot of uncertainty around things. And I think it is very important for us as a distributor to put ourselves forward, to stand out and do something with the channel with regards to reseller financing,” says Ancell.

Ancell is scheduled to make a presentation about how resellers can strengthen their own financial profile, and available cash-flow, through improved relationships. This is all about achieving transparency with vendors and distributors, and increasing the level of credit available from suppliers.

It also touches upon managing risk through learning how to assess your customers’ creditworthiness more accurately, he says.

“It is about talking to the reseller channel and how we should be working with each other, and things you should be looking to do,” says Ancell. “And it is about late payments, and fraud. All these things tie in together.”

For distribution, it was about being proactive in supporting the channel and achieving growth together, Ancell adds.

Ancell, who himself has 15 years' experience in distribution and was previously head of intelligence at credit reference agency Graydon, heads a dedicated C2000 team of credit professionals that offers support and in-depth advice to resellers. His team has over £450m of credit in the channel at any one time.

C2000 is the headline sponsor for the event. Westcoast is also a sponsor, highlighting the importance that financial issues have for distribution.

Sara Yirrell, editor at CRN, urges the channel to take part. “We have upped the ante in our events this year, but this one should really hit the spot in terms of channel needs. Finances are the life-blood of every business,” she adds.

Other speakers include Alison Hopkinson, regional director at finance-director-for-hire firm the FD Centre. Hopkinson will examine how resellers can manage financial issues effectively in the current economic environment.

She will also shine a light on credit availability today and in the future, and look at how to put key performance indicator (KPI) data to work on improving the bottom line.

Before joining the FD Centre, Hopkinson was finance director of Dell in both the UK and Europe. She started out as a chartered accountant with globally respected Big Four consultancy PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Safeguard your business
Christopher Harlowe, partner at legal firm Speechly Bircham, will offer assistance on how to safeguard your business with a watertight legal framework. He will explain what is needed to trade safely, and how understand your position legally when things – as can always happen - go wrong.

Shaun Purrington, regional director for UK and Ireland at credit insurance and risk management specialist Atradius, will discuss the nitty-gritty of how you can improve your credit limit with distributors, and examine underwriting trends and philosophies.

He will also offer advice on financial transparency and how to better manage supplier relationships, market reputation and the management team itself to appeal to credit insurers.

Finally, David Smith, futurologist and chief executive at Global Futures and Foresight, will gaze into his crystal ball and scry out possibilities for reducing business risk in future, looking at key global and local drivers of change and the implications for the IT industry generally.

CRN’s inaugural Finance Forum will take place at the Hilton Hotel, Reading on 24 June from 8:30am until 12:30pm.

To attend book your place here , contact [email protected] or telephone her direct on 020 7004 7448.

Website: http://web.incisive-events.com /xmlpub/sites/live/btg/2010/06/crn-finance-forum/index.html