Channel Awards 2024: Q&A with Jeremy Nash, CEO, Centerprise International
Jeremy Nash, CEO of Centerprise International, has over two decades of experience in the Royal Air Force as a Communications Engineering Officer, followed by senior roles at Hewlett Packard Enterprise Services, where he worked on major defense projects. Since joining Centerprise in 2013, and becoming CEO in 2017, Nash has led the company through continued growth and expansion, particularly in IT Asset Disposition (ITAD) and Public Cloud services.
In this Q&A, Nash discusses the significance of the CRN Channel Awards and their role in encouraging innovation in the industry. He also shares Centerprise’s key achievements over the past year, the challenges the company has faced, and his outlook on the future opportunities and changes within the Channel, including a focus on sustainability and digital transformation.
CRN: Why do you think events like the Channel Awards matter?
JN: The CRN Channel Awards provide the opportunity to recognise excellence and innovation within the industry. It is incredibly important to acknowledge the positive changes in the Channel, which CRN and the Awards continue to highlight. The Channel Awards also encourage companies to think about the future, compelling them to question what they should do next.
CRN: What would winning this award mean to your company?
JN: Winning the award would be a validation of our continued efforts to improve. We are a company that strives to make a difference in the community, and it would be nice for this to be recognised among our peers.
CRN: What would you say is your company’s proudest achievement over the past year?
JN: Our boldest achievements this year have been the further investment in our IT Asset Disposition (ITAD) and Public Cloud services. We have expanded our ITAD facilities in Ystrad Mynach, South Wales: our site has doubled in size, allowing us to introduce new employees and clients to Centerprise. This investment, coupled with our partnership with SunscreenIT, enables our customers to join efforts with us to make a socio-economic difference to developing nations and underprivileged areas of the UK. As for our Public Cloud platform, 60% of our new customers are public sector organisations, reflecting our commitment to deliver a value option to the public sector.
CRN: What have been the biggest challenges of 2024 so far, and how have you overcome them?
JN: We are predominantly a public sector-facing organisation, so the budgetary pressures facing our customers have posed a significant challenge. We have maintained our focus on delivering value through innovation, which has enabled us to grow revenue through increasing our market share with key customers.
CRN: How have your people helped with that?
JN: We ensure we live our core values, which means we put our customers and our people at the centre of everything we strive to achieve. This is respected by our employees who respond with loyalty, integrity, and commitment. This in turn delivers a dedication towards doing the right thing for our customers. We do not always get it right, but we never stop trying to do so.
CRN: How do you think the channel has changed over the past year, and what changes do you think it still needs to make?
JN: The channel has rightly had an increased focus on ESG. The practices of our industry are not sustainable in the long term. Demand will outstrip the availability of materials and resources or at least the industry’s response to meeting the demand will become intolerable to more progressive nations. The channel needs to continue to work together to raise the bar for ESG practices, specifically sustainability. We should be an industry that makes a positive contribution to society, not one that simply profiteers from it.
CRN: What do you see as the main opportunities for the Channel in the coming year?
JN: The eye-watering amounts of investment in AI means our industry will be relentless in its drive for AI adoption. This is likely to remain the domain of the few for several years to come. For most of the Channel, the key opportunities will lie in digital transformation and sustainability.
CRN: How do you plan to capitalise on those opportunities?
JN: We will continue to invest in our ITAD facilities so that we can directly contribute to improving the sustainability of our industry. We will also continue to evolve our Public Cloud services and to develop our skills in digital transformation to enable our customers to achieve more from their investment in technology.