Exclusive: Giacom new cloud MD - 'We have a clear vision of where we are going'

After a brief stint at Northamber, industry veteran Darren Spence tells CRN he has joined the Giacom team as managing director of its cloud business

Taking the step from reseller to vendor to distributor is not a path trodden by many, but Darren Spence (pictured) is keen to rise to the challenge after spending his first week as Cloud managing director at Giacom.

He joins the distributor as one of three ‘tower’ managing directors - the other towers being Mobile and Connectivity - under the leadership of CEO Terry O’Brien.

Spence’s channel pedigree includes roles such as marketing director at Bytes Technology Group, managing director of Bytes Document Solutions, and founder/managing director of Boost Technology Group, among others. He was appointed Group Managing director at Northamber earlier this year, but admitted the role did not play to his strengths, and so he left that position.

Speaking to CRN, Spence said he had “learned a lot from his time at Northamber”, and it has left him well placed to focus on his growth plans with Giacom where he believes there is significant opportunity ahead.

“The business is very strong in cloud, mobile and connectivity and is in a strong position to help resellers transform their businesses,” he said.

“If you look at cloud and telephony generally there is convergence that has been going on for some time and Giacom are in the perfect place to help partners build new propositions that actually capitalise on connectivity, mobile and cloud. The business is very stable, and we’ve got a clear vision about where we are going.”

Spence said there was some turmoil across distribution at the moment, and he feels Giacom will pick up business as a result.

“For example, Microsoft has made some pretty significant changes in the way they go to market, and we’re well positioned to work with Microsoft and the partners to help them understand the opportunity around that,” he explains.

“I think there are opportunities to look at our cloud, mobile and connectivity offerings and see how we can combine those and help our partners improve what they already do. We have a great team here and have three very strong towers that will perfectly coexist.”

He added that he is keen to spread the word about Giacom.

“When I speak to some of my network about Giacom, some have heard of it and some haven’t, and that to me is another opportunity to educate the channel on what we can do. It is an exciting time ahead.”