Channel Awards: Q&A with Mike Ing, managing director at Kerv Global

Mike Ing, managing director at Kerv, on the reseller's journey over the past year

Why do you think awards like the Channel Awards matter? What would winning this award mean to your company?

It's fantastic to be recognised amongst our peers for the great work that our people do- these awards are a huge testament to all our "Kervers" who work so hard for our customers and partners.

What would you say is your company's proudest achievement over the past year?

There is a lot to choose from! Our Great Place to Work accreditations are up there - both Great Place to Work and Great Place to Work in Tech, together with our 4.9* Glassdoor rating which we're very proud of. A win tonight would definitely be up there too!

What have been the biggest challenges of 2023 so far and how have you overcome them? How have your people helped with that?

Maybe the biggest challenge for all businesses and governments across the world is to deliver on net zero. Our aim at Kerv is to build an organisation that is a beacon of sustainability to be well known for making a difference and to become a destination employer. We want to be an organisation full of people proud of their work, through the impact it has. To this end, Kervers right across our business are involved in sustainability initiatives which range from our own journey to net zero, to building sustainable products.

How do you think the channel has changed over the past year and what changes do you think it still needs to make?

It is more important than ever to ensure that the channel is aligned to the industry markets our customers serve. This means ensuring we understand our customers' business challenges and can deliver insight into how our technology can provide differentiated user and customer experience that's right for their businesses. This will involve being active members in industry forums, being part of industry advisory boards and running industry specific thought leadership events.

What do you see as the main opportunities for the channel in the coming year?

It sounds like a cliché, but the Artificial Intelligence opportunities are huge and being ahead of the curve here is really going to be vital for customers and the channel alike. We are seeing a huge increase in the number of AI projects we are working with customers on; from digital customer interaction, to automation to business decision support.

Examples of technology we have developed inhouse include CX Translate (helping to remove language barriers for non-native speakers in contact centres) and our Compliance Cloud Service, enabling financial services institutions to capture, archive and analyse all forms of communication.

We also deploy AI and automation in our Managed IT and Security propositions to deliver more efficient onboarding, patching, time to respond and detecting threats.

As a channel, we are also always thinking about our brilliant partnerships which enhance our core services.

How do you plan to capitalise on those opportunities?

We will continue to develop our people with the skills they need to support our customers through this period of exiting opportunity. This means everything from continuing to invest in specialisms and accreditations, to continual improvement in tooling, and further developing our own IP.