Mike Chambers

CRN Staff
14 December 2010

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Career so far: I have worked at Action Computer Supplies, SCC, Insight and PC-Ware UK.

If you could be anyone else for a week, who would you be and what would you do? Mr Gilbert from The Inbetweeners. He has just the right balance of sadist and maniacal psychopath. He would be very interesting on Dragons Den. Or maybe Mr Gilbert and Lord Alan could jobshare - that would be fun for a week.

What would you have as your last meal? Any starter by Heston Blumenthal, followed by a saveloy, chips, mushy peas and curry sauce.

What is the best corporate jolly you have ever been on/taken partners on? Anything to do with Grand Prix Racing or surfing. Probably the best corporate jolly I have been on so far was visiting Star City in Russia - very interesting and just like it is in the James Bond films.

Do you see the cloud as a threat or an opportunity? Most definitely an opportunity. The IT industry is still only young - the car didn't kill off railways, and air travel didn't finish off the car. We all need to evolve.
I heard someone say recently that IT sales is just like Darwinism - but in suits. I agree. If cloud computing is here, and people want it, then we have to adapt and embrace it, or fall behind.

Have any of your predictions come true this year? I predicted we would all still be talking about cloud computing this year, and we are. We have seen our SaaS revenues increase this year way above traditional licence types, and I am proud that PC-Ware UK continues to be perfectly positioned for this.

What do you see as the channel's biggest challenge in 2011? Persuading vendors that cutting out the channel does not lead to a land flowing with milk and honey. The channel performs a complex and difficult role - not just absorbing the credit risk. It's about time some vendors credited the reseller channel with the incredible role it performs in managing customers, building relationships and generating incremental revenue.

What is the best part of your day? Any time I walk out my office and see a happy smiling team that is pleased to be working at PC-Ware, with the correct work-life balance, motivated by hard work and ambition, and providing perfect customer service, all the while maintaining a killer instinct