Laurie Beagle

Career so far I am a career credit professional and I run industry forums and focus groups for credit and finance professionals in the UK and Europe.

If you could be anyone else for a week, who would you be and what would you do? I would be the chancellor of the exchequer and I would take control of credit card companies and reduce the interest rates charged. This is stifling economic growth.

Cloud – friend or foe? A Friend. The cloud reduces capex spending and outlay on maintenance and upgrades. For small businesses (resellers) it gives them more certainty and continuity of service.

Has 2011 been as bad as everyone said it would be? It depends on your size. Bigger businesses seem to have weathered the storm pretty well. SMEs have found it really tough and the end is not in sight as yet. So there is more pain to come.

What would you have as your last meal? Roast beef and yorkies cooked by my wife with apple pie and custard cooked by my mother.

Who would you like to be stuck in a lift with? Eric Clapton. In my view the greatest-ever guitar player. What a history and he survived. I would love to meet him.

Have any of your predictions come true this year? That we are only just seeing how the government austerity measures are affecting businesses and the money in my pocket is getting smaller. Also that Spurs “would not” sell Luka Modric.

What do you see as the channel’s biggest challenge in 2012? With consumer spending down and company spending slowing, the challenges will be profit margins and cash flow in 2011.

What is the best part of your day? Going home to a glass of red wine and dinner with my wife.