Darragh Richardson

Career so far: Previously I've worked for Sage, Logicalis, 3Com, Telindus

If you could be anyone else for a week, who would you be and what would you do? I'd be Simon Cowell. I'd shut down all my businesses and declare bankruptcy.

Cloud - friend or foe? If you are an SME customer and want standard applications at attractive prices then it's a friend. If you are a network integrator and see lots of customers effectively outsourcing their network it's a foe. So for my company it is both friend and foe.

Has 2011 been as bad as everyone said it would be? In the public sector and domestic economy it has been, but multinational/export industries are definitely more robust.

What would you have as your last meal? So long as I'm surrounded by family and friends I won't mind what's on the menu.

Who would you like to be stuck in a lift with? Liam Neeson or Brian O'Driscoll would be good company for an hour or two.

Have any of your predictions come true this year? I did think the fall out between Cisco and HP would ultimately hurt Cisco more; they simply can't meet the manufacturing costs and margins HP can live with and it is hurting their pockets.

What do you see as the channel's biggest challenge in 2012? Keeping hold of as much services as possible and navigating the murky world of hybrid cloud offerings.

What is the best part of your day? Putting my sons Cian and Louis to bed; followed by a glass of wine with my wife as we listen to the silence.