Colin Sales

Career so far: In the mid 1980s and while working for the Dixons retail group, I headed up its first PC support division, which was primarily focused on Amstrad. I bought my first business, a channel-focused IT support organisation called Linetex, as part of a venture capital-backed MBO in 1996. This business was floated in 2004. In 2007, I joined an established managed services provider, Montal, which with the original management team from Linetex, I acquired in 2008. Montal is seen as a particularly innovative and progressive managed service provider and I regularly present on the subject at industry events.

If you could be anyone else for a week, who would you be and what would you do? David Cameron, to test if you really could combine being prime minister with telling the truth as to why policy is what it is.

Cloud - friend or foe? Both. It is a key part of current strategy with great opportunities, but at the potential cost of existing revenue streams.

Has 2011 been as bad as everyone said it would be? It was a challenging start, but increased outsourcing has resulted in us being busier than ever.

What would you have as your last meal? Calf's liver with a fine Chianti.

Who would you like to be stuck in a lift with? Lord Digby Jones.

Have any of your predictions come true this year? Yes. Not to panic, as recessions offer more positives than negatives for IT outsourcers.

What do you see as the channel's biggest challenge in 2012? Change - moving from traditional models to ones that embrace the cloud and mobile solutions.
What is the best part of your day? The drive home.