Phil Brown

B2B director, exertis Micro-P

Career so far

I’ve worked for Tech Data, Samsung, Asus and now exertis Micro-P.

What was your first job and were you any good at it?

The longest paper round in the village. I never had any complaints…

Who was your top teenage pin-up?

Kylie Minogue. Nothing has really changed today. My colleagues won’t know this about me but… to be honest I’m pretty much an open book so they know most things (good & bad).

What is your favourite snack?

Crisps are my weakness: you can’t beat a packet of Bacon Fries with a cold pint of lager.

What has been your career high point to date?

I really enjoyed my time at Samsung building the PC business with a really good team around me. The business grew but more importantly the team was fantastic and we all shared in the success.

Has 2013 been good, bad or ugly?

Personally it’s been the most challenging but from a business perspective it has been really good. exertis Micro-P continues to grow in all channels and there is lots to look forward to in the coming months.

What do you say when asked at a party what you do for a living?

I simply tell them I sell computers. However, this normally leads to questions about problems they have with their laptop at home.

If I wasn’t working in the channel I would probably be…

In the leisure industry. I always wanted to work in the sport and leisure industry before finding the IT channel.

What will be the channel’s biggest challenge in 2014?

The transition to tablet and smartphone devices presents a great opportunity while presenting a challenge to existing sales of traditional devices, which have been core to a number of businesses over recent years. It’s our job to ensure that we provide solutions which keep these mobile devices connected and support the acceleration of these technologies.