David McLeman

Chief executive, Ancoris

What was your dream career as a child?

To be a professional sailor.

What has been your personal highlight of 2019?

Taking a three-month sabbatical and sailing 7,000 nautical miles from the UK down to the Cape Verde Islands off the West Coast of Africa then across the Atlantic to the Caribbean. It was a great way to recharge the batteries!

Which famous person deserves a (gentle) slap?

Predictably it would probably have to be David Cameron for kicking off this period of "B" uncertainty!

What two things (apart from family) would you grab if your house was on fire?

A tough one, apart from a weakness for boats and cars which aren't in the house. I've been more into experiences than precious possessions. As I know that my family are safe and my data, photos are secure in the cloud I think I'd just get out quick and let the fire services do their bit.

Which of your 2019 predictions have come to pass?

The pace of innovation continues to accelerate. I think it's one of the most exciting times in our industry.

What TV show have you binge watched this year?

The re-run of Ashes to Ashes. A reminder of how far we've progressed in 20 years (but Gene Hunt's Audi Quattro was a fine piece of machinery!).

How has 2019 been from a business perspective?

It's been another really good year for Ancoris. We continue to grow revenue and profit, hire great people at an exciting rate and undertake exciting cloud and mobile projects with our wonderful clients. We are delighted to be recognised with further industry awards such as the Most Innovative Cloud Vendor at the 2019 Cloud Excellence Awards run by CRN's sister publication, Computing.

What annoys you most about your commute?

There's nothing to get annoyed about when it only takes seven minutes!

If you could witness one past event, what would it be?

The first telephone call by Alexander Graham Bell, to his assistant, Thomas Watson in 1876. Seeing reactions when demonstrating the "art of the possible" is always a buzz.

How do you explain the channel to people?

The network of organisations that helps clients get business value from technology.

What have been your favourite and least favourite partner conference destinations?

I always enjoy San Francisco, equally just can't understand Las Vegas!

What is the biggest challenge facing the channel in 2020?

For most of our clients adopting the cloud is no longer primarily about cost-efficiencies and agility. It is becoming their most critical, and dependable, source of sustained technology innovations. Successful service providers need to become the catalysts for their clients' digital transformation, not mere suppliers of technology and related services. We need to co-create the IP that will support the ongoing development of their businesses and focus on the customer experience in each use case to provide competitive advantage.

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