Rod Tonna-Barthet
Chief executive, Kyocera Document Solutions (UK)
What was your dream career as a child?
Fast jet pilot but sadly my eyesight soon put paid to that!
What has been your personal highlight of 2019?
Our recent Partner Conference at the Grand Hotel in Brighton attended by more than 120 delegates, which allowed us to showcase and launch the thought leadership and changes which Kyocera and the whole team have been working on.
The positive feedback was overwhelming and vindicated the ongoing evolution of our business and how we are standing out in the market.
Which famous person deserves a (gentle) slap?
I don't think our politicians (no matter what side of the house and of what Brexit persuasion) are covering themselves in glory currently so although I'd never advocate violence to our ‘esteemed' leaders, I'd certainly put them on the list for fundamentally failing to deliver on anything over the last few years, and creating unnecessary and long-term turbulence across the entire economy.
What two things (apart from family) would you grab if your house was on fire?
Sorry to be boring, but my mobile phone and wallet.
Which of your 2019 predictions have come to pass?
That Brexit wouldn't be delivered (so far, although I may be proven wrong in the next few weeks) and that Japan would have at least one giant-killing game during the Rugby World Cup!
What TV show have you binge watched this year?
Sadly I haven't had time yet this year but Killing Eve is on my ‘to watch' list, and I can feel the latest series of Peaky Blinders being added to it.
How has 2019 been from a business perspective?
Rewarding, challenging and a time of ongoing change.
What annoys you most about your commute?
The recent completely needless and politically-motivated strike action of South Western Railway (among others) which has caused disruption and put at risk hundreds of thousands of commuters.
If you could witness one past event, what would it be?
A bit left of field, I think, but the building of the Pyramids at Giza. As one of the Seven Wonders of the World, it would be fascinating to see how this was achieved and the sheer scale of the task.
How do you explain the channel to people?
Dynamic and highly entrepreneurial businesses who build deep-rooted relationships with their client base and suppliers, which allows them to provide IT and print services to help their customers solve real business issues.
What have been your favourite and least favourite partner conference destinations?
Brighton (favourite - see above) and Las Vegas (least favourite).
What is the biggest challenge facing the channel in 2020?
The continued and accelerated digitisation of workflow process and rapidly increasing move from manual and paper-based processes to much faster end-to-end solutions.
This change requires rapid and continual evolution of customer propositions by channel partners with a focus on being able to provide much wider IT service solutions to their customers. It's not an easy task for companies who have a deep heritage in a particular discipline.
However, while challenging, there is also significant opportunity for channel partners who are able to adapt and broaden their business propositions and in doing so help their customers continue to evolve.
It is here that I strongly believe that Kyocera is leading the print market and helping the channel adapt with the provision of a fully integrated IT services proposition, which our accredited channel partners are able to leverage and add to their own capabilities and in doing so, help their customers put knowledge to work.