Bruce Hockin

Channel director, international, Alkira

What has been your personal highlight of 2025?

Mentoring a number of up-and-coming channel professionals through The Channel Community and seeing their development turn into tangible success.

Which tech figurehead has impressed you the most this year, and why?

Himanshu Gupta, CEO of ClimateAI. His team is leveraging AI to model and mitigate climate risks across supply-chains, which is becoming increasingly relevant as the tech ecosystem’s growth itself places resource, material, and energy demands on our infrastructure.

What was your first job in the channel?

Account Manager at Norwood Adam Distribution in 1997. It gave me early exposure to a wide range of emerging technologies (and I still enjoy being the David to the industries Goliaths), setting the foundation for the career I’ve since built and the mindset I still draw on today.

What’s your personal sustainability commitment for 2026?

AI is an incredible force for innovation, but also a major consumer of energy. My focus for 2026 is to use it responsibly. Applying it to real challenges that deliver genuine value, not trivial use cases.

What’s one hidden talent or skill your colleagues wouldn’t suspect you have?

I’m surprisingly handy on the turntables. Give me a box of funky house vinyl and I’m in my element.

What’s your advice for new graduates/apprentices in the channel, in three words?

Relationships build success.

What was your first day in your current role like?

Drinking from the proverbial firehose! Loved it.

What ethos, mindset or skill are you carrying forward from your previous role?

Simplicity is key! I’m keen to challenge the “we’ve always done it this way” mindset in the channel. Remove unnecessary complexity. Ask for what you need, not what you want, and focus instead on making partner engagement easier and framing enablement around business outcomes, not products.

Who has been the most influential figure in your career so far?

Laura Bouchard (nee Harman). Laura helped me make the transition from account management to senior leadership, giving me the confidence to think more strategically and the freedom to shape ideas that added value across the wider business. Her belief in empowering people to grow through trust and accountability has stayed with me ever since.