2023 Channel Influencers: Channel Futures Honors the Best of the Best
See who made the list — and who’s Influencer of the Year.
February 21, 2023
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Craig Patterson
Senior Vice President, Global Channels
Aryaka
“I view myself as a mixture of all the impactful people I’ve had the opportunity to work with,” says Craig Patterson, senior vice president, global channels, Aryaka, and one of Channel Futures’ 2023 Channel Influencers of the Year.
Patterson worked under and with Channel Influencers galore during his tenure at Level 3, CenturyLink and Lumen, and he is making a name for himself at Aryaka.
Patterson played an important role in aligning Aryaka’s go-to-market strategy with indirect sales and reestablishing the company’s brand in the channel. The company is pacing the industry with lead generation and has embraced multiple partners routes to market, including agent and resale. Recently promoted for a North American role to a global role, Patterson will be looking to replicate Aryaka’s successes in EMEA and APAC in 2023 and beyond.
Fred Voccola
CEO
Kaseya
Kaseya CEO Fred Voccola thinks his selection as a Channel Influencer of the Year is a reflection of his company’s influence in the channel. “It’s super cool that you guys would think about Kaseya or, or even me [as an influencer],” he said. “It’s humbling, I don’t know if I’m the most influential person; I think our company is the most influential company. If we’re going to put a picture in your article, I’d love to put the company or pictures of people at Kaseya.”
When it comes to influence, Voccola says it’s all about the customer. “The first and more important is called customer-centricity,” he said. “Every decision we make, we are trying to understand how it will impact our customers who are all MSPs. And how we make sure that impact is positive. It is part of our company culture.”
And Voccola is entrepreneur through and through. “We all have strengths and weaknesses,” he told Channel Futures. “The day I stop being entrepreneurial, I will suck as a leader of a big company. People perceive that entrepreneurial attributes only exist in small companies, but it’s not true. Being entrepreneurial means, you have those attributes in a small business or a large business.”
Anurag Agrawal
Founder & Chief Global Analyst
Techaisle
Anurag Agrawal, founder and chief global analyst of Techaisle, has more than 30 years’ experience in market research and data analytics. A well-known industry analyst, he is considered one of the top analysts to follow in the SMB, midmarket and channel partner segments. He specializes in developing go-to-market strategies and writes and advises senior executives on the cloud, routes-to-market, emerging technologies and industry dynamics. Before founding Techaisle, he headed Gartner’s worldwide research operations. He began his analyst career with IDC, where he is credited for launching IDC’s much sought-after quarterly market share tracker research.
“I am a workaholic, and I have been one for the last 30 to 40 years”, Agrawal told Channel Futures. “My work philosophy is driven by my belief that what is good for the end customer, the end client, is what I should be able to deliver. My loyalty lies with the end customer and the partner community at large. How I influence or inform that community is driven by the data. I rely on data to make informed decisions that guide the technology community.”
Ross Artale
CEO
Spectrotel
Spectrotel is 100% channel-based and the channel is the “life blood” of its business, says CEO Ross Artale. He recognized that being an influencer is incredibly rewarding because “it validates the key principles of next generation aggregation, to bring unparalleled choice, expertise and service to the channel and our mutual customers.” He said an influencer is a “change agent” and someone who is executing well, who demonstrates meaningful thought leadership and gets everyone on board.
When it comes to his work philosophy, it’s so simple, he said.
“We put the customer at the core of everything we do. The customer can be our associates, channel partners, suppliers, everyone in our ecosystem. We are in a service business, and it all starts with a passion to deliver the very best service.”
Kam Attwal-Kaila
Partner & President
IT By Design
“For me, someone who provides influence is a guiding light,” says Kam Attwal-Kaila, partner and president of IT By Design (ITBD). “They’re trying to find the information that is relevant, that will help people. Creating influence is creating impact. It’s helping people.
“Being considered an influencer means that I’ve been helping people in some way, shape or form. That I’ve provided them with either a tool or access to something that they didn’t otherwise have. Or that I’m bringing them content they haven’t had access to previously. Or maybe they didn’t think about right. So in some way I’m changing the way that they’re thinking or I’m helping them in some way. And so being an influencer is about what kind of impact you are leaving with people and how you are leaving that impact. For me, creating influence mans “What else can I support you with?”
Truly a “guiding light” in the channel, Attwal-Kaila is ITBD’s brand ambassador and is responsible for building the brand worldwide. She leads the company’s community initiatives and drives Build IT, a channel event that facilitates sharing of knowledge by channel educators through templates, tools, and scorecards that help MSPs grow. Attwal-Kaila provides educational content to the IT channel through a variety of events, webinars, and channel publications.
Kelli Ballou-McMillan
Director, Global Partners (Channel)
Five9
“With the time that I have here, I just want to make an impact on the things that I’m passionate about and if that makes me an influencer, then I’m here for it,” says Kelli Ballou-McMillan. “I think an influencer is someone who can elevate the way we interact and engage with each other. Someone who can communicate in a way that impacts and ignites other people.”
As the director of global partners at Five9, Ballou-McMillan is responsible for creating equitable partner programs that enable, educate, and empower partners to sell cloud emerging technologies. With her leadership and strength in building strategic partnerships, she has impacted the channel route to market success by exceeding her growth targets year over year. She is an experienced speaker and panel participant at key channel events covering cloud technology and DE&I.
In 2019, Ballou-McMillan founded the Xposure Inclusion & Diversity Council, the industry’s first business resource group designed to provide a collaborative space for those in technology to have access to career-changing resources, education, mentorship and outreach opportunities.
Mike Baur
CEO
ScanSource
“My work philosophy is traditional and simple; work smarter than the competition by providing an incredible customer experience,” says ScanSource CEO Mike Baur. “And it begins with treating our ScanSource people extremely well and building a long-term relationship with our suppliers. We believe in ‘a fun and happy work environment’ while delivering world-class service to our customers.”’
In terms of influence in the technology advisor (agent) community, the founder of ever-evolving distributor ScanSource represents perhaps the most publicly visible figures. Since the acquisition of Intelisys seven years ago, Baur has played a key role in making the advisor channel visible to public investors, regularly taking to quarterly earnings calls to share updates on the state of the Intelisys business. Those numbers have served as a bellwether of sorts for the rest of the TSD and agent community, who watch carefully to gauge the growth of their market.
But Baur is doing far more than bringing Intelisys into the public eye. Intelisys functions as a key cog in ScanSource’s hybrid distribution model, which aims to move the distributor’s traditional hardware resellers into the cloud. Baur and his team preach a converged partner model that could save many VARs from declining on-prem communications hardware revenues. It remains to be seen how legacy Intelisys partners will adopt the other side of that proposition, which is that they add hardware sales to round out their business, but ScanSource’s ambition for a new type of partner is undeniable. The state of these “hybrid partners” will be a key topic in 2023.
Ken Bisnoff
Senior Vice President, Channel Chief
GTT
“In the channel I provide partners with an environment based upon the three foundation blocks: simplicity, support and success,” says Ken Bisnoff, senior vice president and channel chief for GTT. “Everything that I do for the channel is based upon on that.
“Simplicity means making it easier for them to manage their business with our company throughout the customer life cycle. Support is offering them the help they need and connections with the teams they’ll be engaged with throughout the customer life cycle. It’s having support there for them that recognizes their value as a partner. Success seems obvious, but it’s more than just to offer them rich commissions that pays them for placing their business with us. It’s providing them with satisfied customers. It’s having a place where partners bring their business that continues to grow and renew. Everything falls under simplicity, support and success in one way or another.”
Bisnoff has more than 30 years of experience leading high-performing organizations through periods of rapid organizational growth, industry change and sales-driven expansion. He joined GTT as senior vice president and channel chief in January 2022 after spending more than two decades with TPx Communications (formerly TelePacific Communications). Bisnoff was a founding member of the TPx executive team and played a key role in the company’s growth from a small startup regional CLEC to a billion-dollar national managed services provider.
Bisnoff has been honored as a Channel Partners Channel Chief, a member of the Channel Futures Top Gun 51 and the Channel Futures Circle of Excellence.
Jason Bystrak
Vice President, Modern Solutions Business Unit
D&H Distributing
Jason Bystrak has been in the channel a long time, much of that spent in 22 years at Ingram Micro. But now, with more than four years at D&H Distributing, he’s carving a niche leading the company’s modern solutions business unit. He helps partners with a focus on emerging technologies and business models “that require the channel to support adoption,” he told Channel Futures.
“Influence starts with being available, collaborative and engaged with customers and channel partners across the ecosystem,” said Bystrak. “I think the end result is the ability to drive transformation and ultimately results in helping those channels go to market.”
His work philosophy starts and ends with people.
“It’s all about staying close to the details and the people on the front lines who live those details every single day,” he said. “[It’s about] focusing on identifying obstacles to greater success and simplifying complex processes with the end user in mind at all times.”
Ricky Cooper
Head of Worldwide Channel & Commercial Organization
VMware
Ricky Cooper embraced the challenge of filling big shoes in mid-2022 when then-channel chief Sandy Hogan left VMware. But he has picked up where Hogan left off and continued to develop unique approaches to channel partner compensation that better fit a recurring revenue world. Cooper, head of VMware’s worldwide partner and commercial organization, moved into that role from serving as vice president for global and transformation partners.
“It’s my first year leading the channel for VMware, there’s a lot that comes with that and we managed to achieve a lot this year,” he says. As such, joining the 2023 list of Channel Futures Influencers strikes him as “a fantastic achievement. … The channel is a huge honor for me.”
As such, Cooper looks at the description of influence as having the ability to effect change. And, at the other side of 50, as he puts it, there’s a question within the channel about “what we can leave as influencers.”
“There are so many new characters coming into the industry, there’s a great push on diversity, so being an influencer now really is at the pinnacle of understanding IT and having the history under your belt,” he says. Plus, he adds, that also translates into “being able to give something back in a meaningful way.”
Cooper’s work philosophy has propelled him to this level of understanding and work. He’s played sports around the world since the age of 15, “so I am not averse to working hard,” he says. “What I’ve learned is to work smart. … If you say you’re going to do something, do it. Be courteous. … If you are dismissive, standoffish, you’re not going to have the same level of influence.”
Working hard produces results, Cooper says, and those results build a team. That’s going to be vital to companies such as VMware and attracting talent.
“This is one of the best industries in the world, it’s great to be a part of, great for people coming out of university,” he says.
As he reflects on 2022 and the Channel Influencer award, Cooper credits not only his own hard work but VMware as a whole.
“It’s got a great reputation, a great vision for the future, a great position of independence and to … be a part of that, working with our fantastic partners … that’s a personal accomplishment.”
Michael Day
Vice President, Global Partner Sales
GoTo
Michael Day, GoTo’s vice president of global partner sales, brought to the company nearly 20 years of channel and sales experience. Prior to joining GoTo, he held key channel sales roles at RingCentral and Scram Systems.
Day said being named an influencer is exciting because it means that the “culmination of everything we’re doing as an organization, the way that we’re working with partners and that some of our messaging is starting to resonate and take hold.”
“My work philosophy is there’s always going to be enough work to do, so we must strike the balance of perfecting the items that we can control, engaging others to the area where we’re going to need help and having a little fun along the way while also enjoying life,” he said. “How many of those things can we get to mix into each other? And if we can find the recipe to that success, life and work both become a little fun.”
Days’ goals for 2023 is to continue the transformation that GoTo started in 2022 of having a channel program and turning that into a partner network.
“You can have true and authentic conversations and have joint markets, joint messaging, joint go to market (GTM) with you and your partners so that we have a better and higher probability of success while ensuring that the customer experience and the partner experience are second to none,” he said.
Lisa Del Real
Global Channel Chief
8×8
About a year ago, Lisa Del Real took the job as 8×8’s global vice president of channel sales after more than 11 years in channel leadership roles at 8×8. Before RingCentral, she held executive positions in the financial services industry.
“As a channel-first organization, this recognition would not have been possible at all without my extended team working day in and day out with our great partners,” she said. “Together, we are improving the overall partner and customer experience, and making it even easier to be successful selling 8×8.”
Del Real said influence is being a “champion for your partners, enabling them to maximize opportunities and drive their business forward as they help customers achieve their objectives and thrive in a dynamic economic environment.”
“I derive joy by being challenged and pushed every day by my team and partners,” she said. “This allows me to constantly learn new things as I strive to enhance the partner experience and relationships.”
Nicole Dezen
Chief Partner Officer & Corporate Vice President Global Partner Sales
Microsoft
Nicole Dezen holds the title of chief partner officer and corporate vice president of global partner solutions at Microsoft. “The title of chief partner officer was created when I stepped into this role eight months ago, and it is designed to send a very clear signal to our partners that we are deeply committed and invested in partner success,” she told Channel Futures.
Dezen greatly enjoys working with partners and helping them strategize. “I absolutely love the partner business: specifically, the opportunity to work at incredible scale, to solve problems, and create new growth and new businesses with the most innovative, strategic and largest partner ecosystem in the world,” she said. “I have a huge sense of responsibility to Microsoft’s partners.”
When it comes to leadership, Dezen is all about empowering and encouraging. “My leadership team and I intentionally focus on creating a culture where people want to do their best work. We encourage each other to activate a growth mindset, provide transparent feedback on what’s working and what’s not, and most importantly support each other.”
Lynne Doherty
President, Worldwide Field Operations
Sumo Logic
Lynne Doherty, Sumo Logic’s president of worldwide field operations, has an extensive history of driving channel sales and revenue. In addition, she’s an advocate for women in technology.
Doherty’s previous experience includes sales leadership roles at McAfee Enterprise and Cisco. As a channel leader at McAfee Enterprise, she drove over $1 billion in revenue annually.
“As someone who has been a sales leader in this industry for a long time, the channel has been baked into how I do business, how I run teams and how I establish organizations,” she said. “In this dynamic world, it’s even more critical to have strong relationships with channel partners to help you scale together.”
Influencer is a term that gets used pretty broadly these days, Doherty said.
“But in this sense, to me a channel influencer is someone who believes in doing business in a partner-first model,” she said. “It’s someone who is willing to make bets on strategic partners that you know will benefit you both. It’s someone who will require their team to act in a certain manner to live a partner-first sales motion. It’s someone who wants to spend the time, effort and energy investing in the channel because it’s what’s good for business.”
Adam Edwards
CEO
Telarus
Anyone who’s been in the technology advisor channel for a while knows at least a little of Adam Edwards’ background. He started his career in finance, but more than 20 years ago, when childhood friend Patrick Oborn told him about the benefits of recurring revenue in selling telecom services, the two teamed up to form Telarus.
“We weren’t great at selling,” Edwards told Channel Futures, but the pair knew they would be good at supporting those who do. Thus, it wasn’t long before the company became the full-service technology solutions brokerage it is today.
Making this year’s Influencers list gives him and Telarus more clout to show the channel they’re doing things right.
“There have been a lot of people before me who have created this as a viable route to market,” he said. “If I do my part, I can continue to expand that opportunity not just for Telarus and its partners, but for our providers and the model and the industry as a whole.”
Kobi Elbaz
Senior Vice President & General Manager, Global Channel Organization
HP
Joining HP in 1996 and having held numerous roles, Kobi Elbaz heads channel and partner-facing engagement on a global scale for the entire HP portfolio. This includes building and executing HP’s channel partner strategy, driving HP partner growth and managing HP sales centers. Under this leadership, HP partners drove more than $6 billion in revenue growth over the past year. His work philosophy includes possessing long-term vision for the UC space so that HP and Poly can capitalize on a once-in-a-generation opportunity to redefine the way work gets done.
Scott Evars
CEO & Co-Founder
Bridgepointe Technologies
“For me, influence confirms or changes people’s views and actions,” says Scott Evars, co-founder and owner of Bridgepointe Technologies. “I’ve always been drawn to people with a track record of consistent success who offer unique insight into where things are going. That’s something we’re very focused on with our clients, as we want to give them perspectives about new opportunities and risks so they’re ready for what’s coming next.”
Bridgepointe Technologies started with ambitious goals, according to Evars, and those ambitions continue to rise.
Evars and co-founder Brian Miller launched the IT strategy firm 21 years ago, opening up one of the more unique business models in the channel to partners, many of which have adopted the Bridgepointe brand. After two decades of organic growth, the company has enlisted Charlesbank Capital Partners and several key industry hires to help the company deepen its scope of tech advisory services.
“Being recognized as an influencer is purely because of the success of the entire Bridgepointe team. Miller, our employees, strategists and suppliers are why we’ve been able to get to where we are today,” Evars told Channel Futures. “I’m grateful to everyone for their commitment to Bridgepointe and looking forward to where the future takes us.”
Jennifer Gallego
Executive Vice President, Global Sales
Avant Communications
Jennifer Gallego is one of Avant Communications’ founding members. She started as executive vice president of channel sales for the West and was named executive vice president of global sales in 2020. Prior to joining Avant, she spent nearly 10 years at XO, working her way up from account executive to director of channel. Her extensive sales experience and deep knowledge of the constantly evolving channel space fuel her leadership of Avant’s sales team and empower them to exceed sales goals.
“True influence is earned,” Gallego told Channel Futures. “People attain it in different ways, but the most important qualifier to me is leading by example. Integrity matters. Having a strong work ethic, treating people fair and equally, and being committed to your team and the community that surrounds you, is all foundation for success. An influencer isn’t likely to be the loudest in the room. More often they are the one listening, learning from others and weighing in with the team, the partners, the customers, and in the case of Avant, our trusted advisors in mind.”
Jim Glackin
Executive Vice President, Channel Sales
Nitel
Jim Glackin has been Nitel’s executive vice president of channel sales for just about a year now. He is responsible for all channel sales and support to further expand Nitel’s presence and deliver value to partners as part of the company’s channel-first growth strategy.He came to Nitel from Masergy where he led their channel sales operations. He started his career at AT&T focusing on enterprise business partnerships followed by CenturyLink, where he served as vice president of strategic partners.
Bonus info: Glackin is a licensed pilot and flies transport missions for the animal rescue organization Pilots N Paws.
“I’ve been in the channel for 25 years, starting out in channel management and working up through different roles,” Glackin said. “It’s a big channel out there and there’s a lot going on. To be named as one of the top influencers in the channel is incredibly humbling and a great honor at the same time.
“I was just on a call where I was introduced as the executive vice president of channels and it kind of hit me — I honestly feel that I’ve never left my channel management roots. It’s all about service. I’ve never adopted the title channel chief because the partner is the chief in the channel. It starts with the partner. My work philosophy is all around service and service leadership. I’ve never been too proud to get down in the weeds, sit down with a partner and work through an issue. I’ll never be too busy or too high on the org chart to take a call from any partner and help them. And I think that really is what makes the difference between a true channel leader and somebody I would call a channel chief.”
Scott Goree
Vice President, Global Partners & Alliances
Skyhigh Security
Scott Goree is vice president of global partners and alliances at Skyhigh Security. Its launch in March 2022 completed the split of McAfee Enterprise into two companies. Before joining Skyhigh Security, Goree held top sales positions with Nutanix and Pure Storage. And before that, he held leadership roles with Cisco.
Influencing means leading through example, Goree said.
“I instantly go to my team and I want to be the example that they aspire to be, but I also want to learn from them,” he said. “So I want to have that same humility and vulnerability to say hey, I can learn from all places and all levels in the organization, but lead in that way and show by example. And that’s how I influence and just being that example setting.”
Goree said his work ethic has evolved over his career. Early on, it was “grind, grind, grind, keep going, keep the motor going.”
“Now, as I kind of evolve in my career, it’s about balance,” he said. “It’s about balance in your day. It’s about balancing what you do, balance in your core responsibilities. I want one leg in the things that I do quite well, and I’m comfortable and I bring strength to it, and I want this for my team. And I want one leg in the uncomfortable because that’s where I’m learning. So making sure that we balance the work and just the stress of work with your family life, your health and just the resetting.”
Wendy Harmon
Assistant Vice President, Channel Marketing
RingCentral
It’s an honor to be selected as an influencer, Harmon said, because while she knows she represents RingCentral’s channel program, her recognition is deeply about the team and all the people around it.
Regarding “influence,” it has become a buzz term over the last few years, she said, adding that true influence is greatly based on trust and being able to have expertise in this industry in this market.
She likens her work philosophy to jumping on a surfboard and riding the wave, not letting the churn of the wave distract her. This analogy she applies to managing a team.
“I enjoy more than anything else building teams of incredible individuals, motivating them, getting them excited, setting expectations and then really getting the heck out of the way and letting them shine,” Harmon said. “It’s about helping them understand what they need to do and then seeing them surprise and delight themselves with what they’re able to accomplish.”
Mayron Herrera
Founder & CEO
Synetek Solutions
After several years of working in the IT departments of both large and small companies, Mayron Herrera was keenly aware of the disparity in the type of IT infrastructure and support available to large enterprises and SMBs. He founded Synetek Solutions in 2004 to deliver enterprise-level IT infrastructures and support to SMBs at a cost within their reach. As CEO he oversees the product development team and collaborates with the leadership team in implementing tactical plans for the operational infrastructure, processes and personnel designed to realize the objectives of the company.
Herrera considers influence to be about helping other people achieve their goals. In his business, he believes in hiring the right person for a job, then getting out the way and letting them do it. However, advice and assistance are always available when needed.
“I want to make it easy for other people by helping them avoid some of the mistakes I’ve made,” he said.
Courtney Humphrey
CEO
Opex Technologies
“A leader is not afraid to take risks and go against the norm while striving for success for those around them, in a manner that others want to emulate,” says Courtney Humphrey, CEO of Opex Technologies.
Humphrey is a legend in the advisor community and an example of the bold pivots partners sometimes must make.
As the name “Opex” suggest, Humphrey’s firm built its identity around delivering as-a-service solutions to its customers. But that identity required a significant evolution. The migration took patience to build a recurring revenue stream and faith that the business model with customer needs. The bet paid off, with Opex garnering innumerable awards, including multiple Inc. 5000 recognitions.
Years after the pivot, Opex stands as a success story in the technology advisor channel. Now, many agent leaders have come count him as a key mentor in their progress, citing his warmth and openness to share his story. And now, Humphreys and his team are getting the credit for that influence.
“This is a great honor and truly humbling,” Humphrey said. “I have worked with our team to build our firm over the last 20 years, and it is always great to be recognized by peers and industry leaders.”
Sue Kozak
Owner & CEO
MNJ Technologies
Sue Kozak is MNJ Technologies’ co-founder and CEO. Under her leadership, MNJ has enjoyed steady financial growth over the last 20 years. Despite challenges in the economic climate. MNJ’s revenue jumped from $133 million in 2018 to $176 million in 2021. In 2021, Kozak led multiple initiatives to foster growth for MNJ, including expanding vendor and technology partnerships, expanding into new technology markets, increasing investments in marketing, and expanding MNJ’s sales talent. With these investments in place, MNJ is expected to continue with double-digit growth.
“MNJ’s corporate values center around the word ‘team’ — trust, excellence, accountability and momentum,” said Kozak. “For me, the most important is trust. We’re in our 21st year and in that time, I’ve learned an awful lot about people. And for me, trust is the foundation for everything. We’re committed to excellence and accountability as a work ethic, too. Without them, it’s almost impossible to reach your goals.
“The corporate values we have put in place have really played a key factor because we honor them. And people know we care and we’re investing time and energy into things that are important to them.”
Jeffrey Kratz
General Manager, Worldwide Public Sector Channels & Alliances
Amazon Web Services
As general manager for worldwide public sector channels and alliances at Amazon Web Services, Jeff Kratz has a big job — and he loves it. (Recall that Kratz took over for Sandy Carter in late 2021, so 2022 reflects his first full year in his current role.) Kratz is tasked with bringing more government, health care, education, and other types of partners and customers to the world’s largest cloud computing provider.
In all that activity, working with partners is a key responsibility — and one he embraces with excitement and humility.
“Being a channel Influencer is a wonderful compliment and I view it very much not only as a reflection of me, but the entire AWS team and all of our partners,” he says.
On that note, he adds, “having influence, to me, is the ability to make an impact.” Kratz pursues this goal in two ways: first, within his team, “to encourage them to positively impact the channel,” and, second, among partners themselves.
“I truly believe in the opportunities and responsibilities for public sector partners to really make the world a better place,” he says. “Partners have a tremendous influence, I believe, for a greater good.” Accordingly, Kratz aims “to bring energy and focus to that mission” — and he has done so throughout 2022, earning him Channel Futures Influencer recognition.
“In many ways, I feel really blessed,” he says. “I truly am excited to come to work every day. … It’s a terrific, fun job I get to do. … I really do believe I’ve got one of the best jobs on the planet.”
Peter Kujawa
Vice President & TSP Evangelist
Service Leadership, a ConnectWise Solution
Peter Kujawa’s career in the channel started in 2010, when he had the opportunity to run what was previously a struggling managed service provider.
“I didn’t know anything about the IT business, but figured, ‘how hard could it be?’” Kujawa said with a smile. “Turns out, it’s really tough.”
Kujawa’s experience in business and sales management helped turn the business around. Then, a year-and-a-half ago, not long after selling his Service Leadership IT consulting firm to ConnectWise, CEO Paul Dippell asked Kujawa to run it.
Kujawa loves the aspect of “coopetition,” not competition, that the channel industry offers.
“There is so much helping of each other,” he told Channel Futures. “I had never seen anything like it in the business world. So [joining Service Leadership] was an opportunity for me to help hundreds if not thousands of MSPs in the way others had helped me.”
As a 2023 Channel Futures Channel Influencer, Kujawa will continue to promote that ideal.
MeiLee Langley
Senior Director/Head, Channel & Field Marketing
LiveVox
When MeiLee Langley found out she was an influencer, she was more than surprised.
“Not to sound dramatic but I was actually kind of shocked,” Langley said. “I’ve gone through the Channel Influencer list in the past and the people who were picked were people I’d always looked up to and tried to emulate in my career. So to be named among that group of individuals was really rewarding. I try to operate in the channel first and foremost by being genuine to who I am. And so to be recognized as an influencer was just really meaningful and special.”
Defining influence comes easy to Langley, who said it’s all about inspiring people in her niche. What she aspires to do is to make sure she and her colleagues put themselves first in many respects.
“I try through my work and who I am as a person to make sure I live by the example of putting myself first, my health, my happiness, my passions, my loved ones and making sure my career has a strong place in my life but that I don’t get lost in my career,” Langley said. “I want to inspire and influence people to do the same because I don’t want people to look back 10 years down the road and regret where they dedicated their time and resources over the past decade. “
Langley’s work philosophy has everything to do with helping her team stand out. She said she grew up as a “physically different” kid and that she didn’t appreciate her uniqueness — and how it could be an asset — until she became an adult.
“Uncover what makes you or your company or product different and embrace and lead with the difference,” she said. “Don’t be afraid to take risks or to try something new or get a little weird. Difference is such a powerful gift when you use it in a good and meaningful way.”
Gordon Mackintosh
Group Vice President, Global Channels & Virtual Sales
Juniper Networks
For Gordon Mackintosh, being named an influencer comes with responsibility.
“It’s continued responsibility for industry thought leadership and developing future leaders,” he said. When it comes to influence, it’s thoughtfully using my strengths to help others achieve their goals, be it individual or corporate. It means leading with authenticity, focusing on driving meaningful change and helping to expedite decision-making.”
Driving meaningful change also means serving as a champion for those underrepresented in the channel. Along with other members of the Juniper team, it is one of Mackintosh’s defining moments of influence. Last year, Juniper unveiled its Diversity+ Partner Program. The group gives enhanced profiles on the Juniper Partner Locator to minority-owned firms. Juniper also provides special executive mentorship to members of those companies. As part of a larger movement occurring within Juniper, Mackintosh told Channel Futures in August, “There’s no point in my team having a diverse culture as part of our strategy if we can’t extend that out into the partner base as well.” It’s a forward-looking, holistic approach to DE&I.
Regarding his work philosophy, Mackintosh encourages his team to fail fast while taking time to recognize the wins along the way. Additionally, he said the best work is not done in a vacuum.
“I ideate with people of all levels at Juniper and especially my channels leadership team and our key partners. As a leader, I help others succeed and drive them beyond their comfort zone to do so. A big part of this is finding the intersection of what is good for the business and what is good for the contributors to the business.”
Clay Magouyrk
Executive Vice President
Oracle Cloud Infrastructure
Clay Magouyrk serves as executive vice president of Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, a cloud computing provider that’s gaining on the Big 3 enough to also now be considered a hyperscaler. Magouyrk, who makes key decisions regarding Oracle Cloud’s partner initiatives, was instrumental in developing Oracle Alloy, one of the company’s most channel-impactful announcements in a while. Oracle Alloy is the platform that will allow (mostly large) channel partners to offer white-label cloud computing with assurance that they’re meeting sovereignty and governance requirements in regions including Europe. It’s a big deal for Oracle Cloud channel partners, and puts the heat on cloud rivals Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud.
Louise McEvoy
Vice President, US Channel
Trend Micro
Louise McEvoy, Trend Micro’s vice president of U.S. channel sales, has an extensive history as an effective global and U.S. channel leader, and is focused on empowering women in tech, including mentoring girls as part of Girls in Tech. She’s been with Trend Micro for more than eight years and before that held key roles at IBM.
“We’re working with a lot of different influencers or those who are moving the needle in a direction for people to understand what is going on in the business and the environment, and the world or in a particular segment of something,” she said. “And so you’re imparting your experience to others to help them see a different change, see a different mindset, a different way of thinking. Opening up their eyes is something they may not have had exposure to or experience with, and hopefully it’s all good influence. I would hate for anyone to have a bad influence in the channel or in life in general, because I think there’s enough of that.”
There’s a lot of transition, transformation, acceleration and exploration taking place at Trend Micro, McEvoy said.
“It’s all coming around because of services, marketplace bundles and our favorite buzzword is ecosystem,” she said. “But if you combine all of that, there is a movement under way in the channel that is actually growing in bigger and bigger ways, and growing my team because there’s different parts of the business that we need to grow that we didn’t have even last year. It’s even exploring new ways of going to market that we didn’t do before. And it’s really exciting.”
Kaye McMillan
Senior Vice President, Sales Development & Communities
TD Synnex
“Obviously, [being named a Channel Influencer] is an honor, given some of the folks who have been nominated and named before,” Kaye McMillian said. “I look at my job as maybe not being an influencer but more about building partnerships.” McMillian said this is easy because she’s passionate about TD Synnex communities under the CommunitySolv umbrella and what it means to build those relationships with customers and vendors. “I have a fantastic team to thank for that too. That makes it easy,” she said.
Regarding influence, she said it’s the ability to motivate others, as well as drive change and action.
McMillian also said she has less of a work philosophy and more of a leadership one.
“It’s about the people,” she said. “It’s about working with respect and promoting diversity of thought.”
It’s also about embracing change, McMillian said.
Tim Pabich
CEO
Magnitech
The road in the channel has been a long and successful one for Magnitech CEO Tim Pabich, one of three Channel Futures MSP 501 Channel Executives of the Year in 2022.
Pabich cut his teeth at an MSP 20 years ago, then worked at a few break-fix companies before starting his own MSP, Magnitech, in 2010.
The channel and running a business initially were a learning curve, but one he has navigated with flying colors.
The sharing of information is one of his favorite aspects of the industry.
“It’s not just about making money and servicing clients, but contributing to this industry as a group,” Pabich told Channel Futures. “Every issue that MSPs face – cybersecurity, for instance – we have to work together that way.”
On being recognized as a 2023 Channel Futures Channel Influencer: “When my senior management team speaks like I do and say the words that I say, that’s incredible. I sit in meetings and listen to the way they talk – serving the community; today not tomorrow; protecting the castle – when they incorporate it into their speech, I know they believe it. Call it top-down, but what ends up happening is, now everybody believes it.”
Sarita Rao
President, Integrated & Partner Solutions
AT&T
As the leader of partner solutions for one of the channel’s largest vendors, Sarita Rao’s influence is weighty. She’s AT&T’s president of integrated and partner solutions. She’s held numerous top roles during her nearly 33 years with AT&T.
Rao has supported an ongoing initiative from AT&T to build a deeper footprint with partners. The company’s awards from TSDs like Intelisys and Telarus point to that investment.
“We’ve been extremely focused on delivering the right value for our partners, creating sustainable growth and investing in making it easier for our partners to do business with us,” she said. “And so this is validation that our strategy is one that is not only working, but having a wider impact on the channel as well.”
Influence can encompass a number of important qualities, including strong relationships, trust and expertise, Rao said.
“Relationships are always the foundation,” she said. “You have to develop a meaningful connection with your potential customer in order to have any influence. Trust is another crucial element. You have to be able to make and meet commitments, and to deliver on promises. And finally, expertise is where you can set yourself apart from others, particularly in this climate of constant change.”
Jim Regan
Channel Chief
Vonage
Jim Regan views influence as all about mindset and follow-through. It’s less about selling products and services and more about empowering partners and customers for ultimate success. Under his leadership, Vonage has doubled down on investment in the channel. He has told Channel Futures that he can’t think of a more exciting time in the industry. In some respects, his enthusiasm can be viewed as part of his philosophy of doing business.
Ronnell Richards
Independent Business Consultant
Ronnell Richards LLC
Ronnell Richards did his first deal in the channel in 2001, and what a ride it’s been over the past 20-plus years.
The self-proclaimed serial entrepreneur and successful author of “Shut the Hell Up and Sell” opened his first agency in 2004 and has been leveraging business relationships ever since. After starting the Business & Bourbon media platform for business professionals five years ago, he has become a go-to consultant and mentor for the channel, particularly those in the traditional agent channel.
“I don’t do what I do for lists, awards or accolades,” Richards told Channel Futures. “You won’t find any awards on the wall behind me. But to get this sort of validation from my industry, from an organization whose events I’ve been to for years, means the world to me.”
Business relationships are his passion and at the core of his work philosophy: “The key to successful business is that you have great relationships and alignment with the people you do business with.”
Ashley Rowland
Co-Founder
Technology Advisor Alliance
“Organic growth and minimalism in business is beyond sexy” says Ashley Rowland. “I see too much FOMO in the channel around growth and I’m not for it. I’m not interested in keeping up with anyone for keeping ups sake. We keep our technology advisory business simple. We give irresistible service to our customers. We focus on revenue growth. We make conscious choices with our time. We don’t do anything flashy or uniquely innovative. And guess what? This philosophy provides us with more time for our health, our relationships with our kids and each other, our creativity, our finances, and we can contribute beyond ourselves in a meaningful way.”
Rowland and her husband Ryan are leading a cultural revolution in the agent channel.
The technology advisor (historically known as telecom broker/agent) channel is known for its high barrier. The business model, despite its lucrative MRR and low capital costs, takes several painful years for establish. And in an ecosystem where leaders often held their best practices close to the chest, new agents needed to survive a brutal series of trial and error in order to make a living.
The Rowlands are looking to change that with the Technology Advisor Alliance, a platform that brings together agents from across the channel to help each other grow. Inherent in the organization’s approach is the hope that partners can all benefit from a rising tide by pooling their collective knowledge and experiences. That’s about as influential as it gets.
Andrew Sage
Vice President, Global Distribution Sales
Cisco
Andrew Sage, Cisco’s vice president of global distribution sales, has led the building of a “powerful and differentiated” global partner-led “selling machine” that’s driven billions of dollars in growth for the company. He’s been with Cisco for more than 23 years.
“I think if your goal as a leader is to drive change and to have an impact, which I think is the goal of every leader or should be, you quickly realize that you’re not going to be able to do this yourself or with your own team, or even within the company that you work for,” he said. “You need to enroll people in your mission. And I think that process of enrolling people in your mission is a process of influence and it’s important inside of a big company like Cisco. But it’s even more important when you’re in a market and you have big goals, and you want to enroll people in those. So I think if you have a well thought out point of view, a willingness to listen to those who you’re engaging with, then you can bring them along with you. And I think that’s what I would call influence.”
Sage said he strives to be a leader that other leaders want to work with.
“To be that person, you’ve got to have a passion for what your company does,” he said. “You have a passion for the role you find yourself in. It’s hard to be your best when that’s not the case. So it starts with that. But I also think that you’ve got to get yourself into a situation where you really love the people you work with and you love your customers. You don’t wake up thinking oh my God, I hope this phone doesn’t ring. You want to talk to your customers; you want to engage with your people. It’s a big part of success.”
Sara Seegers
Regional Vice President – Indirect Channel Sales & Opportunity Management
Lumen Technologies
Sara Seegers hasn’t always been in channel, but she’s making up for lost time. A 20-plus year veteran of Lumen/CenturyLink and its acquired companies, the opportunity came last year to join senior vice president Dave Young’s team — something she jumped at without hesitation.
“[Before I was in channel], I was always such a fan because it was such an enabler for growth of Lumen and its [acquired] companies,” Seegers told Channel Futures.
Like so many others on our Influencers list this year, Seegers points to group success.
“It’s an honor to be recognized, but I really feel the recognition is for my team,” said Seegers. “Being surrounded by people who want to learn and are curious … I have a real opportunity to be an evangelist for what’s possible.”
Her advice for becoming an influencer: “It’s how you show up. It’s the shadow you cast. If you show up asking questions, you’re not limited to what you think can happen and your world gets much larger.”
Riya Shanmugan
Group Vice President, Global Alliances & Channels | Global MSP Sales
New Relic
Riya Shanmugam, New Relic’s group vice president of global alliances and channels, and global MSP sales, has a long history in the channel, driving huge cloud transformations at Google, Adobe and IBM. She joined New Relic just over a year ago.
“We’ve had a transformational year, not just in our work building out channels and partnerships, but also in our team culture and environment,” she said. “If I can in any way help shape the tech industry to be more empathetic and more diverse, then it’s truly an accomplishment and a privilege.”
Shanmugam said it’s not lost on her that there aren’t many people in this industry “who look like me or have followed a similar path.”
“My work demonstrates that there’s a place for everyone, there’s a seat at the table for everyone who wants it and is willing to work for it,” she said. “I hope to use my influence to make those opportunities more equitable, both at New Relic and across the industry.”
The tech industry is known for toxic environments and cutthroat competition, and it doesn’t have to be that way, Shanmugam said.
“You can achieve great things by treating people well and making the effort to understand each other,” she said. “I’ve seen that at New Relic, and I hope others will follow our example and make their organization a more empathetic place.”
Mike Shonholz
Chief Revenue Officer
ARG
Mike Shonholz is ARG’s chief revenue officer and has been with the company for over four years. Before that, he was CDW’s director of aggregation, infrastructure and managed services, overseeing its solution architects to develop relevant offerings, go-to market (GTM) strategies and programs to successfully grow revenue and solve clients’ business challenges.
“I think being an influencer probably has a couple different dimensions,” he said. “I think the first is leading by example. Being innovative, having your eye towards the future. But it’s also leading and bringing those around you and having a direct impact on those around you in a really positive way so that we can all take advantage of this moment. We can all win as a result of the evolution of our channel. So I think it’s about keeping your eye on where the puck is going.”
Shonholz said his work philosophy is “attacking” each day.”
“Wake up with the philosophy of we’re pretty fortunate, we have our capacities, we can move and run, and work hard,” he said. “So feeling grateful and fortunate for that every day. And then think about how to maximize and attack the day. How can I influence and impact the people in our organization? How can we influence and impact our customers? How can we advance and lead? At ARG, we want to be the channel disruptor, we want to be the channel leader. We want to be helping continue to form and shape the next chapter. So my philosophy is to get up and attack it.”
Phil Soper
North America Head of Channel Sales
Hewlett-Packard Enterprise
Phil Soper is another channel veteran who now leads North America channel sales for Hewlett-Packard Enterprise (HPE). Based in Toronto, he started his career at Compaq Canada, with 11 of his 14 years there focused on partners.
Furthermore, having worked for HPE partner businesses before starting at HPE, it gives him a connection many channel leaders don’t have.
“I think that brings a very unique perspective to my role because I’ve worn our partners’ shoes,” Soper told Channel Futures.
In terms of influence, it’s not “directing my ideas, but creating an environment where people are influenced to try different things and transform,” he said. “I think our industry is going through a pretty crazy transformation – certainly HPE is and our partner ecosystem is – and so for me it’s all about creating an environment where HPE doesn’t necessarily directly influence but we [can help] create great ideas that come from all those stakeholders in that ecosystem.”
Marko Spremo
Vice President, Sales Strategy
Bluewave Technology Group
“I’ve always believed that collaboration is really important, so I ask a lot of questions,” says Marko Spremo, vice president of sales strategy at Bluewave Technology Group. “Someone asks a question, and that question fosters additional questions and collaboration. It’s always interesting to hear what everyone has to say. Because while we’re similar, we’re also all very different in how we approach the market and deliver our services.”
Spremo is using his experience from the VAR and systems integrator world to bring more professionalism and sophistication into the technology advisor channel.
Spremo, who last year joined his organization to Columbia-backed Bluewave Technology Group, has a history of evolving his business model to meet customer demand. More than a decade ago he moved the business he founded from the VAR world into the agent world in a pivot that matched the rise in cloud and as-a-service.
As analysts and pundits discuss the convergence of systems integrators and technology advisors, Spremo has been offering insights and best practices to his peers. For example, he has urged his peers in the technology advisor channel to reconsider how they can expand their service set beyond sourcing to stay relevant with customers.
“[Convergence] is really starting to come to fruition now, especially with UCaaS, CCaaS, cloud, security and mobile applications. These things are no longer about speeds, feeds and rates. You really need to solution and design that,” Spremo told Channel Futures.
Todd Surdey
Head of Global Channels & Business Development
Zoom
“I think [this honor] is an amazing testament to the Zoom channel team, the Zoom company,” Surdey said. “I’ve now been an ambassador and taking [the channel program] on and forward. I’d be remiss if I didn’t put my arms around everybody that’s here at Zoom. A huge thank you to all of you for representing what this team has done.”
Surdey said influence is a combination of a few things: the ability to lead and get people motivated, and innovation. “You’ve got to really earn people’s trust and you got to be committed to them,” he said.
When it comes to his work philosophy, Surdey said he “never wants to leave a person behind, no matter how high I get up in any organization or how big my organization is.”
He asks some basic questions of his employees: How do we move forward? How do we get better at this? How does he get the best out of people, improving maybe where there are gaps?
“I always think of it as how to support people who are trying to advance where they are,” he said.
Lynn Tinney
Senior Vice President, Global Partners
Zayo Group
Lynn Tinney, senior vice president of global partners at Zayo Group, got her start out of college at IBM. There she was thrust into a channel sales role but told her boss she needed some direct sales experience to earn her channel “street cred.” She bounced back to channels two years later and has been hooked ever since.
“I found as I went to companies in marketing or operations roles, I always drifted back to channels; it was a first love,” Tinney told Channel Futures. “I love the interaction of selling and the accomplishment of that, but really the team aspect of it. You get that through direct selling, but in channels it really puts the emphasis on partnering in terms of getting the work done.”
You get knowledge and impart your wisdom and influence through “the good days and bad days,” Tinney said. Being honored as an Influencer is a reflection of all of her and her team’s hard work, she said.
Ryan Walsh
Chief Strategy Officer
Pax8
Ryan Walsh has more than 20 years of experience helping channel partners build successful cloud practices by enabling them to easily sell, bill, and support cloud subscription services. Under his direction as channel chief and COO, Pax8 is redefining how distribution works for the channel in a cloud-centric world.
Prior to joining Pax8 in 2012, Walsh served as vice president of product management for MX Logic, a cloud-based email and web security company that was acquired by McAfee in 2009. He was named to the Channel Futures Circle of Excellence in 2018.
“In the tech space, people are focused on automation, high tech,” Walsh said. “But that must be balanced with high touch. We learned firsthand in our journey that you have to tell partners and clients, “Hey we’re going to ride shotgun. We’re going to be with you as you learn something new. We’re going to share that with you.
“So that’s the high touch part of it. I have to establish trust and credibility if somebody is going to take advice from me or be influenced by me. If I have a track record of trying to be helpful, trying to pass on learning so that the community works well and benefits from it, people will be able to trust me and be influenced by me.”
Dalyn Wertz
Executive Director, Indirect Channel Program & Marketing
Comcast Business
Dalyn Wertz has more than 25 years of marketing experience that spans the IT, telecommunications, consumer and nonprofit industries. She joined Comcast Business in 2014 and has served as the executive director of indirect channel programming and marketing since 2017. A recognized leader in building high performing channel programs, her specialties include partner marketing, demand generation, development fund programs, sales and marketing enablement and go-to-market strategy. Prior to joining Comcast, Dalyn was a principal consultant at The Optera Group, where she led the technology and channel practice. She also worked on and built partner programs at leading technology companies including Level 3 Communications, StorageTek, GE Access and CompTIA.
Channel Influencer is just the latest in a string of accolades that Wertz has received. She has been honored by the Channel Futures Circle of Excellence, Alliance of Channel Women LEAD Award and CTAM’s prestigious TAMI Award for her leadership in projects to advocate and further the cable industry.
“What feels so good about being named an influencer is having been in the channel my entire career and having had an incredible career, I am being recognized for something I love so much,” said Wertz. “It’s so wonderful and I’m grateful for all of the opportunities. When you find a career where you know you want to spend the rest of your life, being honored for it is just absolutely rewarding.”
Andy Whiteside
CEO & President
XenTegra
“I’m super excited for everybody in the virtual desktop space including Citrix, VMware, Okta, Microsoft — everybody — because the conversations around delivering workloads from clouds, Azure, GCP, AWS, my data center, private data centers, is becoming more and more of a mainstream conversation,” says Andy Whiteside, CEO and president of XenTegra. “This is because of the timing of Microsoft showing up with the drive-this-to-market approach, as well as the pandemic, and the rise of ransomware which is making it obvious that a VPN-type solution is not the smart answer.”
Whiteside founded XenTegra, an MSP, in 2012, leveraging his experience as a Citrix and Microsoft directory services engineer. XenTegra is now riding the wave of emerging demand for cloud based VDI, driven by Microsoft’s Azure Virtual Desktop (AVD) and Windows 365 offerings. XenTegra boasts a wide range of alliance partners, including Citrix, Microsoft, VMware, Nutanix, Igel, ServiceNow, Google, Fortinet and AWS, among others.
Whiteside is also passionate about the nonprofit organization, Computers for Community, established by XenTegra during the pandemic. Computers for Community is focused on e-waste recycling and converting donated laptops into Chromebooks and brought to nonprofit organizations.
Kate Woolley
General Manager, IBM Ecosystem
IBM
Kate Woolley is the general manager of IBM’s partner ecosystem, a role she took over last year after serving as chairman and CEO Arvind Krishna’s chief of staff for two years. In her first year leading IBM’s entire ecosystem, she implemented some major changes culminating with replacing the decades-old PartnerWorld program with the new IBM Partner Plus.
“I’m really honored to be one of the influencers,” Woolley told Channel Futures. “One of the reasons I’m excited to be on this list is we still need to do more about diversity in leadership. I have a very strong passion around gender diversity, and I’m proud to be on this list as a female. “As a leader in the channel, we must continue to grow and nurture our diverse talent. It’s all about having a positive impact on people, and people in the channel wanting to be a part of what IBM is doing.
“When I came into this role, I wanted to listen to what our partners were feeling and experiencing. I also wanted to listen to IBMers because many of the answers can often come from the teams and working with the partners. I enable my team by getting any roadblocks out of the way to support them, prioritize what they’re doing, and connect the dots. I feel as though we’re only just getting started. Before stepping into this, I didn’t realize just how much potential there was in terms of how much more we could do with our partners. And so, I am pleasantly surprised in that way.”
Shane Zide
Vice President, Global Sales & Channel
Vultr
Shane Zide is vice president of global sales and channel at Vultr, one of the top independent cloud computing companies. Zide, who’s been in the job for almost two years, is integral to Vultr’s growth achievements. For example, the firm rolled out its official channel program last year and closed out 2022 with more than 600 partners around the world.
“We ended the year feeling good about that,” he says.
In the meantime, Vultr continues to expand its data center coverage, as well; it now boasts more than 30 global regions in cities including Osaka, Amsterdam, Mumbai, Sydney and Los Angeles.
Zide’s enthusiasm — about his job, about the channel, about earning Channel Futures Influencer recognition — is unmistakable. “It’s an incredible honor,” he says of the award. And he credits the value of support and guidance he’s received from a range of people — “amazing mentors,” he says — along the way. Meanwhile, he adds, what the Influencer recognition speaks to is “if you’re always keeping the mindset of ‘How can I impact the channel partner and the MSP … and grow their business in an innovative way that’s good for both parties?’ — it’s gratifying to be able to do that.”
For Zide, “influence” means bringing “a positive change-agent effect” to both vendors and partners, “where you almost become one selling team together.” That definition reflects his philosophy on work, too. His intent “has always been creating highly profitable programs that can end up benefiting the vendor side, the channel partner and the end client. … If all three of those can win in an equation, then the magic, the promise of channel, is able to be realized.”
Shane Zide
Vice President, Global Sales & Channel
Vultr
Shane Zide is vice president of global sales and channel at Vultr, one of the top independent cloud computing companies. Zide, who’s been in the job for almost two years, is integral to Vultr’s growth achievements. For example, the firm rolled out its official channel program last year and closed out 2022 with more than 600 partners around the world.
“We ended the year feeling good about that,” he says.
In the meantime, Vultr continues to expand its data center coverage, as well; it now boasts more than 30 global regions in cities including Osaka, Amsterdam, Mumbai, Sydney and Los Angeles.
Zide’s enthusiasm — about his job, about the channel, about earning Channel Futures Influencer recognition — is unmistakable. “It’s an incredible honor,” he says of the award. And he credits the value of support and guidance he’s received from a range of people — “amazing mentors,” he says — along the way. Meanwhile, he adds, what the Influencer recognition speaks to is “if you’re always keeping the mindset of ‘How can I impact the channel partner and the MSP … and grow their business in an innovative way that’s good for both parties?’ — it’s gratifying to be able to do that.”
For Zide, “influence” means bringing “a positive change-agent effect” to both vendors and partners, “where you almost become one selling team together.” That definition reflects his philosophy on work, too. His intent “has always been creating highly profitable programs that can end up benefiting the vendor side, the channel partner and the end client. … If all three of those can win in an equation, then the magic, the promise of channel, is able to be realized.”
Channel Futures’ 2023 Channel Influencers cover the gamut. This year’s honorees come from across the channel — from MSPs to technology service distributors and from industry veterans to next-gen trailblazers. But no matter how disparate their backgrounds, they all share a few common traits. They love their work. They don’t back down from challenges. They fully appreciate and acknowledge the contributions of their teams.
Aryaka’s Craig Patterson
Kaseya’s Fred Voccola
When we asked this year’s Channel Influencers what they thought being an influencer entailed, no one mentioned status or importance. They talked about building trust, helping their peers, supporting clients and sharing their experience. And almost to a person, they stated the belief that influence is an opportunity to contribute to the channel.
Our Channel Influencers of the Year, Aryaka’s Craig Patterson and Kaseya’s Fred Voccola, are both driving growth in their respective companies, each in his own individual style.
Once an Influencer, Always an Influencer
Each year’s list of honorees is determined by the Channel Futures editorial staff with input from advisors. Our editors are on top of the day-to-day activity in the channel. They are aware of individuals who have been particularly visible in the channel and submit their names for consideration. Once the list of candidates has been compiled, we contact advisors for their input and advice.
Just because the population of the Channel Influencer list changes from year to year doesn’t mean those honored cease to be influencers when their “term” is up. Far from it. Honorees are chosen for their past accomplishments and the impact they are expected to make in the future.
Every year brings its own unique challenges and opportunities to the channel. Challenges and opportunities that impact some influencers more than others, bringing them into the spotlight. That’s how many honorees find themselves on the Channel Influencers list for the first time. And why some make repeated appearances.
There comes a point, however, when an influencer is an unmistakable standout. Their experience, reputation and regard put them head and shoulders above the rest. That’s where Channel Influencers of the Year (IoYs) come from.
The IoYs Are the GOAT
2018 Channel Influencer of the Year
2019 Channel Influencer of the Year
2020 Channel Influencer of the Year
2021 Channel Influencer of the Year
2022 Channel Influencers of the Year
2023 Channel Influencers of the Year
Since the Channel Futures Channel Influencer list started in 2018, we have designated a Channel Influencer of the Year. Our first was Gavriella Schuster, then channel chief at Microsoft, for maintaining the trust of the $290-billion multinational vendor’s partners during a turbulent time in the channel.
In 2019, Janet Schijns was honored for being the best friend the channel has ever had. Transitioning from the corporate world to her own agency, Schijns maintained her focus and efforts on championing the channel.
Rockstar John DeLozier was Influencer of the Year 2020. At the time he was channel chief at 8×8. He’s since moved to Intelisys, but the beat goes on.
Analyst extraordinaire Jay McBain was 2021’s Influencer of the Year. His superpower? Being “spooky smart with a talent for data and a gift for quantifying the big picture.”
Last year saw the expansion of the Channel Influencers list from 10 to 50 individuals and the debut of co-Influencers of the Year. Tech Data’s Rich Hume and Upstack’s Christopher Trapp shared the spotlight for their roles in the year’s M&A and private equity investment on the IT channel and technology advisor (agent) channel sides, respectively.
As for this year’s Channel Influencers of the year, Patterson is known for his team building and Voccola is known for his deal making.
But first, scroll through the gallery above and find out who made the 2023 Channel Influencers list, why they made it and what they have to say.
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