Adnon Dow Moves From SYNNEX to CradlePoint

**Editor’s Note: Click here to see which channel people were on the move in October and November.**

Adnon Dow, who led the global mobility unit at distributor SYNNEX, now is responsible for the channel at CradlePoint.

For almost three years, Dow helped build SYNNEX’s mobility channel, which he calls “second to none.” Before SYNNEX, Dow worked for companies including Motorola Solutions and Motorola Mobility, Avaya, and Cisco. At SYNNEX, though, he seemed to find his calling in M2M and IoT. And after solidifying the distributor’s go-to-market plan, Dow decided he wanted to immerse himself in M2M and IoT, which together are expected to comprise 51.7 million connections, for a total of $1.54 billion in revenue, in just the United States by the end of 2016, according to a September report from Compass Intelligence.

To that point, Dow in November landed the role of senior vice president of worldwide channels and alliances at CradlePoint, headquartered in Boise, Idaho. CradlePoint, a company Dow knew through SYNNEX, makes routers and software for applications including 3G/4G failover and primary connectivity, and, of course, M2M and IoT.

“CradlePoint, having been a cornerstone in my strategy, was a natural place for me as I sought my next evolution in this industry,” Dow told Channel Partners this week. “We must all evolve as technology does, and this is my true love and passion. Thus, the impetus behind my move.”

He is using the experience gleaned at SYNNEX to help CradlePoint expand. As such, his goals for 2015 are simple, although arguably not easy: Cover more geographies; increase channel expertise; and become more focused on vertical markets. And Dow knows how he’ll achieve those aims.

“This will be done through the increased investment in resources, channel recruitment and enablement, and, more importantly, securing closer alignment with the network operators,” Dow said.

Indeed, throughout the coming year, VARs, integrators and other partners can expect to see changes including new channel programs and partner incentives, and innovation in the company’s products and software platforms.

That’s because M2M and IoT are presenting all ICT partners with fresh opportunities and, at the same time, unfamiliar challenges. In specific, M2M and IoT are displacing traditional networking approaches and partner practice models, Dow said, reshaping how the channel interacts, transacts and does business on all levels. And that transition presents an imperative: the channel must advance at the same pace as technology, said Dow.

“Smart, connected products and the small distributed enterprise raise a new set of strategic choices about how value is created and captured in the channel, how companies work with traditional and new partners, and how they secure competitive advantage as the new capabilities reshape industry boundaries,” Dow explained. “For many in the channel, smart, connected products will force the detrimental question, ‘What business am I in?’”

Dow intends to answer that question by delivering unique M2M and IoT products that help partners produce higher margins and distinguish themselves from their peers.

“Information technology is revolutionizing products,” he said. “Once composed solely of mechanical and electrical parts, products have become complex systems that combine hardware, sensors, data storage, microprocessors, software and connectivity in myriad ways. These smart, connected products…have unleashed a new era of competition. And our channels have to learn how to harness this new era or be left behind.”