25 Public-Sector Channel Leaders

To really leverage vendor partnerships, solution providers need an in. For the public sector, that entre has to go beyond the program to the individual behind it who understands the market nuances and challenges that can hold partners back. The following 25 public-sector channel leaders are examples of those individuals.

1. Patrick Bakey, SAP
Title: President of Public Services
Years In Position: Less than 1
Years In Public Sector: 20-plus
Most Admired In Gov't: David Walker, United States Comptroller General
Channel Philosophy: "Government agencies want two things: innovation and trusted partners. So every day, you need to show your customers your creative ideas, technologies and solutions. And you need to earn their trust through behavior that is exemplary, ethical and of the highest standards. That's something executives must drive through each and every employee in their organization."

2. Bill Bockoven, APC
Title: Director of Government & Education Sales
Years In Position: 2
Years In Public Sector: 11
Most Admired In Gov't: Sen. John McCain
Channel Philosophy: "The public sector has its own specific IT challenges, and government customers quantify success in different ways than commercial companies do. Our goal is to continue to build a trustworthy business partnership with our channel."

3. Mike Byrd, Red Hat
Title: Director of Government Channel Sales
Years In Position: 2
Years In Public Sector: 12
Most Admired In Gov't: Sue Payton, Assistant Secretary

of the Air Force
Channel Philosophy: "Create a value proposition that sets you apart from the competition and pick partners that reward you for that value proposition. Red Hat has moved past the need for assistance in the fulfillment arena, and now we're looking for partners that provide specialized value."

4. Michelle Chapin, Panasonic
Title: Director of Government Channels
Years In Position: 9
Years In Public Sector: 15
Most Admired In Gov't: Chapman's mother, a procurement official at the National Institutes of Health
Channel Philosophy: "Don't treat this business as a sidebar. The environments that many of our government folks work in can be harsh, and being able to have data at their fingertips with maximum uptime is of utmost importance. [Partners need] to be proactive with such specific customer requirements."

5. Rebecca Chisolm-Winkler, Adobe
Title: Director of Global Government Markets
Years In Position: 2
Years In Public Sector: 20
Most Admired In Gov't: Civil servants
Channel Philosophy: "[Solution providers should] pick a few key technology partners, dedicate a sales/marketing/engineering team to those partners and truly 'go to market' with those technology partners. This differentiates them from the 'sell everyone and everything' model, where price is the only discriminator."

NEXT: Cisco's Dawn Duross to Nortel's Jeff Hoagland