Samsung Names New Mobility Channel Chief As B2B Push Continues

Samsung Electronics America has named a new mobility channel chief as the firm continues expanding its portfolio of business-focused devices and while pursuing B2B sales growth in the U.S.

The new mobility channel chief at Samsung Electronics America is John Curtis (pictured), who has been with the company for nearly five years and has been serving as vice president of sales for the Samsung Business division.

[Related: Samsung’s B2B Surge: 5 Takeaways From Channel Chief Mike Coleman]

Curtis takes on the role vacated by Mike Coleman, formerly the mobility channel chief and vice president at Samsung Electronics America. Coleman departed Samsung in December to become North American channel chief at unified communications giant Avaya.

“We have a new channel leader in the B2B mobile division, John Curtis, and we look forward to introducing him to you soon,” Samsung said in a statement to CRN on Friday.

In the statement, Samsung also lauded Coleman “for his many contributions.” Coleman had joined Samsung as mobility channel chief at the start of 2017, and oversaw the company’s push in recent years to accelerate revenue growth through its U.S. mobility channel program.

Coleman had recently told CRN that Samsung’s mobile B2B division was expecting to nearly double its U.S. sales in 2020, year-over-year, amid strong demand for business-focused devices such as the rugged Galaxy Tab Active2 tablet.

Last year, Samsung also debuted its Ascend partner program, which has included investments in new growth incentives and a refreshed partner portal.

In recent years, Samsung “has been very proactive in their channel strategy in both engagement and investment activities,” said Gina Daniel-Lee, vice president of strategic alliances and partnerships at Stratix, a Peachtree Corners, Ga.-based mobility solution provider, in an email to CRN.

“We have seen a higher level of investment in resources, marketing contribution, joint planning and program implementation that has allowed us to grow into new verticals and use cases – even in a unique year like 2020,” Daniel-Lee said. “Mike Coleman began this transition while at Samsung, and John Curtis has continued with this commitment in his expanded role.”

In particular, Stratix “has been really fortunate to grow our business over the last few years with Samsung in retail, transportation/logistics and the airlines,” she said. “I think what we are most excited about is continuing our 2020 penetration into new vertical markets including education, healthcare and manufacturing to drive new business together.”

This week, Samsung announced sales in the U.S. for its follow-up to the Tab Active2 tablet, the Galaxy Tab Active3, with a number of updates including enhanced services for IT administrators. The Tab Active3 joins other rugged business devices in Samsung’s portfolio including the Galaxy Tab Active Pro and the Galaxy XCover Pro smartphone.

Meanwhile, earlier this month, Samsung announced an Enterprise Edition model of the new Galaxy S21 smartphone in the U.S., with no incremental costs to businesses. The Enterprise Edition includes a year of access to tools for mobile enrollment, setup and endpoint management.

Prior to joining Samsung in 2016, Curtis spent 16 years at telecommunications firm Vodafone, according to his LinkedIn profile. He rose through the company’s executive ranks to ultimately become vice president of operations at Vodafone Global Enterprise before coming to Samsung.