Top Channels Execs in Storage
Tim D. Cook
See background in Peripherals.
VARBusiness' take: Apple's new Drive Module for Xserve and Xserve RAID have expanded the company's storage options. Will VARs follow?
Julie Chiu VP of Corporate Mktg. at Brocade Communications Systems
Chiu is responsible for managing the company's worldwide marketing operations and driving its channel-marketing programs, brand positioning and more. She has more than 18 years of experience in the information-processing industry.
VARBusiness' take: Kudos for becoming the market leader in Fibre Channel switches, but the company needs to be on the lookout for stronger market opportunities before the storage switch market becomes more commoditized.
Gregg Ambulos VP of Global Channels at EMC
See background in Software.
VARBusiness' take: The high-end market,EMC's bread-and-butter,has been going through some tough times. But EMC started 2003 with the launch of its new Symmetrix DMX high-end subsystem, which will hopefully stimulate the high-end market and bring in a nice profit for EMC as well.
Kevin Gilroy VP and GM of N. America Commercial Channels at HP
Gilroy began his career in the IT industry in 1981 with Hewlett-Packard as a financial analyst and branch manager. After a number of positions, he assumed a position in Eastern U.S. distribution management. Prior to his current role, Gilroy was promoted to VP and GM of North American Channels with responsibility for indirect sales for all HP products and services in 2000.
VARBusiness' take: Few people study channels as thoroughly as Gilroy, whose own clout internally is on the rise. With PartnerOne finally out and working, he has returned his focus on individual partner profitability and developing new go-to-market initiatives.
Jason Elles Channel Development Mgr. of Data Storage Media & Services at Imation
Elles has been with Imation for three years. He is responsible for directing the development of Imation's DSM&S (B2B) channel strategy, overseeing development and execution of marketing programs.
VARBusiness' take: A leading developer and manufacturer of removable data-storage products, Imation also offers professional services and consulting in storage. That definitely is good value-add these days given the demand for storage services.
Bret Udy Sr. Mgr. of Channel Programs at Iomega
Udy has been actively involved in the channel for more than 12 years and has been selling networking and storage products through the VAR channel throughout his career. Most recently, he launched Iomega's first comprehensive VAR program, the Iomega IoLink Reseller Program.
VARBusiness' take: Kudos to the company, which last year introduced its first-ever NAS family of products for SMBs and bolstered its presence and program to partners with more resources.
Mike Sager Senior VP of Sales and Mktg. at Kingston Technology
Sager joined Kingston Technology in 1990 as manager of customer service and technical support. His current responsibilities include developing Kingston's domestic sales and marketing strategy, overseeing strategic marketing and sales programs, as well maintaining relational development between Kingston and the channel.
VARBusiness' take: The company has earned itself a good reputation among white-box builders.
Kerry Reid Senior Director for Worldwide Channel Sales at LSI Logic
Reid has global responsibility for LSI Logic distribution-channel sales for board-level storage components. He recently joined the company after seven years with Adaptec, most recently as VP of worldwide channel sales.
VARBusiness' take: A leading supplier of storage-adapter solutions, LSI is also the leading provider of host-based RAID adapters to the PC and server markets, with nearly $2 million worth of solutions shipped to OEMs, systems integrators and VARs worldwide.
Stephen DiFranco VP of Corporate Mktg. at Maxtor
DiFranco joined the company in May 2002 and is responsible for Maxtor's global-marketing strategy, including all marketing activities, channel development, corporate branding initiatives and marketing communications. Prior to joining Maxtor, DiFranco served as the executive VP of marketing at WebGain.
VARBusiness' take: Company scales back warranty for basic ATA hard drives to a year. Seagate and West Digital follow suit. Turns out warranties really do matter.
Leonard Iventosch Senior Director of Worldwide Channels at Network Appliance
Iventosch joined the company in June 2000. His responsibilities include shaping the strategic vision and driving the execution of Network Appliance's worldwide channels program. He has more than 22 years of combined sales and support experience.
VARBusiness' take: This company was quite a Wall Street darling during the dot-com era, but it faded a bit once that part of the market hit a wall. Since then, Network Appliance has reclaimed market share in the NAS space from EMC.
Matt Gill Senior VP and GM of Philips Business Solutions at Philips
See background in Peripherals.
VARBusiness' take: The company just inked a deal with BenQ to create Philips BenQ Digital Storage. Intellectual property meets manufacturing prowess,watch out, rivals.
Gary Koopman VP of N. American Sales at Quantum
Koopman is responsible for leading the channel sales organization in the U.S. Canada and Latin America. In addition, he is key in engaging strategic distribution partners worldwide. Prior to joining Quantum, Koopman served as president and CEO of Cyberbuck.
VARBusiness' take: Quantum's new VAR program goes far to offer partners better lead tracking, RFP assistance, online training, stackable discounts and more.
Rey Roque VP of Mktg. at Samsung Electronics America
See background in Peripherals.
VARBusiness' take: Offering numerous DVD, CD-ROM and CD-RW options, Samsung Storage has made a name for itself among low-cost mail order houses. But can it connect with VARs?
Joe Cousins Senior Director of Global Channel Mktg. at SeaGate Technology
Cousins is responsible for Seagate's global channel strategy and demand-generation programs, heading up channel-focused marketing. He has 18 years of experience in various channel sales and marketing positions, including a 10-year stint at distributors Arrow Electronics and Marshall Industries.
VARBusiness' take: One of the top disk-drive vendors, Seagate is experiencing a nice windfall, while Hitachi gets the disk-drive business it purchased from IBM last year into shape.
Cornelius Economou Senior Director of N. American Channel Mktg. at Silicon Graphics
See background in Peripherals.
VARBusiness' take: SGI has put together a strong group of alliance partners, but its channel managers have not been able to turn that into a differentiator for the company.
George Karabatsos VP of VAD/VAR Sales at StorageTek
Karabatsos, who has more than 20 years of experience, joined StorageTek in September 2001. He is charged with maximizing the relationships between StorageTek and its channel partners. Previously, he served as Seagate's VP of the Americas distribution sales and server appliance group.
VARBusiness' take: StorageTek is one of the few veteran storage companies that actually experienced financial difficulty during the dot-com boom. But, since then, it has experienced several quarters of consecutive growth.
Gary Grimes VP of U.S. Partner Mgt. & Sales at Sun Microsystems
See background in Peripherals.
VARBusiness' take: Thanks to the innovative StorageElite program, which paid VARs hard cash for increasing their Sun storage sales, the company is mounting a credible comeback in this category, though competition remains fierce.
Richard Rutledge VP of Mktg. at Western Digital
Rutledge joined Western Digital as an applications engineer in 1984. During his 18-year tenure, he successfully led the Enhanced IDE initiative to expand IDE into the desktop interface. Prior to his current role, he was general manager of the company's enterprise business.
VARBusiness' take: Never count Western Digital out. The company has a strong following for its EIDE storage products that baffles rivals and even many observers. Just imagine if Rutledge put on a full-court press in the solution-provider community.