The 25 Most Influential Executives Of 2016

24. James Kavanaugh

CEO

World Wide Technology

As a former professional soccer player and current investor in the St. Louis Blues NHL team, James Kavanaugh understands the importance of being at the top of your game. That's why he's spent the last 26 years turning WWT into one of the perennial solution provider powerhouses, earning top partner status with Cisco Systems, EMC, Microsoft and a number of the industry's other key vendors. No. 12 on the CRN Solution Provider 500, WWT was Cisco's Global Solution Innovation Partner of the Year in 2016, one of 10 awards it earned from its top vendor partner this year.

Kavanaugh has led WWT’s effort in hiring 2,200 new employees over the past three years, while also increasing annual revenues more than 15 percent in 2015 to $7.4 billion.