CHRIS BABSON, DIRECTOR, THINKCENTRE, THINKVISION LENOVO NORTH AMERICA

Chris manages all desktop product marketing operations for ThinkCentre Desktop and ThinkVision Monitors encompassing both Enterprise and Channel Segments.  Prior to this, Chris spent 6 years as Team lead for North America ThinkPad and was responsible for the North America launch of both the ThinkPad Tablet and ThinkPad X1.  Chris has a Master’s Degree from NC State University and an undergraduate degree from East Carolina University. He is based out of Morrisville, North Carolina.

GILBERT CARGILL, SALES ACCELERATION COACH, CARGILL CONSULTING GROUP, INC.

After concluding a spectacular sales and management career at IBM, in which he led his sales team from a dead-last rating among 220 branch offices to first place in less than a year, Gil Cargill launched his own consulting practice in 1978.  Cargill Consulting Group, Inc. was built on the same strategies that produced Cargill’s outstanding sales results at IBM.
Gil Cargill has spent the past 33 years as a consultant, speaker and trainer helping thousands of businesses achieve dramatic and permanent improvements in sales pro-ductivity.  Cargill has taught salespeople across diverse indus¬tries the importance of developing sales processes, the advantages of implementing new technology, and the benefits of tracking sales performance.
Thirty-three years of success in both sales consulting and sales training is proof that Cargill’s style of delivering information and defining proven sales processes has helped his audiences understand that there are better, more profitable ways to perform their sales tasks.

LEONARD DIMICELI, SPAM SOAP, GENERAL MANAGER

Leonard Dimiceli brings nearly 17 years of technical sales and team management experience to the Spam Soap Channel.  Prior to joining Spam Soap, Leonard was Channel Manager at Sage Software, managing accounts for one of the largest ERP Resellers in the nation.  
Leonard is a dynamic leader with demonstrated success and a proven record in obtaining new business, channel development & management, and mergers & acquisitions.  He continues to speak publicly and coaches companies, both in the enterprise and SMB space, on best practices for customer acquisition, community development & brand identity.

BILL DOMINICI,  LENOVO, THINKCENTRE TEAM BRAND LEAD

Bill Dominici joined Lenovo in 2006 managing the Americas ThinkVision portfolio. During that time he developed and implemented a new business management system across the region that both increased sales and reduced inventory spikes. Bill helped develop and launch the ThinkVision TopSeller monitor program that is still in place.
As part of his responsibilities in his current position as the North America ThinkCentre Brand Team Lead, he successfully helped drive the launch of the first ThinkCentre All-In-One Desktops in the Americas.  Lenovo’s ThinkCentre portfolio continues to grow and outpace the commercial desktop market in North America and has done so for the past 8 consecutive quarters.  Bill currently has product management responsibilities for the entire ThinkCentre TopSeller portfolio as well as the All-In-One portfolio for both Large Enterprise and Channel customers.

AARON FORD, CHANNEL DEVELOPMENT MANAGER, MCAFEE an INTEL COMPANY

Aaron has broad expertise in channel management and business strategies. His experience working with manufacturers, distributors and resellers gives him a unique perspective and understanding of what channel partners need to be successful. Now with McAfee and Intel Company, he is dedicated to educating SMB’s and solution providers on today’s security threats. Aaron will walk you through different ways to leverage this changing IT landscape, from new business models to profitability strategies. When not working, he enjoys mountain biking and camping with his family in Dallas, Texas.

TODD HAUGLAND, SALES ENGINEER AND TECHNICAL TRAINING CONSULT, GFIMAX

A 20 year industry veteran, Todd Haugland has served as a client, consultant, administrator and now vendor for IT in the SMB market space. Todd currently serves as Sales Engineer and Technical Training Consult for GFIMAX Software. Immediately prior to coming to GFI, he worked with a local Gold Partner providing solutions to small businesses. This unique perspective has allowed him to be an effective trainer, communicator, and advocate for anyone trying to make the most of their IT budget.

LUKE HIGGINS, BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER, SYMANTEC

Luke Higgins is a nine-year veteran in IT channel. His current position is Business Development Manager for MSP at Symantec. In this capacity he is responsible for growth and expansion of Symantec's MSP program through gaining understanding of the partner-base and helping to deliver products, programs and tools necessary for seamless integration and service delivery. Prior to his role as Business Development Manager, Higgins managed the Symantec channel relationship in the Southeastern US where he gained a deep insight into the needs, challenges and goals of the channel. Before joining Symantec, Higgins worked for several years in channel sales at Dell.
Higgins is a member of CompTIA and holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Toledo in Ohio.

LANE JESSEPH, PRODUCT MANAGER, LENOVO

As a product manager at Lenovo, Lane is responsible for promoting and educating those inside and outside the organization on products within the ThinkPad Classic portfolio including the company’s well-known T series and the recently introduced ThinkPad Tablet.  With Lenovo for five years, Lane covers both the United States and Canada.  Prior to joining the Think team he was a member of the enterprise sales team and the global sales team managing accounts such as Intel, Cadbury and Halliburton.  He attended NC State and College of Charleston studying environmental sciences and marine biology where he always maintained a passion for technology which led him to his current position at Lenovo.

JERRY KOUTAVAS, PRESIDENT, THE ASCII GROUP

As President of The ASCII Group, Jerry Koutavas is responsible for creating resources and services aimed at helping IT and managed service providers better manage their time and their bottom line.  IT providers faced with time and resource restraints can now refocus their efforts back on revenue generating activities while time intensive administrative tasks are streamlined through staff and services ASCII provides. Members gain access to turn-key programs in areas of operations, sales and marketing and vendor management.  Member receive over 70 programs and services including custom monthly e-newsletters, discounted group seat pricing on RMM and PSA tools, sub-contracting concierge desk, discounted group business insurance, media placement, automated social media marketing and lead generation. Koutavas previously served as Vice President of Business Development, where he led efforts to promote the expertise of ASCII solution providers at end-user facing events at national venues including Microsoft TS2 events and COMDEX, while further developing regional IT SMB Success Summit peer events that continue today. Koutavas holds a bachelor’s degree from Salisbury University.

JAMES LII, MANAGER of STRATEGIC ACCOUNTS, AXCIENT

James Lii joined Axcient in January of 2009. Prior to Axcient, he worked with the VAR and Reseller channel at Barracuda Networks. Before dabbling in the IT world, James served as a project manager and sales representative for a Taiwan based company focused on active and passive cooling solutions for the GPU market. He received a bachelor’s degree in marketing from San Jose State University. He enjoys fishing at local lakes and reservoirs, track days at Thunderhill Raceway in Northern California, and snowboarding down the slopes of Lake Tahoe.

AUSTIN MCCHORD, PRESIDENT & CEO, DATTO

Austin McChord is an entrepreneur whose mission is to bring the highest level of product and service to his customers. He brings a strong technology background to his role as founder and CEO of Datto Inc. The company grew over 300% in 2011 and is a leading vendor of backup, disaster recovery and business continuity solutions, sold exclusively through the channel. His continued work and success at Datto has enabled IT Resellers to provide enterprise class BDR offerings for their clients at a SMB price point. He routinely speaks to audiences at industry trade events and participates as an advising panel member at trade association meetings. Prior to founding Datto, Austin worked for several years successfully developing and implementing software systems for both large and small organizations. He has a B.S. in Bioinformatics from Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) and holds several pending patents.

IAN MCCHORD, PRODUCT MANAGER, DATTO

Ian McChord leads Product Management at Datto, Inc. Joining the company in 2008, Ian has not only seen the company grow from a small startup to an enterprise company, but has been vital part of it. He founded the Datto Academy which is an extensive training program for Datto Partners and re-energized the software integration team, with five new platforms in the last year. Overseeing Datto’s new product releases have been his main focus with Datto ALTO this year, and GenISIS last year. His passion for technology and new innovations is astounding, so we are excited to have him expand his knowledge to a broader audience.

BRANDON MCELRATH, CHANNEL MANAGER, WASP BARCODE TECHNOLOGIES

As Channel Account Manager for Wasp Barcode Technologies, Brandon McElrath oversees the WaspLink VAR partner program promoting business development and channel partnership activities. While best known as the WaspLink VAR “go-to guy”, Brandon has become a channel subject matter expert spearheading the year-over-year growth of the WaspLink domestic and international partner program. WaspLink consists of four partner tiers: Registered Partner, FastStart Partner, Gold Premier Partner, and Platinum Premier Partner. All four levels feature distinct benefits designed to help value-added resellers develop and sustain a profitable business though the sale of Wasp’s expansive product line.
Brandon launched his sales career with the NBA Dallas Mavericks, before joining Wasp Barcode Technologies in 2008.

ROB MERKLINGER, VICE PRESIDENT, SALES, INTRONIS

Rob is an experienced software sales leader with proven track record of driving success and developing sales talent. Rob joins Intronis from Gomez, Inc., a web optimization platform provider for SMBs, where he was the director of sales. While at Gomez, Rob doubled the company’s annual revenue and managed a team of 40 representatives. He also pioneered the SaaS (software as a service) sales process at Gomez and developed a comprehensive go-to-market strategy. Rob graduated from the University of New Hampshire with a B.A. in Business Administration.

KELLY O’BRAY, REGIONAL SALES MANGER, GFI SOFTWARE

A seasoned IT channel professional with 20 years of experience in sales and marketing of IT services to the SMB market, Kelly has been working with GFI Max and its predecessor, Hounddog technologies for over 4 years. While at GFI, Kelly has been working with channel partners to roll out services based on the GFI Max Remote Management platform, helping them build profitable recurring revenue streams. Because of his work with the IT channel, Kelly has gained significant insight on the pitfalls of business transformation strategies, and provides a common sense approach to building your business. Kelly has presented GFI Max and the Building blocks program to IT Groups throughout the country and participated on Industry panels discussing trends in the IT industry, such as the commoditization of the MSP business model at last year’s ASCII events.

NATAN OVADIA, CHANNEL DEVELOPMENT, QUEST SOFTWARE/PACKET TRAP

Natan Ovadia has years of experience working in a post-sales atmosphere helping IT Consulting shops and MSPs solidify and break down what services they provide out to their small business customers. He has played a crucial role in assisting in the sales and execution of selling contracted agreements to maximize profits and grow service-based offerings.

RICH PAPAIOANNOU, MANAGER SMB PRACTICES, HP

Within HP’s Solution Partner Organization, Rich is responsible for growing HP’s share in the SMB market segment by increasing sales to channel partners & their customers.  By developing the right strategies, sales enablement tools, and incentive programs, Rich is focused on simplifying and optimizing partner engagement while complimenting their efforts in capturing new market opportunities.
Over the last 15+ years, Rich has worked in several organizations inside HP including SMB Strategy & Programs, Partner Sales & Marketing, and PartnerONE Program Management

RICH PFISTER, SR. CHANNEL MANAGER NY/NJ, STORAGECRAFT TECHNOLOGY CORP.

Rich Pfister has more than 17 years’ experience in channel sales, developing channels in the Northeast, and partner management. Rich has spent nearly a decade at CA in many different Channel roles and responsibilities. He left CA in 2004 to work with a few start-up companies before joining StorageCraft Technology Corp. While at these companies, he was charged with developing channel programs, from partner recruitment through the building of successful sales pipelines with each of his partners.  Rich brings a strong understanding of the channel and what it needs to succeed based on his experience having worked for large organizations as well as small organizations. At the end of the day, the “client is always right and no matter what, make sure the client is treated well and you will have a client for life.”

CHRIS PINO, CHANNEL ACCOUNT MANAGER, MCAFEE

Chris Pino has a solid background and keen understanding of SaaS solutions, the SMB strategy, and how critical these are to McAfee Channel Partners. Using his business background, Chris continues to seek out ways to help make his partners more successful selling McAfee SaaS solutions. Whether it’s with guidance, tools or sales and marketing resources, Chris is dedicated to helping partners profit from McAfee cloud-based security solutions. You can often find him fly fishing, hiking or actively participating in channel events.

NICK POINTS, CHANNEL SALES DEVELOPMENT EXCUTIVE, CHARTEC

With a passion for technology honed over 8 years in the Channel, Nick Points has been guiding MSPs to increased happiness closely followed by profitability – giving people like you the opportunity to run their MSPs and avoid letting their MSPs run them. Let Nick be your guide in finding a vision for your MSP and grow to heights unexplored with the help of CharTec.
Hailing from Bakersfield, CA, Nick is a San Diego State University graduate with a B.A. in Communications and a Minor in Marketing.
When he’s not working with MSPs like yours, Nick enjoys spending valuable time with his wife and two daughters – a 4-year-old and newborn – and restoring the classics – whether it be a Model A Ford or Vintage Motorcycle..

HERMAN POOL, PRESIDENT, VERTICAL AXION

For over 18 years Herman Pool has owned and marketed his successful IT services and web development companies. He credits his company longevity to consistently studying marketing. He used this experience to start Vertical Axion Marketing Services, a company that helps small businesses "Get Noticed and Make Money" with affordable marketing services.  If your company would like to see more leads via the Internet or even improve your offline marketing.

ROB RAE, DIRECTOR OF PARTNER DEVELOPMENT AND OPERATIONS, LEVEL PLATFORMS

With over 20 years of sales and B2B activities, Rob has extensive experience in IT hardware and software sales. Rob has industry expertise working with 100% channel focused organizations and directly with Channel VAR’s and Solution Providers in achieving their goals. 4 years running, Rob was named as one of MSP Mentors Top 250 people shaping the global managed services market. Rob is an Executive Council Member for CompTIA’s MSP Partners board and he has been on the SMB150 list for the last 2 years. Rob has led Level Platforms to 18 ASCII awards including the overall 2012 ASCII cup winner.

DAVID J. RODRIGUEZ, NORTH AMERICA MID-MARKET OUTSIDE SALES DIRECTOR, DELL GLOBAL COMMERCIAL CHANNELS

avid leads a team of SMB market focused Channel Account Managers dedicated to providing technology solutions through our channel partners.  David is passionate about delivering a superior partner experience through comprehensive training and support that is focused on enabling partners’ competitive advantage and enhanced profitability.    
David started with Dell in 2002, and has held several sales and finance leadership roles in driving key domestic & international initiatives for Dell.  Prior to his current role, David spent 4 years as Finance Director supporting an $8B Global Indirect Consumer business and then a $7B Global Commercial Channel business.  Within these roles, David developed credit facilities with financial institutions for a $3.1B hyper-growth portfolio in a very challenged credit environment within complex Asian markets and diverse partners, and successfully lead the integration of a $2B APJ Commercial Indirect business that immediately achieved +320% GM improvements.  David has 19 years of diverse sales & finance leadership background from Dell, The Associates, GE Capital and Caterpillar Financial.   

ALEX ROGERS, CEO & FOUNDER, CHARTEC

Alex Rogers is a revolutionary thinker who has significantly contributed to the IT Channel. He is founder and President of CharTec, a “Beyond HaaS” provider that helps technology companies transition to the next level of annuity-based profitability as Managed Service Providers (MSPs). CharTec evolved from Rogers’ experience as CEO of ARRC Technology, his award-winning, multi-million dollar MSP practice which he founded in 1992 with a $300 investment.
CharTec was developed exclusively for IT service providers who support small to medium-sized businesses. The company designed and built the largest MSP training facility in North America as well as creating a “HaaS” program intended to provide custom hardware at no upfront cost to its Partner base of nearly 1000 companies.
CharTec is continually recognized for its innovation by leaders in the IT Channel. Recent awards include the 2012 CRN Channel Chiefs, a “Best Channel Vendor” for 2012 and 2011, as well as “Best Channel Product” for 2011 by Business Solutions Magazine. In addition, the company received 3 Bull’s Eye Awards from Channel Insider and “Best Hardware Product Award” from CompTIA in 2010.

TED ROLLER, VICE PRESIDENT OF CHANNEL DEVELOPMENT, LOGMEIN

Ted Roller serves as Vice President of Channel Development for LogMeIn.  Previously, Ted ran channel development for cloud based BDR leader Intronis of Boston, MA and itControl Solutions out of Toronto, ON.  For 15 years prior, Ted built and served as CEO for Oxford Systems Integration / Quanexus, a successful IT services company and MSP located in southwestern Ohio.  Ted has been recognized by MSPmentor, UBM (CRN), SMB Nation, CompTIA and others for his efforts to positively impact the success of channel partners in the US and abroad.  He holds a BA in English Literature from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.

MATT SMITH, DIRECTOR - AMERICAS CHANNEL MARKETING, SOLUTION PARTNERS ORGANIZATION, HEWLETT-PACKARD COMPANY

Matthew “Matt” R. Smith is the director of marketing for HP’s Solution Partners Organization (SPO).  Matt is responsible for enabling and equipping the Americas channel partners to maximize their HP sales and marketing efforts across all HP product lines.   Matt’s organization provides partners with demand generation campaigns for HP solutions, optimized PartnerONE programs for partner profitability and ease of use, and drives partner engagement through executive events and communications.
Matt brings experience and expertise in market research and analytics for partner marketing, digital marketing, sales development, and incentives.  He earned an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management in Strategy and Marketing, and a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Purdue University.

CHRIS STERBENC, VICE PRESIDENT OF SALES, GRIDSTORE

Chris Sterbenc has been involved with early stage technology companies since 1990, and is now at Gridstore as VP of Sales. At Gridstore he implemented the award-winning channel partner program: Accelerate Partner Program which was named to CRN’s 2013 Partner Program Guide, and awarded a 5-Star Partner rating. The Gridstore Accelerate Partner Program is a resource-rich channel program designed with attractive channel incentives to fuel partner success in the delivery of a simple, powerful and affordable software defined storage grid.

During Chris' career, he has built an enviable record of sales success in start-up companies which drive sales with channel partners. An each company, he has dramatically increased revenues and customer numbers through a laser focus on excellent sales strategy and execution. His stature in the industry is such that he has been named to the MSPmentor 250 list in 2011, and the SMB 150 list in both 2012 and 2013.

WESS TOWNS, DIRECTOR, THINKPAD PRODUCT MARKETING, LENOVO NORTH AMERICA

Wes has 22 years of experience with Lenovo and IBM primarily in channel sales, channel marketing and channel operations roles. 
Wes currently manages the ThinkPad Product Marketing team for North America and is responsible for end-to-end brand management functions such as:  product transitions, model specifications, demand planning, pricing, sales enablement and sales education.
Prior to joining the product marketing team, Wes managed the channel operations team where his responsibilities included channel programs, channel terms and conditions, distributor inventory management, channel enablement and channel education.
Wes has an Industrial Engineering degree from the Georgia Institute of Technology.

ERIC TOWNSEND, DIRECTOR OF MSP & SMB MARKETING, INTEL CORPORTATION

Eric Townsend is the Director of MSP and SMB Marketing for Intel Corporation in Chandler, Arizona. For more than 18 years, his work has encompassed tools across the computing spectrum—from devices to services to software. Eric has worked with companies across industry verticals including healthcare, retail, manufacturing, and services. He strongly believes in the efficiencies and value created by Managed Service Providers and the technologies they deploy. Along these lines he often consult with ISVs and OEMs on the integration of Intel® vPro™ and other Intel technologies into their product offerings.

JESSICA TURNER, CLOUD CARE AMBASSADOR, AVG TECHNOLOGIES

Jessica Turner is a true channel champion whose #1 goal is partner advancement.  An AVG team member since 2010, Jess has served the company and its partners in her Public Sector, Reseller, and most recently, AVG CloudCare™ roles as a true brand advocate.  As Ambassador for AVG CloudCare North America, Jess shares her passion for channel enablement with partners and prospects alike with expert advice and candor.  When Jess isn’t spreading the word about AVG CloudCare, she’s hanging with her family and loving her special Friday night dates with her three-year old son.    

LUKE WALLING, VP OF SALES AND OPERATIONS, AVG NORTH AMERICA

Luke Walling is the Vice President of Sales and Operations at AVG North America, overseeing all aspects of channel engagement from sales to technical support.  Luke joined AVG in June 2010 through an acquisition of his business, Walling Data, which focused on value-added distribution of products and services to the Channel and to non-competitive end user segments, as well as a locally-focused MSP and Break/Fix business.  Since Luke has been both a Channel reseller as well as vendor, he has unique insights into the needs of the customers he serves.  Luke believes that providing top-notch customer and technical support is the key to successful partnerships.

ERIC WEISS, VP OF MARKETING, AXCIENT

Eric Weiss has more than 15 years of experience in marketing and the SMB market and a proven track record of launching, marketing and expanding businesses. AS VP of Corporate Marketing, he will lead marketing strategy, drive revenue growth and champion a fantastic customer and partner experience. Prior to joining the Axcient team, Eric was the SVP of Global Operations and Worldwide Marketing at Greenroad. While at Greenroad, he rebranded the company and implemented marketing strategies that helped grow revenue from $1M to $30M. Before Greenroad, Eric was the Chief Marketing Officer at Covad Communications where he led the product and marketing teams and launched five new products to the SMB market. Prior to Covad, Eric was Vice President at Macromedia where he rebranded Flash prior to Macromedia's acquisition by Adobe. Eric also co-founded and was the COO of ITXC. He has an MBA from Harvard Business School and a Masters in Public Policy, Science and Technology from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government.

MARK WINTER, VICE PRESIDENT OF SALES, RAPIDFIRE TOOLS

Mark has over 25 years of experience in the IT field, with the last 15 years dedicated to providing software solutions to the VAR and Service Provider channels. He has been with RapidFire Tools more than 6 years, delivering solutions to Managed Service Providers that help them better serve their clients and grow their business and revenues. He has also worked in the trenches with a Service Provider, providing Sales and Account Management

MICHAEL ZEDOSKY, DIRECTOR OF PARTNER SALES, COMCAST BUSINESS

Michael Zedosky is the Director of Partner Sales for Comcast Business in the Central Division.  He is responsible for a team of Partner Sales Managers and all channel relationships within the central United States for Comcast Business. Prior to Comcast, Zedosky managed channel teams for Earthlink Business/One Communications.  He has spent more than 10 years in various channel roles in sales and business development.