Canalys Channels Forum 2009 – successfully bucking the trend in
Barcelona
– Best ever Canalys event, as attendees rate Forum 8.2 out of
10!
Reading (UK) - Wednesday, 18 February 2009
For immediate release
Over 250 channel professionals from all over EMEA attended the
Channels Forum where they were advised on how to help their
customers buck the current economic trend and secure a successful
future for their businesses and organisations. The event took place
in Barcelona from 4–5 February 2009.
So what attracted so many senior people to the Forum, at a time
when many are tightening their belts and restricting travel? Where
did Canalys go right?
‘I think it’s down to a coincidence of timing and
planning,’ replied Canalys CEO, Steve Brazier. ‘During the planning
phase, we came up with our theme “Fit to Partner” and decided we
should invite the Channel Community to come and perfect their
fitness. This was before the credit crunch hit and we did not
realise then how relevant this theme would become! Necessity is the
mother of invention and in hard times it’s always the smart leaders
who understand the need to harness the latest in technology to
create the next phase of growth.’ The content of the event was
carefully balanced to focus on tactical initiatives, ie, things that
needed to be worked on now, and more long-term trends, which
resellers should be looking at for the future, despite dealing with
today’s tough times.
Resellers, vendors and distributors left Barcelona with some real
solutions to discuss with their customers who, now more than ever,
need to be on the ball, to be aware of the paradigm shifts that are
happening in technology and how to harness them for their advantage.
‘An inspiring event, it clarified a number of key emerging areas and
helped to finalise strategy. It was the most appropriate conference
for our business today,’ said John Murphy, Director at A&O Systems
and Services, Ireland Ltd.
‘There were some very powerful presentations that were quick and
snappy and extremely interesting,’ said Graham Noel, Category
Manager, Computacenter (UK) Ltd. ‘I came away with some extremely
useful ideas that I can implement, as well as an understanding of
some areas I’m not part of yet.’
Vendors presenting included HP, Apple, Acer, APC, AMD, Fujitsu
Siemens Computers and Google. Resellers voting live at the event
rated the Google speech as the most useful vendor presentation. Also
on stage were top-ranked external presenters Andreas Weigend, former
Chief Scientist at Amazon, and economist and best-selling author Tim
Harford.
Canalys analysts presented an in-depth look at key industry
trends and identified new sources of revenue and profitability.
‘Excellent information and ideas about consumerisation, cloud
computing, virtualisation, power management and the situation for
the channel,’ commented Philippe Waslet, Managing Director at Waslet
IT Sprl.
Over 250 business meetings took place at the prestigious Hesperia
Tower Hotel in Barcelona, with industry experts discussing the pros
and cons, and strengths and weaknesses of specific solutions for
their customers. As always with Canalys events, the one-to-one
programme was a sell-out. ‘It was an excellent opportunity to meet
the right people,’ said Anita Lussenburg, Director at Tower House.
‘The event was intensely demanding but equally rewarding for our
delegates,’ said Rita Chaher, Marketing and Events Manager at
Canalys. ‘The networking was definitely a key strength of this
event. I was thrilled to see resellers, distributors, vendors and
the press discussing their businesses not only during coffee breaks
but at the lunches and gala dinner too! We are so pleased that all
those meetings proved so helpful to the attendees and the feedback
for the event is impressive!’ To view all delegate quotes please
visit:
http://www.canalyschannelsforum.com/page.asp?id=2.
What our delegates had to say about the event
‘Before the event, I could not clearly evaluate what benefits I
could get from this forum. After the first presentation from Steve
Brazier, I had no more doubts. A very good forum for networking and
sharing experiences. Bravo!’ Daniel Forster, Owner, MacS SA
‘It was a great opportunity to touch base with industry
colleagues and spend some time with the vendors. The venue and
organisation of the event reflected the professionalism of your
team.’ Norman Kough, European Regional General Manager, SCH
‘The content helped me to assess if my own strategy is in line
with general channel and manufacturer thinking and development. It
grounded me in certain situations and gave me half a dozen items
that will help focus activity during the next 12 months.’ Mike
Brown, Divisional Director, XMA Ltd
‘My mind was opened to new possibilities.’ James Napp, Director,
Bechtle
‘Educational as well as networking with colleagues was useful.’
Sonny Sehgal, Director, Transputec
‘Thanks for organising the event; it was indeed great to network
with the key industry players.’ Antoine Barre, VP SPO EMEA, Hewlett
Packard
‘An opportunity to focus on where we are going over the next 12
months – invaluable.’ David Butterworth, Managing Director, Skanco
Business Systems Ltd
‘Thanks for your efforts to make this event a success in spite of
the weather and the economy. The event was indeed valuable for us
and we managed to have some good meetings.’ Michael Niotakis, VP
Channels & HBN Business Development , EMEA/LAM, APC By Schneider
Electric
‘Better overall understanding of the situation for channel
partners now and in the coming months/years.’ Ingemar Kullberg, CEO,
Benzler
‘It was beneficial to see the trends and learn that we are
focusing on the right areas to sustain our business.’ Edel Creely,
Managing Director, Datapac
‘I had a very positive view from the event overall – good
feedback from the resellers in attendance. I am pleased that you
also received positive responses given the work and effort exerted
by you and your team.’ Tom Yeates, Director Partner Sales, EMEA,
Hewlett Packard
‘Thanks for a very good event.’ Graeme Watt, President Worldwide
Distribution, Bell Micro
‘A convivial environment, mixing with senior executives from our
industry, it was enlightening to hear their thoughts and how they
viewed each other’s products and strategies. So well done Canalys,
one of the most useful events I have ever attended.’ Joe Hemani,
Chairman, Westcoast
‘There were possibilities to make alliances with vendors and
other companies in order to have a very complete solution on the
market.’ Maurizio Caldarelli, Sales Manager, Gruppo Loccioni
‘I would like to thank you for the invite to the great conference
you organised and to congratulate you on its success. In addition to
having the pleasure of meeting many of my old business contacts, I
went away with many good ideas for new business opportunities. The
balance between the networking, information sharing and social
aspects was excellent and the location was well chosen! I really
encourage you to continue organising this event in the future, since
there is nothing comparable in the European IT industry.’ Peter van
den Berg, General Manager Europe, Global Technology Distribution
Council
‘Some good ideas on virtualisation, how to cope with the
recession, how the market will change into a more subscription-based
business – very useful topics and solutions!’ Ernst Graaff,
Director, Buyitdirect.com NV
‘The conference was very inspiring, and a good reality check for
both strategy but also tactical details.’ Virpi Matikainen, Director
Global Midmarket Campaigns, Hewlett Packard
‘I very much valued the dinner and the chance to exchange
information among peers.’ Milko van Duijl, President, Lenovo EMEA
‘It provided me with a better understanding of where the IT
industry is currently at and where it is likely to go.’ David Gould,
Commercial Director, BT / Dabs
‘Gained an understanding of the level of expectation for the
coming year from others within the industry.’ Steve Wood, Director,
Parity Medical
‘Thank you for a superb event in Barcelona these past two days. I
think the messages really did hit home and I am sure we will see a
more informed and armed channel going forward into this year. For me
the key takeaways were views of our channel partners and their
perspectives. It is also clear that our new channel programme is
going to address and support many of the issues that the partners
face today. The hotel and arrangements were top class and, as usual,
I found the event very useful and very enjoyable.’ Gill Cheesewright,
EMEA Program Manager, APC by Schneider Electric
‘Confirmed strategy and helped me know more about vendors and
competitors.’ Gerard Commune, Sales and Marketing Director, Misco
France
‘I would like to make my personal congratulations to you all for
your Channels Forum for both content and organisation.’ Alessandro
Cetto, Sales Manager, Converge
‘It was good to hear an international point of view to the
economic crisis.’ Henrik Lassen, Director, Businessmann
‘Excellent opportunity to network with industry peers and take
time to stand back and take a more holistic view of the current
circumstances and opportunities.’ Mitch Trouth, Sales and Marketing
Director, Keltec Ltd
‘We thank you for the invitation to the Canalys Channels Forum
2009. The organisation was very good and the presentations were
really interesting.’ Virginie Daunois, SIT Group
‘Good networking opportunity and interesting tips picked up.’
Stewart Hayward, Commercial Director, WStore UK Ltd
‘Re-energised my services strategy.’ Rinaldo Ballerio, President,
Elmec Informatica
‘Helping to set revenue and profit expectations for the coming
year properly; input to addressing SaaS / hosting market and new
market opportunities.’ Ole Eklund, Sales Director, Nordic, Actebis
Computer A/S
‘Just a quick note to say very good event and extremely well
organised.’ Loay Lawrence, Commercial and Marketing Director, Vohkus
‘Benefited from the realistic sentiment about the economic
outlook.’ Martin Hellawell, Managing Director, Softcat
‘I enjoyed it very much.’ Jan Jensen, VP, International, Iomega
‘I truly appreciated it and was able to connect with many
Industry Captains.’ Thomas Sieber, independent
‘I got a lot of ideas but most of all I got confirmation on that
what we are doing is right.’ Kjell Gabrielsson, moln.net Manager,
Office IT-Partner
‘Identifying new sources of revenue and profitability; better
understanding current trends’ Dimitrios Papantoniou, CEO,
Performance Technologies AE
‘It was valuable to be able to compare my own vision and
understanding of the economic situation with the one that was
presented at the conference.’ Pekka Lehto, Managing Director, BCC
Finland Oy
‘Brilliant session for understanding vendors’ strategies,
go-to-market strategies and what technology solutions we should be
preparing our business for if we want to be successful.’ Collett
Clements, HP Business Executive, TCM
‘The event has given me extra confidence in the IT solutions ADA
is building for its clients.’ David Rabson, CEO,
ADA Technology Services
‘Networking, global view of the businesses and perspectives from
other sources.’ Jef Matthe, General Manager, Kender Thijssen
Solutions
About Canalys
Canalys specialises in delivering high quality market data,
analysis and advice to the world’s leading technology vendors. It is
recognised as a key provider of continuous advisory services and
confidential custom projects for marketing managers and strategists
within blue-chip IT, telecoms, navigation and consumer electronics
companies. It has unrivalled expertise in routes to market for all
kinds of high technology products and services in the consumer, SMB
and large enterprise segments, and provides worldwide market data
and trends analysis.
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