Stamina needed for channel

For this reason you could kind of see where Callum Eade was coming from when he left his post as Toshiba’s New Zealand country manager to become an ironman.

Many would consider the ironman’s grueling cocktail of swimming, cycling and running a breeze compared to an aggrieved reseller on the phone, bemoaning a vendor’s actions.

Despite Eade leaving Toshiba’s Information Systems Division (ISD) in 2005, this year he has returned as national channel sales manager for Australia, with a renewed determination to move the vendor’s channel forward.

In his new role, Eade will be responsible for driving Toshiba ISD’s overall Australian channel business, managing the national channel sales team and sales centre, and working closely with the corporate sales team to service Toshiba’s business-to-business clients.

“As national channel sales manager, I am responsible for every aspect of the engagement of my team with the Australian business reseller base, albeit in a direct capacity or via our key partnerships with our distributors,” said Eade.

“The role, and more importantly, my focus extends beyond that to ensure that our product planning strategy is aligned with our overall strategic direction with each and every one of our partners.”

Eade said it is rudimentary that his role complements James Nicholas, the vendor’s national corporate sales manager. “Simply put, James is the left hand and I am the right.”

It’s an interesting time within ISD at the moment, explains Eade, as Toshiba’s commitment to getting its channel strategy right is bolstered by two new roles who will work alongside him.

“They include newly-appointed Liana Nio as channel marketing manager, as well as the deserved promotion of Angela Walker into the position of national distribution sales manager,” he said.

Eade seems focused and enthusiastic about his future at Toshiba, but why did he turn his back on the vendor before?

“My six months away from the corporate year was amazing. It’s hard to put into words how much a complete break can refocus and re-energise you. The decision to return was frankly an easy one.”

Eade said the opportunity to develop his career meant that Sydney was an obvious next step, and was actually something he had discussed informally while he was with Toshiba in New Zealand.

“Toshiba’s commitment to personal development is unlike any organisation that I have worked for. To return to be a part of the organisation that I believe in with such passion was simply beyond anything that I could have imagined.”
Eade said his previous experience with Toshiba is vital. “The product, systems and culture are all components of Toshiba that I have lived and breathed.”

At the time of Eade’s appointment, Mark Whittard, general manager of Toshiba ISD A/NZ, said: “With his experience in mobile computing and deep knowledge of Toshiba, Callum is an ideal person to lead our channel team in Australia. We are delighted to welcome him back to Toshiba and across the Tasman, and believe that his experience will further cement our channel relationships and position as market leader.”

US-based Toshiba is a diverse monster of a vendor, with 161,000 employees worldwide and consolidated annual sales of more than US$53 billion. It can provide a glut of offerings including flash memory, microprocessors, storage, notebooks, telecommunications, TV, even industrial and medical equipment.

In Australia and New Zealand Toshiba is represented by both wholly owned subsidiaries and distributors.

channel for hardware needed stamina