Dell hires channel expert as new Australian partner boss

Dell has announced that channel consultant Geoff Wright will take the reigns of its Australian and New Zealand partner community in 20 April.

Wright previously spent more than a decade as a channel consultant across Europe and Asia Pacific at Channel Enablers, a business he founded in 1999 and later sold.

It's a noteworthy move by Dell, which is working to throw off its reputation as a direct sales business and reposition itself as a channel-friendly company.

Channel Enablers bills itself as "recognised global authority on multi-channel routes to market".

On its website, the consultancy claims to help customers choose the best channels, fast track enablement of partnerships, structure sales organisations to operate more effectively, and develop people and processes to achieve competitive advantage through successful partnerships.

Its extensive client list includes tier one vendors such as IBM, Cisco, Citrix, McAfee, Toshiba, Fujitsu and more, as well as some Australian companies like Melbourne IT and NetComm Wireless.

Wright joins an organisation that has significant increased its channel footprint in recent times. Dell boasted approximately 2,000 partners through its Dell Partner Direct business, before signing Ingram Micro as the first-ever local distributor for its full enterprise portfolio, in late 2014. The distribution deal offers Dell access to roughly 8,500 partners at Ingram.

"Significant appointment"

Prior to that his tenure at Channel Enablers, Wright was director of channels, SMB and anti-piracy at Microsoft Australia between 1997 and 1990, as well as spending more than seven years as distribution manager for Microsoft UK.

Wright fills a role created by the departure of Peter Murphy, who headed up the channel business in Australia and New Zealand and was also managing director of Dell New Zealand. Murphy started a new role in February to work in Dell’s business in the UK.

Angela Fox, managing director of Dell Australia & New Zealand, this week described Wright’s hiring as a “very significant appointment within my leadership team and underpinning the commitment I have to continue growing, maintaining and accelerating the very strong growth within our channel".

Fox replaced long-time Dell’s Australian & New Zealand managing director, Joe Kremer, who departed in 2014 to spend time with his family and pursue other interests after more than a decade at Dell.