New local boss for Aastra

Canadian-based IT communications provider Aastra Technologies has appointed Tony Warhurst as its managing director for A/NZ. 

Warhurst takes on the role following 18 months as Aastra's director of sales and marketing for the region. He had a brief stint as the company's channel manager in 2010.

Aastra's A/NZ operation was previously headed up by John Ward. The MD role had been vacant since Ward's departure to a financial services role at Cisco's APAC operation in May 2011.

Warhurst told CRN that Aastra headquarters had been suitably impressed with his performance to promote him.

"Basically, they want me to continue down those paths of forming better relationships with our resellers, continuing to grow the channel and re-instilling the confidence that used to exist in the past with the Aastra channel."

Warhurst said his role combined the positions of director of finance and operations and director of sales and marketing.

Readies rewards program

Warhurst said the company was in the final stages of preparing a rewards program for its A/NZ resellers, which is expected to launch this quarter.

"For deals sold, resellers will get access to Aastra reward points that they can then redeem for prizes [such as] movie tickets, meals and travel vacations," Warhurst said.

"Depending on how much they sell and how many points they accrue, the sky is the limit on what we can make available in that rewards program."

In terms of new product initiatives, Warhurst singled out the BlueStar 8000i HD video terminal as one of the company's most important new releases.

"We're referring to it as the BlueStar ecosystem," Warhurst said. "It gives a new spin on our existing product portfolio which [our resellers] can go out and talk about."

Warhurst said the company was focused on organic channel growth.

"There is no target of going out and signing up another 'X' amount of resellers," Warhurst said. "We're going to continue down the same path with what we're doing and trying to grow the channel as required."