Panasonic steals HP exec to lead Toughbook unit

Panasonic has snatched HP's former Asia Pacific sales director to lead its local Toughbook business, with Deane Hornsby jumping on board as the division's new group manager.

In his new role, Hornsby will focus on strengthening the Toughbook range's key business markets in Australia, including government, defence and utilities, delivery fleets and field services workers. He takes over the role following former Toughbook manager Mark Wallis' departure earlier this year.

Hornsby will also be working with application vendors to provide new Toughbook software solutions and services geared towards key industry verticals.

"We're looking more specifically at the business imperatives of sub-industry categories," Hornsby told CRN. 

"For example, with ambulances and patient care, you don't just have a ruggedised notebook – it needs to be built in as part of the ambulance, with GPS tracking and so on, and it all needs to work together.

"So we look to bring a total solution to market and are very application-driven, rather than [focusing] on just the hardware component."

Hornsby said the company would continue to work in tight collaboration with existing specialist channel partners who he classed as "very, very loyal".

"Our business is 100 percent channelised and we've always been very selective about who our partners are," Hornsby said.

"All sorts of things can happen in these [ruggedised] environments, so the partner needs to provide a service that's well attuned to the customer fit. They need to know what the specific imperatives, drives and needs of a particular customer are within that vertical."

Panasonic's key Toughbook distributors in Australia include MMT and the WA-based J Mills, which focuses on customers within the mining industry.

"Moving forward, we'll continue to expand with those guys and add on the right type of partners to get better coverage across the states," Hornsby said. 

On his move from HP, Hornsby said the opportunity to head Panasonic's Toughbook range was "too good to pass up". 

"Suddenly, I'm able to use all of my business skills within a company whose culture is consumer-based. These are very customer-orientated, funky, cool products that [I'll] be bringing a solid, robust business context to," Hornsby said. 

"Panasonic has the vision to build out its business systems' side, which to me is exciting. We're starting to see the convergence of consumer electronics and IT, and Panasonic is one of the first companies to take that bold step. I think it shows a lot of foresight." 

Hornsby told CRN Panasonic was preparing to release a swathe of new Toughbook products in the coming months, including the semi-ruggedised '62' ultrabook, the fully-rugged CFD1 slate tablet and a range of updates to existing models with new generation CPUs.