Pitney Bowes Australia to join the channel?

 Kaaren Lewis (pictured), is in her fifth week in the job as national sales and marketing director.

The company is traditionally a provider of integrated mail and document management systems, services and solutions but wants to expand into software and services and is launching a number of products this year. 

Lewis led the launch of the HP Direct business when HP merged with Compaq and she is an experienced marketing executive in the software and solutions market.

She will use this expertise to help Pitney Bowes form new strategies in the way it will go to market.

"Given that my background is very much channel customer focused this is a tremendous opportunity to see how the channel can play a part in Pitney Bowes," said Lewis.

"Traditionally the company hasn't gone through an IT channel and we need to look at that. It will be my job over the coming weeks and months to evaluate the role for the channel and see how it fits in with our strategic direction."

According to Lewis, the 90-year-old company has a traditional way of doing business.

"Pitney Bowes is at a crossroads. It is my job to bring new thoughts and ideas to the company and see how it can grow," she said.

"This is an exciting opportunity to look at who we are aligned with, the people and organisations out there from a channel perspective and have a look across the industry at markets that haven't been looked at as diligently in the past.

"I want to see what that could mean for the company. I am not sure what direction that we are going to take yet but there is a big opportunity for us."

The company would not disclose exactly which products it will be launching this year but said it includes new software - some to compliment its existing technologies and other brand new products, and hardware.

One of the announcements will be of a new hardware solution called LobbyGuard which allows companies to track and trace who comes in and out of their premises.

Prior to Pitney Bowes, Lewis worked at Insight Enterprises as the national sales director A/NZ.

She helped to drive sales and marketing strategies along with a strong focus on channel and new routes to market.

Her former roles include director of SMBs Hewlett Packard and customer marketing with Compaq and IBM.