Channel roundup: Who's gone where?

For those back at their desks it all feels like the festive break was a long time ago. The diaries are full of white space and there are plenty of CEOs looking to gain growth with some key appointments. There are a handful to pick over this week.

Juniper Networks
The firm has looked to former Extreme Networks head of channels and networks to step into a similarly senior role. Gordon Mackintosh becomes the firm's worldwide vice president of channel and virtual sales. In that role he will be looking at driving the vendor's go-to-market strategy through partners. “Juniper Networks has a great reputation in the partner community with its strong technology and solutions in AI-driven enterprise, multi-cloud networking and connected security solutions,” said Mackintosh. “The opportunity ahead for Juniper and its partners is vast, but to seize it, we must collaborate more effectively and move faster. Partners continue to be an integral part of Juniper’s growth strategy in all segments and I’m truly excited to join the team to continue to create innovative strategies that help partners accelerate their business into the multi-cloud era.”

Veeam
The firm has decided that after three tears as vice president of product strategy the time is right to give Danny Allan a chance to make an impact in the CTO role. “Danny has had a significant impact on Veeam’s vision and strategic direction since joining the company in early 2017, and has been instrumental in cementing our market leadership,” said Ratmir Timashev, co-founder and executive vice president sales & marketing at Veeam. “As customers look to drive business agility and leverage the power of their data, Veeam must continue to innovate, and under Danny’s leadership, I know that we will accelerate our organizational growth as we move into Act II.” Before joining Veeam Allan was CTO of Desktone, a software platform for service providers offering hosted desktops, which was acquired by VMware. His CV also includes time at IBM, where he was director of security research.

Hitachi Vantara
The firm has come together with Hitachi consulting to create a unified operation focusing on digital infrastructure and solutions. The firm had already announced back in September that Toshiaki Tokunaga, a 30-year Hitachi veteran who has successfully transformed several Hitachi businesses, will serve in the dual role of CEO and chairman of the board of Hitachi Vantara. The two business units, Digital Infrastructure and Digital Solutions, will be led by Presidents Brian Householder and Brad Surak, respectively. The decision to unify operations is part of a wider plan by parent Hitachi hit its 2021 Mid-term Management Plan, which aims to make the company a global leader through “Social Innovation Business.” The Social Innovation Business strategy centers on combining Hitachi’s industrial and IT expertise and products to create new value and resolve social issues.