Samsung Seeking New VP For Enterprise Business Division
Samsung, a channel stalwart that has significantly expanded its small/medium business (SMB) product portfolio along with channel incentives over the last several years, said it is seeking a "dynamic leader to build on our recent successes and continue to elevate Samsung’s position in the commercial market." Albregts was unavailable for comment.
Until a replacement is named, Samsung said Director of Marketing Todd Bouman, who joined the company from Hewlett=Packard in March 2009, will lead the marketing charge for the Enterprise Business Division.
The search for a successor comes with the $110 billion electronics giant posting double digit channel sales growth in 2010 and with the company proclaiming that it was on track to outpace that channel sales growth rate this year. The executive departure also comes with Samsung boasting its strongest product portfolio ever in the SMB market, ranging from the new Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, a tablet that has been called one of the biggest challengers to the iPad, to notebooks and desktop systems, a broad line of innovative printers and its long standing award-winning display product line.
Samsung Senior Channel Marketing Manager Richard Hutton, a six-year Samsung channel veteran, said the company's channel commitment is stronger than ever. In fact, he said, Samsung has upped its channel headcount by 30 percent this year and is poised to launch a new channel program with robust partner incentives.
Hutton stressed that Samsung, which has urged partners to eschew vendors that sell direct, remains the only broadline SMB hardware product provider that does not compete with its partners. "With Samsung you are getting unmatched channel commitment and the best products on the market," he said. "The VARs are not part of our route to market. They are our route to market."
Samsung has won CRN's Channel Champions award in the display market segment two times in the last three years, and the CRN Annual Report Card (ARC) for displays seven times in the last eight years.
Dan Schwab, co-president of D&H Distributing Co., one of Samsung's top distributors, said he sees Samsung continuing to build on recent channel successes even with the departure of Albregts."It really was the channel organization driving a lot of the changes," said Schwab. "We continue to see unwavering commitment to the channel despite the departure of Doug."
Schwab said he sees more D&H SMB solution providers adding Samsung products and Samsung product sales on the rise at D&H. "Samsung is very well positioned to maintain and grow their SMB channel business," he said.