Power 100: The Most Powerful Women Of The Channel 2016 (Part 2)
The Power 100
This year, CRN honored 472 Women of the Channel whose expertise and vision are deserving of recognition. The following exceptional 100 executives were chosen by CRN to its annual Power 100 list. We are proud to honor their achievements.
Here's a look at Part 2 of our list. For more, see Part 1 of our Power 100 list. You can also check out the full listing of the 2016 Women of the Channel.
Jasmine Lombardi
Intronis MSP Solution by Barracuda
Vice President of Partner Success
Years in Position: 3
Years in Channel: 3
Lombardi led the Intronis Partner Success organization in improving the channel business. One of the highlights was an increase in partner satisfaction, which has led to reduced churn and an increase in revenue.
Lori Cornmesser
Ixia Communications
VP, Global Channel Sales
Years in Position: 2.5
Years in Channel: 19
Cornmesser has grown Ixia's partner base, including reseller and global alliance partnerships, to more than 500 worldwide. She has put in place a dedicated team of Channel Account Managers and Global Alliance Managers focused on building mutually beneficial relationships with partners.
Leslie Bois
Kaspersky Lab
Vice President, Channel Sales, Kaspersky Lab North America
Years in Position: 0.5
Years in Channel: 13
Bois and her channel team moved upmarket in 2015 by streamlining the focus and better enabling partners that were also focused on the upper midmarket and enterprise. She also rolled out a new strategic rebate program.
Cindy Bates
Microsoft
Vice President US SMB and Distribution at Microsoft
Years in Position: 5
Years in Channel: 16
SMB is Microsoft's fastest-growing segment. Bates enriched the Ready-to-Go marketing portal and the Microsoft Community Connections program, which educates SMBs on technology and connects partners with SMB customers.
Gavriella Schuster
Microsoft
General Manager, Worldwide Partner Group
Years in Position: 2
Years in Channel: 10
Schuster and her team helped partners grow their cloud business and find their path to profitability. She expanded the Microsoft Cloud Solution Provider program to 135 markets and overall made it easier for partners to do business with the company.
Barb Huelskamp
MobileIron
VP, WW Channels
Years in Position: 1
Years in Channel: 22
Huelskamp started at MobileIron at the beginning of the year and soon launched a comprehensive distribution strategy in North America to help grow the depth and breadth of partners and market reach. She also updated the Partner Program in North America.
Laurie Harvey
NaviSite
Director, Partner Marketing and Programs
Years in Position: 3
Years in Channel: 14
In 2015, NaviSite's focus was to increase brand awareness. Harvey created a new workstream within channel marketing that focuses solely on lead generation, appointment setting and list management for VAR/MSP recruitment.
Maria Olson
NetApp
VP, Global & Strategic Alliances
Years in Position: 5
Years in Channel: 16
Responsible for NetApp's alliances, Olson's job is to ensure a strong partner and alliance ecosystem ready to capitalize on the innovation the company is introducing to drive transformative customer outcomes.
Betsey Pashayan
NetApp
Director, Global Partner Marketing
Years in Position: 1
Years in Channel: 11
Pashayan came to NetApp to develop a global team chartered with supporting marketing to, through, with and for channel and distribution partners. She achieved this in many verticals with a focus on demand generation and social media.
Diane Genova
Nimble Storage
Director, Global System Integrators
Years in Position: 1
Years in Channel: 9
As Nimble enters the next phase of growth, it is focusing on the enterprise, specifically global 300 companies. To that end, Genova is building out a Global Systems Integrator channel program that will be key to that effort.
Penny Philpot
Oracle
Group Vice President, WW Alliances & Channels
Years in Position: 7
Years in Channel: 27
Philpot developed and rolled out the Oracle Partner Network Cloud Partner Program. She also set up a 200-strong new worldwide ISV inside sales team in all geographic regions and developed the existing base of 25,000 partners.
Melissa Nacerino
Palo Alto Networks
Director, Americas Channel Marketing
Years in Position: 1
Years in Channel: 10
Nacerino has advanced the company's channel business on three fronts: partner demand generation, partner enablement, and awareness. This past year the size of the channel marketing team tripled and dedicated resources were added to support partners.
Kandyce Tripp
Palo Alto Networks
Sr. Director, Head of Global Channel Operations
Years in Position: 2
Years in Channel: 9
Tripp and her team were instrumental in helping increase operational capacity and efficiency. She has better enabled channel business managers to track, collaborate and support the partner ecosystem.
Deandra Cassidy
Polycom
Director, Global Channel Programs
Years in Position: 9
Years in Channel: 20
Cassidy contributed to the development of Polycom's new Global Partner Program, which is focused on building partner competencies and capabilities so partners can recognize new revenue streams, increased margins and a greater return on investment.
Peggy Crespin
Polycom
Director, Channel Sales
Years in Position: 3.5
Years in Channel: 6
Crespin built comprehensive business plans with key channel partners and held both her team and the partner accountable for execution. This led to year-over-year growth across the majority of Polycom partners. She also focused on key demand generation activities.
Kimberly King
Progress
Vice President Global Partners & Channels
Years in Position: 4
Years in Channel: 22
King has been laser-focused on streamlining Progress' channel programs and goals to achieve greater growth and help partners succeed. A strategy shift had the team look at the big picture and King ensured that the new goals aligned with the operational ones.
Aimee Catalano
Pure Storage
VP, Partner and Integrated Marketing
Years in Position: 1
Years in Channel: 14
Catalano introduced a number of new programs including a social advocacy program and a mobile app for Pure Storage partners. She and her team also established a global community of partner executives called the Partner Advisory Council.
Lynn Tinney
Riverbed
VP Americas Channels
Years in Position: 2
Years in Channel: 20
Tinney has helped shift the channel skill set to go beyond enablement and focused on selling and building pipeline through partners' strengths. As part of the team, she leverages distribution partners not just for logisitics but also in operations, marketing, financing and more.
Christine Bufalini
RSA, The Security Division of EMC
Director of Americas Field & Global Channel Marketing
Years in Position: 11
Years in Channel: 2
The past year has seen a momentous shift in channel strategy, and Bufalini is leading the charge to bring partners into the security spotlight and stand behind their business.
Sandra Cheek
Ruckus Wireless
Vice President, Worldwide Partner Sales
Years in Position: 0.5
Years in Channel: 19
Cheek initially focused on assessing partner ecosystem coverage, capabilities, programs, enablement and channel marketing to help her develop new initiatives that will allow partners to grow with the company.
Neeracha Taychakhoonavudh
Salesforce
Senior Vice President, Partner Programs
Years in Position: 3
Years in Channel: 7
Taychkhoonavudh has been directly responsible for revamping partner programs for consulting and ISV partners, including a new tiering structure that recognizes the total contribution each partner makes, their expertise and customer feedback.
Carrie Maslen
Samsung Electronics America
Vice President, Mobile Product Marketing, Samsung Electronics America
Years in Position: 1
Years in Channel: 30
Maslen made significant improvements to Samsung's sales portal to create an easier experience. She also created solution playbooks, designed as a one-stop shop for partners to become experts in a solution.
Annie Neubrech
SAP
COO, NA Ecosystem & Channels
Years in Position: 1
Years in Channel: 27
SAP saw a gap in how VARs were engaging with the sales teams in the midmarket. To address this, Neubrech helped create a new role called a field engagement director, who works on joint account planning with partners.
Meaghan Sullivan
SAP
Vice President, Global Channel Marketing & SME
Years in Position: 4
Years in Channel: 15
Over the past year, Sullivan created programs and initiatives for the global SAP channel. These have resulted in more than $500 million in marketing lead pipeline and helped indirect routes to market contribute to 37 percent of SAP's total sales.
Christie Hamberis
ScanSource Networking and Security
Senior Vice President
Years in Position: 1
Years in Channel: 24
Hamberis led ScanSource Networking and Security to continued growth, aiding a community of savvy physical security and IT-centric resellers and integrators. She and her team rolled out an improved product selection tool as well.
Liz King
SGI
Senior Vice President, Worldwide Sales
Years in Position: 2
Years in Channel: 16
King assembled the team and put the resources in place to build and advance the channel capabilities around its new solutions for the enterprise. She has helped establish key strategic global partnerships and has achieved significant growth.
Heather Tenuto
ShoreTel
Vice President World Wide Channel Programs and Sales Enablement
Years in Position: 3
Years in Channel: 16
Tenuto restructured the Champion Partner Program so that it rewards partners no matter the delivery model they sell to end users. An education program also helps partners be more productive with less investment.
Kendra Krause
Sophos
Vice President, Global Channels
Years in Position: 1
Years in Channel: 18
Krause designed and launched a new Synchronized Security training and accreditation program that allows partners to become experts on both endpoint security and network security. She also beefed up the partner portal with new tools including an opportunity manager.
Splunk
Brooke Cunningham
Area VP, Worldwide Partner Programs, Operations
Years in Position: 0.25
Years in Channel: 18
In her previous role, Cunningham delivered an integrated partner engagement strategy. She is now focused on driving company revenue through channel growth.
Michelle Accardi
Star2Star Communications
COO, CMO
Years in Position: 3
Years in Channel: 3
Accardi's role at Star2Star was greatly expanded last year, as she took on the role of CMO and now heads up tech support as well. She is focused on growing the company's customer base in the enterprise space and adding more qualified partners.
Jennifer Bodell
StorageCraft Technology
Channel Marketing Manager
Years in Position: 2
Years in Channel: 4
Bodell is overseeing the development of a new StorageCraft Partner Program and partner portal that reflects the company's increased global presence and evolving product line. The new partner program is slated to launch in late 2016.
Melissa McCoy
Sungard Availability Services
VP, Channels and Alliances
Years in Position: 7.5
Years in Channel: 16
McCoy is focused on driving sales of hybrid IT/cloud solutions in the market by executing on joint go-to-market plans with technology partners such as EMC and Cisco and the mutual partner ecosystem.
May Mitchell
Symantec
VP, Worldwide Field & Channel Marketing
Years in Position: 2.5
Years in Channel: 22
Mitchell was key to the launch of the Secure One partner program, which simplifies doing business with the company and provides financial rewards for partners. She is now developing market-pull and market-push campaigns and enablement tools.
Mary Ellen Grom
Synnex
Vice President, US Marketing
Years in Position: 5
Years in Channel: 22
Grom led the U.S. commercial and retail marketing teams to produce profitable year-over-year growth and continued to educate and train Synnex associates, vendors and resellers about the power of social media as an effective marketing tool.
Tiffany Embry
Tech Data
Director, Sales
Years in Position: 3
Years in Channel: 17
Embry led a business development team that generated 95 percent year-over-year growth last year. She also helped with the reorganization of Tech Data's U.S. SMB sales force, enabling all customers in the U.S. to be serviced by U.S.-based sales reps.
Lisa MacKenzie
The Channel Company
SVP/Partner
Years in Position: 7
Years in Channel: 28
MacKenzie is instrumental in developing and managing The Channel Company's numerous live events. These events train, motivate and enable solution providers to be successful and help vendors grow their channel business.
Tracey Balent
Veeam
Sr. Director, North America Distribution
Years in Position: 1
Years in Channel: 15
Balent built unique programs at each of Veeam's distributors to capitalize on their value. Each program utilizes distributors' business intelligence to target partners and customers with the greatest propensity to resell Veeam.
Brenda Leonard
Veritas
Senior Director, National Partners
Years in Position: 2
Years in Channel: 7
Leonard worked to develop Veritas' key partners that have continued to invest in the company. She created programs and incentives that provide value and established a channel team of managers that can focus on the needs of the most critical partners.
Wendy Petty
Verizon Enterprise Solutions
Executive Director Global Channels
Years in Position: 1.6
Years in Channel: 27
Petty was responsible for the creation of a brand-new route to market for Verizon, expanding its solutions into the traditional IT solution provider space. She also launched a resale model that allows Verizon to reach net new customers.
Janet Schijns
Verizon Enterprise Solutions
Vice President, Global Channels
Years in Position: 1
Years in Channel: 10
Schijns launched and continues to govern the Verizon Partner Program to drive innovation in channels of distribution and business products. In her new role, she is responsible for driving an integrated channel strategy.
Laurie Evans
VMware
VP, Global Solution Providers
Years in Position: 1
Years in Channel: 23
Evans led a team to develop how VMware executes its go-to-market strategy within the solution provider route to market. She was accountable for significant channel revenue and produced double-digit growth year over year.
Sandra Haan
VMware
Senior Director, Partner Marketing
Years in Position: 4
Years in Channel: 17
Haan and her team expanded the opportunities for partners to engage with VMware, launching a personalized communications platform that brings partners the content they want, when they want it, and on the device of their choice.
Colleen Kapase
VMware
VP, Partner Go To Market Experience, Global Partner Organization
Years in Position: 3
Years in Channel: 17
One of Kapase's highlights was launching net-new products successfully through partners focused on VMware NSX and VMware Virtual SAN, which have different go-to-market strategies.
Coletta Vigh
WatchGuard Technologies
Director, Global Channel Programs
Years in Position: 1.5
Years in Channel: 12
Vigh last year rolled out the WatchGuardOne Channel Program globally, communicating the partnership guidelines and program benefits, including discounts.
Heather Allen
Westcon-Comstor
Director of Security Product Sales
Years in Position: 7
Years in Channel: 17
Allen drove channel growth initiatives across Westcon-Comstor's leading security vendor partners, including setting business development activities across their channel sales teams and reseller partners.
Jeni Weinstein
WTG
Director of Sales
Years in Position: 2
Years in Channel: 16
Weinstein has helped increase sales at WTG by building an inside channel manager practice within existing agents. She also aims to build an awareness that the company is easy to work with and it can assist agents with the solutions they are bringing to customers.
Annalisa Mena
Xerox
VP, US Solution Providers & Supplies
Years in Position: 1
Years in Channel: 15
Mena works closely with partners and internally inside Xerox to refine coverage, resources, offers and promotions. Her goal is to better align to the value proposition that partners are looking for.
Toni Clayton-Hine
Xerox
Vice President, Marketing and Value Proposition
Years in Position: 3
Years in Channel: 20
Clayton-Hine launched an initiative called Digital Mastery, designed to help partners create a compelling online presence to effectively engage and win new customers using digital marketing techniques.
Jillian Mansolf
Xirrus
Chief Marketing Officer & Vice President Channel Sales
Years in Position: 1
Years in Channel: 20
Mansolf helped grow Xirrus' partner community and the number of leads garnered through its lead generation program. In the past year, the company has seen a 30 percent increase in the number of active partners.
Mariah West
Zerto
Global Partner Marketing
Years in Position: 4
Years in Channel: 7
West continued to expand field marketing teams to work with local partners in building joint go-to-market strategies. She also established Zerto's first Partner Advisory Board, which includes cloud service provider and channel partner leaders in storage, software and cloud.