Interview
How has the channel evolved since you first entered it? Gosh! Now you will be able to work out my age… I joined the channel in distribution many years ago, and over the years have witnessed significant changes in the channel. Routes to market are constantly changing, with the increase in managed service offerings and consumption billing to name a few. Te value offered from the channel has also increased in recent years as the teams there pivot to supporting new working practices. Te channel needs to be at the cutting edge of change to provide customers the products and support needed to keep people and data protected wherever and however organisations are working.
What areas of improvement do you think need more focus? Organisations need to remember that diversity is everything from age to ethnicity, sexuality to neurodiversity – if companies only recruit from the same small pool of people, or in the likeness of those already in senior positions, they’re putting themselves at a huge disadvantage. Products created by those working in information technology are used the world over. We need full representation from people of all characteristics and backgrounds during the development process to make sure that what’s being created is appropriate for all. Creating a diverse leadership and management, will give organisations wider perspective, global outlook and strength across different parts of the businesses.
Does Forcepoint have any diversity initiatives in place? During the last year, we introduced a company-wide inclusion and diversity training module, really challenging the way we think, build teams, recruit and retain. Currently within the IT channel at Forcepoint, 80% of the team is female, and there’s a strong gender
50 | February 2022
split in the sector more broadly. Diversity of personnel brings along an equivalent diversity of thought – the perfect environment for great ideas, new innovation and different thinking. As a woman in the channel, I can confidently say that we oſten have a different approach, worldview and way of thinking that can add real value. While it can sometimes be intimidating to go into a room full of businessmen, knowing clearly where your own strengths and weaknesses lie allows you to be true to yourself, and thrive even in environments where there is still work to be done around diversity and representation.
What about education? How can the channel look to encourage early interest in the tech channel at school level? As children and young people, we oſten develop preconceptions about what certain industries might be like. So, when we’re presented with career options as we come through higher education, some people automatically rule themselves out from particular career paths – without grounds to do so. Information technology is a case in point. Sadly, in my experience IT has been represented as something you need strong technical qualifications and a computing or mathematical background to get into. In fact, careers within technology are much more diverse, and can be right for a far wider range of people than you might think. Tere’s a whole chain of technology sales, support and account management out there, which requires people with completely different skillsets to those that are hands-on with the tech itself. As an industry, I think there’s more we could be doing to make that clearer, whether that’s by focusing on graduate or early careers schemes to give people some real-world experience, or by adapting and changing how we recruit and what elements we choose to focus on in the process.
www.pcr-online.biz
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52
