Founded in 1981 by Harry Zarek, Compugen has risen to become the number one Canadian Solution Provider with revenue close to $450M. The company works with over 2,000 mid- to-large-sized Canadian organizations providing technology infrastructure solutions based upon hardware and software from leading global IT vendors. Harry holds an undergraduate degree in Engineering Science and a Ph.D. in Physics from the University of Toronto. He is an active investor and member of the Board of Directors of a number of technology companies. Harry sat on the Board of RuggedCom Inc., which had its IPO in 2007. Rugged Com was acquired by Siemens in 2012.

Douglas Hotlz-Eakin is president of the American Action Forum. During 2001-2002, he was the Chief Economist of the President’s Council of Economic Advisers. He had also served during 1989-1990 as a Senior Staff Economist. At CEA he helped to formulate policies addressing the 2000-2001 recession and the aftermath of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. From 2003-2005 he was the sixth Director of the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office, which provides budgetary and policy analysis to Congress. During his tenure, CBO assisted Congress as it addressed numerous polices—notably the 2003 tax cuts, the Medicare prescription drug bill and Social Security reform. During 2007 and 2008 he was the Director of Domestic and Economic Policy for the John McCain presidential campaign. Dr. Holtz-Eakin built an international reputation as a scholar doing research in areas of applied economic policy, econometric methods, and entrepreneurship. He began his career at Columbia University in 1985 and moved to Syracuse from 1990-2001. At Syracuse, he became Trustee Professor of Economics at the Maxwell School, Chairman of the Department of Economics and Associate Director of the Center for Policy Research.
 

Dunsire is vice president and general manager, Americas Channels, for the Printing and Personal Systems (PPS) organization at HP. In this role, Dunsire is responsible for leading and managing all aspects of PPS’s commercial channel sales in the U.S., including distribution, direct response, major national, tier-two partners and specialty channel sales. Dunsire is also responsible for overseeing all channel-related partner planning, development and programs for PPS Americas. During his seven-year tenure at HP, Dunsire has served in a variety of leadership positions within the HP channel organization. Most recently, Dunsire served as vice president and general manager of U.S. Channel Sales for PPS, where he was responsible for all aspects of PPS’s channel business. Prior to that, Dunsire led U.S. Channel Sales for the Imaging and Printing Group (IPG) as vice president and general manager, where he successfully grew HP’s LaserJet and inkjet install base and launched Managed Print Services for channel partners. Dunsire joined HP from Lexmark International Inc., where he was vice president of U.S. business channel sales in the Printing Solutions and Services Division for more than six years. At Lexmark, Dunsire was responsible for driving business strategy to grow enterprise and SMB business sales through a broad set of channel partners. Prior to Lexmark, Dunsire served as director of sales at Canon Computer Systems Inc., where he was responsible for the overall distribution, management and planning for printers, scanners and multifunction products. He also held sales management positions with Epson America and Toshiba. Dunsire holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Principia College in Elsah, IL.

Robert Faletra is one of the top authorities in the IT channel and technology marketplace and often referred to as The Voice of (and for) the Channel. Bob brings a unique understanding of the technology marketplace, informed by 30 years of experience in all aspects of the channel. A dedicated advisor to technology suppliers (from start-ups to enterprises), Bob helps them conceptualize and build strategic channel initiatives and often meets with CEOs to discuss channel strategy. Bob has deep relationships in the solution provider community and also sits on the advisory board of several high tech start-ups, helping them formulate their go-to-market strategy.

George Kurian is chief executive officer at NetApp and a member of the board. Kurian joined the company in 2011, bringing his passion and relentless focus on execution to his leadership roles at NetApp. He was named CEO in June 2015. Previously at NetApp, as executive vice president of product operations, Kurian was responsible for the strategy and development of NetApp’s product and solutions portfolio. Before that George was senior vice president of the Data ONTAP group. He oversaw the product roadmap and engineering execution for the Data ONTAP operating system. Kurian joined NetApp as senior vice president of the Storage Solutions Group at NetApp, where he was responsible for the solutions portfolio and joint partner technology integration.

Prior to joining NetApp, Kurian was vice president and general manager of the Application Networking and Switching Technology Group at Cisco. In this role, he was responsible for Cisco products for the modular campus LAN switching and WAN application delivery markets. He also led Cisco’s successful development of products and solutions to enable Ethernet-based converged networks for video, voice, and data.

Kurian’s diverse background also includes the role of vice president at Akamai Technologies, management consulting at McKinsey & Company, and leading Software Engineering and Product Management teams at Oracle Corporation.

He holds a bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering from Princeton University and a master’s degree in business administration from Stanford University.

Sammy currently serves as the North American Channel Chief, presiding over the PC and System X Channel teams. Prior to this role, in October 2014, he was appointed as Executive Director of Channel Sales for the System X team in Lenovo’s Enterprise Systems Group following the acquisition of IBM’s x86 server team.

Formerly, Sammy held a variety of leadership positions with IBM and Lenovo. He served as Executive Director of VAR & Distribution sales for Lenovo in the US, Caribbean, and Central America. A cornerstone role for Sammy included launching Lenovo’s new consumer product line, the “IdeaPad notebook and IdeaCentre desktop” into the retail space for both the US and Canada.  In a time frame of just 2 years under his leadership, Lenovo built a firm presence in this channel. While working for IBM in Dallas, Texas he was the Business Unit Executive covering Large Enterprise, Mid-Market, and Public Sector end user accounts for the Southwest.  

Sammy was recognized by CRN in June of 2011 as one of the 100 people you should know in the channel. He holds a B.S. in Marketing from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington and resides in Raleigh, NC with his wife Andra, and their two children, Olivia, and Chapman. He is an active tennis player and runner. 

Geoff Tudor is responsible for defining and implementing hybrid IT and cloud architectures with Hewlett Packard Enterprise’s (HPE) largest customers across multiple industry segments in North and South America.

Geoff has over 20 years of experience in the cloud computing, storage, broadband and networking industries. Prior to HPE, Geoff led cloud storage architecture for Nirvanix (acquired by Oracle) and was co-founder of Unwired Nation, a mobile cloud application platform serving the banking industry.

Geoff holds an M.B.A. from the University of Texas, a bachelor's degree from Tulane University and is a patent holder in the area of satellite communications. He resides in Austin, Texas

Robert Faletra is one of the top authorities in the IT channel and technology marketplace and often referred to as The Voice of (and for) the Channel. Bob brings a unique understanding of the technology marketplace, informed by 30 years of experience in all aspects of the channel. A dedicated advisor to technology suppliers (from start-ups to enterprises), Bob helps them conceptualize and build strategic channel initiatives and often meets with CEOs to discuss channel strategy. Bob has deep relationships in the solution provider community and also sits on the advisory board of several high tech start-ups, helping them formulate their go-to-market strategy.

Mark D. McLaughlin joined Palo Alto Networks as President and Chief Executive in August 2011 and became Chairman the following year. Prior to Palo Alto Networks, McLaughlin was CEO of Verisign where he had also held a variety of positions including chief operating officer, EVP of products and marketing and head of the company’s Naming Services business. Prior to Verisign, McLaughlin was the vice president of sales and business development for Signio, a leading internet payment company. He also served as vice president of business development for Gemplus, the world's leading smart-card company. Earlier in his career, he served as General Counsel of Caere Corp. and practiced law as an attorney with Cooley Godward Kronish LLP.

In 2014, President Barack Obama appointed McLaughlin to the position of Chairman of the National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee after serving on NSTAC since January 2011. He received his J.D., Magna cum Laude, from Seattle University School of Law and earned his bachelor of science from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. He served as a U.S. Army attack helicopter pilot and earned his Airborne Wings. McLaughlin currently serves on the board of directors for Opower and Qualcomm Inc.
 

Bobby Cameron is a leading expert on best practices for IT, including business technology; transformation from IT to business technology; driving business innovation; the business value of IT; technology strategy; application development; and IT operations. His specialty is transformative technology use that drives business success in the emerging world of business technology (BT), like IT value creation, technology-based business innovation, and digital business networks.

While Cameron focuses his research on delivering IT excellence on the road to BT, he continues his close work with members of The CIO Group in the Forrester Leadership Boards, which he conceived and piloted in 2002. In this role, he writes CIO-targeted research, answers individual members' business and technology inquiries, and facilitates CIO Group member exchange meetings where CIOs discuss member-selected topics.

Prior to taking on this role, Cameron's research focused on technology leadership — the impact of technology and services on organizations, budgets, and roles. Before joining Forrester, Cameron spent five years as director of product management at Dun and Bradstreet Software (DBS), with responsibility for that company's client/server directions, decision support products, and tools and technologies. Prior to that Cameron was with Dataquest, the San Jose, Calif., market research firm. He also spent  he spent nine years at Chase Manhattan's electronic banking business in Lexington, Mass., connecting 8,000 treasurers with 100 bank back offices worldwide. While at Chase, Bobby was MIS director and director of product management.

As Founder & Co-CEO of BCM One, John Cunningham oversees strategic planning and initiatives, business development, channel sales, supplier management, overall revenue growth and financial performance. An active industry professional, Cunningham serves and has served on various advisory boards including Verizon, CenturyLink, Level 3, ShoreTel, Lightower, West IP, Internap and the BoB Conference to name a few. Cunningham is a two-time finalist for Cloud Partner’s “Telecom Executive of the Year Award”.

Prior to launching BCM One, John was a sales and branch manager throughout the Northeast Corridor for Centex Telemanagement, one of the first companies to manage local and long distance telephone services for businesses.

Over the course of a 25-year career characterized by leadership, entrepreneurialism and a rare vision for the future of the technology landscape, Cunningham has founded and piloted three highly successful companies which all rolled up into what is now BCM One.

Bob joined Presidio in February of 2012, following the acquisition of his company, BlueWater Communications Group, LLC.  Bob has led numerous technology service organizations, including Dimension Data North America and Integrated Systems Group. He has received recognitions such as Executive of the Year by VARBusiness and Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst &Young.  Bob resides in Long Island, NY.

Tami is a seasoned executive with 20 years of experience and deep expertise in building and managing businesses. From small business owner, to managing a profitable IT services business at HP, Tami has broad functional expertise, including strategy and planning, P&L management, product and category management, marketing, operations, and sales. Tami has worked extensively with direct and indirect routes to market within regional and global marketplaces. She has a proven track record of tangible business results and building and maintaining high performing teams. 

Tami is currently the Senior Director of HP’s Personal Systems Services business in the Americas region. In this role, she is responsible for driving profitable growth for PC lifecycle services, and spearheading the launch and growth of HP’s device as a service offerings.

Tami has been a member of the board of directors for the Humanitarian Bowl, a volunteer for the Jesse Tree and Computers for Kids, and was recently selected for the 2016-2018 class of Leadership Boise. She was also recently recognized by HP as a top female leader during International Women’s Week, and by the Women’s and Children’s Alliance at their annual Tribute to Women in Industry.

Joe Sykora is the Vice President of Americas Channels and Enhanced Technologies for Fortinet, Inc. (FTNT), and is responsible for overseeing a channel organization of over 7,400 Americas partners as well as Fortinet's channel sales strategy. Joe and his team work closely with Fortinet’s partners and their mid-enterprise customers to protect themselves from the ever-evolving threat landscape. Joe has over 30 years in IT security, in both the manufacturing sector and as a solution provider, helping customers focus on business priorities while keeping their networks secure.

Eric Loper’s career has spanned venture investing to enterprise sales. He is a 16-year industry veteran focused on delivering people-centered innovation.  In his time at Microsoft, Loper envisioned and built a $39 million customer offer engine, consulted senior leadership on competitive strategy and pioneered Microsoft’s managed partner marketing model.  Today, Loper leads the national solution provider sales business at Microsoft focused on driving revenue with the most strategic U.S. partners. 

Christopher Hertz today serves as a partner with NextGen Venture Partners, a network driven venture partner for entrepreneurs. He recently left New Signature, the leading-edge IT integrator he founded in 2003. During his tenure at New Signature, Hertz served as president and helped drive and manage the company’s rapid growth.  Hertz has established himself as a cloud industry expert who speaks frequently at industry and customer events in the U.S. and throughout Europe. He has been quoted in dozens of leading publications from CRN to Time Magazine. Under his leadership, New Signature was recognized with more than 100 awards including the 2014 Microsoft U.S. Partner of the Year. Hertz has served on the following Microsoft partner advisory councils: Microsoft Office 365; Windows SMB and the virtual technology specialist program. He also served on the Microsoft solution integrator partner executive board. Hertz  holds received his MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management and bachelor of science degree with a double major in Information Management and Technology and Anthropology from Syracuse University. He holds 16 technical certifications from Microsoft.

Bob Skelley serves as The Channel Company’s Chief Executive Officer. Prior to his role as CEO, Bob led the company’s PartnerDemand Services group, providing demand generation and marketing services that drive revenue for both IT solution providers and vendors. Bob has over 20 years of experience in channel development, business development, sales and marketing. Prior to The Channel Company, Skelley held numerous channel executive positions including Vice President of Global Channels and Alliances for Infinio, Executive Director of North American Channel Sales for Dell, Global Vice President, Channel Strategy and Operations for EqualLogic and Director of U.S. Distribution and VAR Channel for Microsoft.

Robert Faletra is one of the top authorities in the IT channel and technology marketplace and often referred to as The Voice of (and for) the Channel. Bob brings a unique understanding of the technology marketplace, informed by 30 years of experience in all aspects of the channel. A dedicated advisor to technology suppliers (from start-ups to enterprises), Bob helps them conceptualize and build strategic channel initiatives and often meets with CEOs to discuss channel strategy. Bob has deep relationships in the solution provider community and also sits on the advisory board of several high tech start-ups, helping them formulate their go-to-market strategy.

Marius Haas serves as chief commercial officer and president, Enterprise Solutions for Dell. In this role, he leads the Dell sales and marketing teams that deliver innovative and practical technology solutions to consumers, small and medium businesses, Dell partners, public institutions and large enterprises worldwide. In addition, he is responsible for worldwide engineering, design, development and marketing of Dell enterprise products, including servers, networking and storage systems. Marius came to Dell in 2012 from Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. L.P. where he was responsible for identifying and pursuing new investments, particularly in the technology sector, while also supporting existing portfolio companies with operational expertise. Prior to KKR, Marius was senior vice president and worldwide general manager of the Hewlett-Packard Networking Division, and also served as senior vice president of Strategy and Corporate Development. Earlier in his career, Marius held a wide range of senior operations roles at Compaq and Intel Corp.