Former Ingram Micro boss Kevin Murai has joined rival distributor Synnex as co-CEO and will move into the sole CEO role in November when current CEO Bob Huang retires.
 
Murai has also been named to Synnex's board of directors.

Murai told Channel Insider that while he does not plan to make big changes to the organization, his first order of business for the next 90 days will be "looking at all our processes, IT systems, e-commerce platforms, meeting with our customers and getting their view of what Synnex does right, and meeting with our vendors too," he said.  "Then I will be driving those changes through the organization."

The former Ingram Micro president and chief operating officer said he does not plan to woo other employees away from Ingram Micro.  He left his old company on very good terms last summer after nearly 20 years there.

But when asked if he plans to take any resellers with him to Synnex, Murai said, "Synnex has a great base of [resellers]. There's a lot of common [resellers] anyway. Our first priority is to touch base with Synnex's existing [resellers] and find ways to drive increased business through them."

Murai said that because Synnex operates primarily in the North American market, its model is less complex than Ingram Micro's, allowing it to place more focus on strategic initiatives such as entering "adjacent markets." 

For example, he said, Synnex has made moves into business services and consumer electronics through acquisitions.

Click here to read about Synnex's recent acquisition of New Age Electronics.

Murai retired from Ingram Micro last July, citing the desire to spend more time with his family in Toronto. Ingram Micro is based in Santa Ana, Calif., and Murai had been commuting between the two cities.  Murai will now be based at Synnex's headquarters in Fremont, Calif., in the San Francisco Bay Area and said that his family is discussing the possibility of making a move, but nothing is certain, and nothing will happen until after the current school year ends.

Observers noted that Murai is a relatively young distribution executive and has always been expected to return to the fray.

Murai expressed enthusiasm about rejoining the distribution scene.

"I'm excited to be back," he said. "I feel honored to be offered the chance to take the reins from Bob Huang. Bob Huang has done a great job of creating this company and building it to where it is now."