Bull`s Eye Awards: Distribution Executive of the Year - CHALLENGER
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Kevin Murai, Synnex
Kevin Murai stepped down from his position as president and chief
operating officer with the biggest IT distributor, Ingram Micro, after
20 years there in the summer of 2007. But just a few months later,
Murai resurfaced, announcing that he would join IT distributor Synnex.
The timing couldn’t be more fateful -- the precipice
of a huge recession. But the seasoned executive, who initially served
as co-CEO of Fremont, Calif.-based Synnex together with his predecessor
Bob Huang until Huang retired in November, was apparently ready for the
challenge. As Wall Street melted down and credit markets collapsed,
Huang led his company to positive results, quarter after quarter,
defying the trend its competitors were suffering through.
Murai’s focus on global management, operations, information
technology and customer relationships served him well in his year and a
half on the job at Synnex. Now, looking ahead to 2010, he has already
identified a handful of major drivers to continue to propel the company
and its partners to growth. They include areas such as health care,
digital signage and managed print services.
Indeed, while all distributors recognized the importance of helping
their channel partners cash in on the economic stimulus package, Synnex
was the first to forge a partnership with a company that offered
electronic medical records (EMRs) to help channel partners capture a
piece of the stimulus package pie for their end customers.
