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Tech Data’s Dutkowsky: All Options Are on the Table

Bob Dutkowsky, the incoming CEO at distributor Tech Data, says he plans to take the company up a notch and that all options to grow business are on the table, including an expansion to Asia. Dutkowsky, 51, will be appointed CEO and a director of the company on Oct. 2, replacing Steven Raymund, 50, who […]

Written By: John Hazard

Sep 20, 2006

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Bob Dutkowsky, the incoming CEO at distributor Tech Data, says he plans to take the company up a notch and that all options to grow business are on the table, including an expansion to Asia.

Dutkowsky, 51, will be appointed CEO and a director of the company on Oct. 2, replacing Steven Raymund, 50, who will remain nonexecutive chairman. Raymund has led the company since 1986.

Dutkowsky said he brings with him a fresh set of eyes and “big company” experience, which should help the company return to growth. Tech Data has struggled recently after nearly 20 years of growth under previous CEO Steven Raymund.

Raymund, who announced in January that he would step down from the post as the board of directors sought to separate the roles, oversaw the growth of the company from a few million dollars of business annually to an expected $20.5 billion this year.

But the Clearwater, Fla.-based company’s bulk and several quarters of poor financial results, require a fresh look at the issues facing it and Dutkowsky’s experience running large organizations, the new CEO said.

“The things [Raymund] accomplished are not what I can accomplish or what the board expects me to accomplish,” Dutkowsky said. “He built a big company and that fits my background. I have big company background. I can leverage the things that [Raymund] did.”

“This company has been successful for a long time,” he said. “The board convinced me all the pieces were in place and with a fresh look, a fresh set of eyes, the company has the potential to do much more than what it is. Now it’s time to take it to the next level.”

Tech Data leadership have a solid plan in place, but Dutkowsky said he intends to consider all options to grow revenue.

“Consider the universe the list of people I want to talk to,” Dutkowsky said. “I will talk to anyone who will help make us a bigger player in the space.”

“We’ll look at acquisitions,” he said. “There are things you can do organizationally to make the business run better. You can attack the market to gain share with your own capabilities, you can add new services, you can take the business into an adjacent market using your existing infrastructure.”

Chief among the options the company will consider when Dutkowsky comes on board Oct. 1 is an expansion into the Asian market, where there is tremendous opportunity and where Tech Data doesn’t yet play, he said.

Tech Data’s Dutkowsky: All Options Are on the Table

John Hazard

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