01732 759725 INTERVIEW 20 In 2023, PrintIT Reseller is celebrating ten years in print. In a series of exclusive interviews over the next year, we’re inviting industry veterans to share their experiences over the past decade, what they’ve learned, and the highs and the lows of our unique and challenging industry. Here, Rod Tonna-Barthet, President & Chief Executive Officer at KYOCERA Document Solutions (UK), shares his thoughts A decade in print PITR: What was your first job? RTB: I joined Annodata as their Group Sales and Marketing Director which was quite a baptism of fire after 20 years in the finance industry. Many were sceptical at the time for my longevity in the market but I guess after 15 years, I proved many wrong! PITR: What has been the high point of the decade? RTB: Having joined Annodata in 2008 as a £30m office print company, the high point for me was working with the talented team there over the next eight years to help transform the company into a £65m managed services ICT organisation, culminating in the sale of the business in December 2016 to Kyocera. With an embedded and unique philosophy across the Kyocera organisation which underpins all that they do, the cultures of both organisations were deeply aligned and explains how nearly seven years later, many of the original teams on both sides have travelled on our journey. PITR: And the low point? RTB: In 2020, we tragically lost two popular and highly talented young members of staff to health issues. The shock and impact of this on their families and entire team across the Kyocera Group was incredibly emotional and something I had never experienced before in my working life. PITR: What (or who) has had the greatest impact in the sector in the last 10 years? RTB: Two things. The migration to cloud and mobile-based computing, and the pandemic which massively accelerated many opportunities such as hybrid working and many other working practices which would otherwise have taken many more years to implement. PITR: If you could change one thing about the last decade, what would it be? RTB: That humanity could have acted far more quickly to address the current climate crisis. There is still a long way to go on this. PITR: What has been your proudest moment of the past 10 years? RTB: Becoming a grandparent to Chloe, earlier this year. PITR: Sum up the decade in three words. RTB: Volatile. Resilient. Historic www.kyoceradocumentsolutions.co.uk PrintIT Reseller (PITR): You’ve been working in the print and IT industry for more than ten years. What led you to enter the sector? Rod Tonna-Barthet (RTB): I was previously working closely to the sector in the asset finance industry with Schroder’s and then Siemens Financial Services for 20 years. I always enjoyed the market and characters within the office equipment market. Following the financial crisis in 2007, I took the opportunity to join Annodata, with whom I had a close relationship as our biggest customer at the time who were on a growth journey. Rod Tonna-Barthet
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