32 01732 759725 of Barack Obama in which he talks about advice he’d give and discusses the importance of learning how to be effective and solve problems rather than just talk about them. Nothing beats just making it happen. What advice would you give a young person considering a career in IT? Firstly, go for it! It’s an amazing industry to be in, with huge opportunity for growth and development. Secondly, there will be a role for you – be it in tech, sales, marketing or any other area. Lastly, practical experience is crucial. If you’re a tech, helpdesk might not seem glamorous, but it’s the frontline of IT and you will learn how everything actually works. What would make your day job easier? Definitely more time. AI can automate some admin to free up time, but we’re not completely there yet. What’s on your playlist at the moment? I love podcasts, so they’re always the next thing playing, with a mix of politics, tech, science, comedy and football. If it’s music, then something my kids want to hear more than me! What’s the most used app on your phone and why? Well, I’m old enough to still use email a lot, for work and personal stuff. After that, it’s probably Apple Podcasts. How do you like to spend your spare time? I am a season ticket holder at Southampton, along with my daughters, who both play football too. Right now, I’m getting more enjoyment watching their teams than Southampton. Fine dining and good wine or curry and a pint? I’m very happy with my fantastic local curry house and a good pint, but eating at a fine restaurant now and again is a lovely thing. It’s important to have those special occasions and appreciate the opportunities we have. Favourite holiday destination? I like to have holidays with a mix of activities and downtime and love to explore and learn about wherever I am visiting. Add in the food, and Italy is just glorious. represent huge challenges – and ones that, as a trusted expert, a distributor like e92plus is ideally placed to assist with. If we can support partners to profitable growth on that journey, everybody wins. What should your resellers be looking at to maximise growth? The easy answer is cybersecurity! More specifically, aligning protection with business processes and strategy. AI is on the rise, due to its automation and cost-saving benefits, and compliance requirements are increasing with NIS2 and DORA and new UK legislation on its way. Both are business issues that cybersecurity can support and enable but which, if not addressed, can result in negative outcomes. Did you get into IT by accident or design? A bit of a mix. I’ve always worked in marketing, but my early roles at small businesses included running the IT network because I knew more about computers than anyone else and made the mistake of volunteering! That experience was hugely influential, and made me keen to move into a marketing role at an IT company. If you could swap your current job for any other, what would it be? Leading investment in new cyber and tech firms would be an incredible privilege, not just seeing amazing new innovations but being able to shape and support their future success. I’m assuming that getting the call to feature in the next Star Wars film is pushing the question too far! Which business leader do you most admire and why? Honourable mentions to Satya Nadella for turning Microsoft into such a huge cloud success and Mike Norris for incredible results and longevity at Computacenter. Outside of tech, James Timpson is hugely admirable, for running a successful business with great customer service and for his investment in the rehabilitation of ex-offenders – not an easy or obvious choice but one that provides a significant community benefit. What’s the best bit of business advice you’ve been given? Get stuff done. Sadly, the advice wasn’t given to me personally, but there’s a great video What have been your business highlights of the last 12 months? e92plus enjoyed record revenues in 2024 – in the current climate, growing above the market average is something we’re incredibly proud of. We celebrated our 35th birthday last September, and to have remained independent for such a long time and still to be growing is quite an achievement. We have also had a fantastic 12 months in terms of awards recognition. What is currently having the greatest impact on your business? Finding the right people to help drive our business. We’re on a growth trajectory, with fantastic vendors and services, and we are looking to expand the team, but finding the right talent is not always easy. Where do you see the next big opportunity for your business? From a tech perspective, we’re focused on cybersecurity – a fantastic space to work in. Beyond tech (and AI, quantum computing etc.), the opportunity for us lies in helping partners navigate the rapidly changing channel and the complex buyer’s journey. Reduced sales engagement, the rise of online marketplaces and the need for partners to deliver services (for improved margins and to address customers’ skills/capacity gap) all Neil Langridge, Marketing & Alliances Director at e92plus 60 seconds with… 60 SECONDS Neil Langridge
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