LOS ANGELES — JULY 22, 2020 — TPx Communications, the premier managed services provider, announced today that its Channel Chief Jim Delis has been recognized as a “Top Gun 51” by the editors of Channel Partners and Channel Futures. The editors teamed with industry analysts and executives from master agencies and distributors to identify premier leaders in the indirect IT and telecom channel.
Delis has been in channel sales leadership for 22 years. For the past 17 years, he led national channel organizations in three companies with great success. Delis is a three-time recipient of the CRN Most Influential Channel Chiefs Award and the Channel Partners Top Channel Chief.
Delis is Senior Vice President of National Channel Partner Sales and Channel Development at TPx, a role he took on in February 2020 following TPx’s acquisition by Siris Capital Group. Previously, Delis was TPx’s Senior Vice President of National Channel Development and Eastern Sales Organizations. Before joining TPx in 2017, he was Senior Vice President, Partner Channel at Time Warner Cable Business Class, where he was responsible for the growth of agent and value-added reseller (VAR) partnerships in telecommunications and cloud services.
“I’m incredibly honored to be named to the Top Gun 51 list, which is based on nominations from the channel community,” said Delis. “At TPx, I’ve had the opportunity to lead our channel-first national expansion. As we’ve built out new markets between our strongholds on the coasts, we’ve had incredible success in converting telecom partners to our high-value managed services approach.”
To compile the Top Gun 51 list, determined each year in tandem with the annual MSP 501, Channel Partners and Channel Futures editors invited those who know channel executives best — distributors, master agents and industry analysts — to nominate leaders who exemplify channel advocacy and leadership. All nominations are strictly confidential.
A channel leader was defined as possessing integrity, knowledge and confidence, the ability to inspire others, commitment and passion. He or she must be adept at recognizing the increasing diversity of partner types, revenue models, and partner and customer journeys.
Those tasked with selecting the Top Gun 51 were asked to consider three criteria for selection:
- Advocates for the channel model with internal leadership. Proof points: Minimal or no house or named accounts. Product or service has “channel-friendly” features and meets advertised claims for end-user functionality. Few operational roadblocks to success within the partner program.
- Is committed to partners’ business success: Proof points: Has increased the percentage of revenue coming through partners during tenure. Can show data to support innovative programs, such as the use of MDF funds, training and certifications. Provides effective enablement.
- Works to earn trust: Proof points: Considered ethical and honest by partners. Is transparent about the direction of the company and limitations of product or service. Minimizes the risk of engagement.
Delis and the rest of this year’s #TopGun51 will be recognized in a special program during Channel Partners Virtual: Digital Events for the Modern Channel. Because of the ongoing COVID-19 situation, the Channel Partners Conference & Expo and Channel Partners Evolution have been combined into a three-day online event to be held Sept. 8-10.
“Today’s channel leaders must be futurists, accountants, technologists, marketers and crisis managers,” said Kris Blackmon, senior content director for Channel Partners and Channel Futures. “It’s important to recognize these outstanding executives on the basis of insights from within the community itself. We want to thank everyone who helped us assemble this year’s list.”
The complete 2020 Top Gun 51 list is available at Channel Partners.
About Informa Tech
Channel Partners Online, Channel Futures, Channel Partners Conference & Expo and Channel Partners Evolution are part of Informa Tech, a market-leading B2B information provider with depth and specialization in the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) sector. They help drive the future by inspiring the technology community to design, build and run a better digital world by providing market-leading research, media, training and event brands. Every year, they welcome 7,400+ subscribers to their research, more than 3.8 million unique visitors a month to their digital communities, 18,200+ students to their training programs and 225,000 delegates to their events.
Background
The 2020 Top Gun 51 list is based on data collected by Channel Partners and Channel Futures from a list of well-known master agents, distributors and channel analysts. Data was collected online from May 13, 2020, to June 3, 2020. All nominations are held in strict confidence.
About TPx
Founded in 1998, TPx is a leading provider of UCaaS, Managed IT services and Managed Connectivity services, with approximately 25,000 customers with more than 50,000 customer locations across the U.S. TPx has best-in-class customer service embedded in its corporate DNA, offering guaranteed performance to all customers wherever there’s a broadband connection. TPx customers serve every business sector and include many government and not-for-profit organizations. For more information, visit www.tpx.com or follow @TPxComm on Twitter.
Media Contact
Khali Henderson
BuzzTheory (for TPx)
1-480-999-5297
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